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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/9776-8.txt b/9776-8.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..af2fc2c --- /dev/null +++ b/9776-8.txt @@ -0,0 +1,7252 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of Cicero's Brutus or History of Famous +Orators; also His Orator, or Accomplished Speaker., by Cicero + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: Cicero's Brutus or History of Famous Orators; also His Orator, or Accomplished Speaker. + +Author: Cicero + +Posting Date: November 15, 2011 [EBook #9776] +Release Date: January, 2006 +First Posted: October 15, 2003 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CICERO'S BRUTUS *** + + + + +Produced by Anne Soulard, Ted Garvin, and the Project +Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team + + + + + + + + + + + +CICERO'S BRUTUS, + +OR + +HISTORY OF FAMOUS ORATORS: + +ALSO, + +HIS ORATOR, + +OR + +ACCOMPLISHED SPEAKER. + +Now first translated into English by E. Jones + + + + + + + +PREFACE. + + +As the following Rhetorical Pieces have never appeared before in the +English language, I thought a Translation of them would be no unacceptable +offering to the Public. The character of the Author (Marcus Tullius +Cicero) is so universally celebrated, that it would be needless, and +indeed impertinent, to say any thing to recommend them. + +The first of them was the fruit of his retirement, during the remains of +the _Civil War_ in Africa; and was composed in the form of a Dialogue. It +contains a few short, but very masterly sketches of all the Speakers +who had flourished either in Greece or Rome, with any reputation of +Eloquence, down to his own time; and as he generally touches the principal +incidents of their lives, it will be considered, by an attentive reader, +as a _concealed epitome of the Roman history_. The conference is supposed +to have been held with Atticus, and their common friend Brutus, in +Cicero's garden at Rome, under the statue of Plato, whom he always +admired, and usually imitated in his dialogues: and he seems in this to +have copied even his _double titles_, calling it _Brutus, or the History +of famous Orators_. It was intended as a _supplement_, or _fourth book_, +to three former ones, on the qualifications of an Orator. + +The second, which is intitled _The Orator_, was composed a very short time +afterwards (both of them in the 61st year of his age) and at the request +of Brutus. It contains a plan, or critical delineation, of what he himself +esteemed the most finished Eloquence, or style of Speaking. He calls it +_The Fifth Part, or Book_, designed to complete his _Brutus_, and _the +former three_ on the same subject. It was received with great approbation; +and in a letter to Lepta, who had complimented him upon it, he declares, +that whatever judgment he had in Speaking, he had thrown it all into that +work, and was content to risk his reputation on the merit of it. But it is +particularly recommended to our curiosity, by a more exact account of the +rhetorical _composition_, or _prosaic harmony_ of the ancients, than is to +be met with in any other part of his works. + +As to the present Translation, I must leave the merit of it to be decided +by the Public; and have only to observe, that though I have not, to my +knowledge, omitted a single sentence of the original, I was obliged, in +some places, to paraphrase my author, to render his meaning intelligible +to a modern reader. My chief aim was to be clear and perspicuous: if I +have succeeded in _that_, it is all I pretend to. I must leave it to abler +pens to copy the _Eloquence_ of Cicero. _Mine_ is unequal to the task. + + + + +BRUTUS, OR THE HISTORY OF ELOQUENCE. + + +When I had left Cilicia, and arrived at Rhodes, word was brought me of the +death of Hortensius. I was more affected with it than, I believe, was +generally expected. For, by the loss of my friend, I saw myself for ever +deprived of the pleasure of his acquaintance, and of our mutual +intercourse of good offices. I likewise reflected, with Concern, that the +dignity of our College must suffer greatly by the decease of such an +eminent augur. This reminded me, that _he_ was the person who first +introduced me to the College, where he attested my qualification upon +oath; and that it was _he_ also who installed me as a member; so that I +was bound by the constitution of the Order to respect and honour him as a +parent. My affliction was increased, that, in such a deplorable dearth of +wife and virtuous citizens, this excellent man, my faithful associate in +the service of the Public, expired at the very time when the Commonwealth +could least spare him, and when we had the greatest reason to regret the +want of his prudence and authority. I can add, very sincerely, that in +_him_ I lamented the loss, not (as most people imagined) of a dangerous +rival and competitor, but of a generous partner and companion in the +pursuit of same. For if we have instances in history, though in studies of +less public consequence, that some of the poets have been greatly +afflicted at the death of their contemporary bards; with what tender +concern should I honour the memory of a man, with whom it is more glorious +to have disputed the prize of eloquence, than never to have met with an +antagonist! especially, as he was always so far from obstructing _my_ +endeavours, or I _his_, that, on the contrary, we mutually assisted each +other, with our credit and advice. + +But as _he_, who had a perpetual run of felicity, left the world at a +happy moment for himself, though a most unfortunate one for his fellow- +citizens; and died when it would have been much easier for him to lament +the miseries of his country, than to assist it, after living in it as long +as he _could_ have lived with honour and reputation;--we may, indeed, +deplore his death as a heavy loss to _us_ who survive him. If, however, we +consider it merely as a personal event, we ought rather to congratulate +his fate, than to pity it; that, as often as we revive the memory of this +illustrious and truly happy man, we may appear at least to have as much +affection for him as for ourselves. For if we only lament that we are no +longer permitted to enjoy him, it must, indeed, be acknowledged that this +is a heavy misfortune to _us_; which it, however, becomes us to support +with moderation, less our sorrow should be suspected to arise from motives +of interest, and not from friendship. But if we afflict ourselves, on the +supposition that _he_ was the sufferer;--we misconstrue an event, which to +_him_ was certainly a very happy one. + +If Hortensius was now living, he would probably regret many other +advantages in common with his worthy fellow-citizens. But when he beheld +the Forum, the great theatre in which he used to exercise his genius, no +longer accessible to that accomplished eloquence, which could charm the +ears of a Roman, or a Grecian audience; he must have felt a pang of which +none, or at least but few, besides himself, could be susceptible. Even _I_ +am unable to restrain my tears, when I behold my country no longer +defensible by the genius, the prudence, and the authority of a legal +magistrate,--the only weapons which I have learned to weild, and to which +I have long been accustomed, and which are most suitable to the character +of an illustrious citizen, and of a virtuous and well-regulated state. + +But if there ever was a time, when the authority and eloquence of an +honest individual could have wrested their arms from the hands of his +distracted fellow-citizens; it was then when the proposal of a compromise +of our mutual differences was rejected, by the hasty imprudence of some, +and the timorous mistrust of others. Thus it happened, among other +misfortunes of a more deplorable nature, that when my declining age, after +a life spent in the service of the Public, should have reposed in the +peaceful harbour, not of an indolent, and a total inactivity, but of a +moderate and becoming retirement; and when my eloquence was properly +mellowed, and had acquired its full maturity;--thus it happened, I say, +that recourse was then had to those fatal arms, which the persons who had +learned the use of them in honourable conquest, could no longer employ to +any salutary purpose. Those, therefore, appear to me to have enjoyed a +fortunate and a happy life, (of whatever State they were members, but +especially in _our's_) who held their authority and reputation, either for +their military or political services, without interruption: and the sole +remembrance of them, in our present melancholy situation, was a pleasing +relief to me, when we lately happened to mention them in the course of +conversation. + +For, not long ago, when I was walking for my amusement, in a private +avenue at home, I was agreeably interrupted by my friend Brutus, and T. +Pomponius, who came, as indeed they frequently did, to visit me;--two +worthy citizens who were united to each other in the closest friendship, +and were so dear and so agreeable to me, that, on the first sight of them, +all my anxiety for the Commonwealth subsided. After the usual +salutations,--"Well, gentlemen," said I, "how go the times? What news have +you brought?" "None," replied Brutus, "that you would wish to hear, or +that I can venture to tell you for truth."--"No," said Atticus; "we are +come with an intention that all matters of state should be dropped; and +rather to hear something from you, than to say any thing which might serve +to distress you." "Indeed," said I, "your company is a present remedy for +my sorrow; and your letters, when absent, were so encouraging, that they +first revived my attention to my studies."--"I remember," replied +Atticus, "that Brutus sent you a letter from Asia, which I read with +infinite pleasure: for he advised you in it like a man of sense, and gave +you every consolation which the warmest friendship could suggest."-- +"True," said I, "for it was the receipt of that letter which recovered me +from a growing indisposition, to behold once more the cheerful face of +day; and as the Roman State, after the dreadful defeat near Cannae, first +raised its drooping head by the victory of Marcellus at Nola, which was +succeeded by many other victories; so, after the dismal wreck of our +affairs, both public and private, nothing occurred to me before the letter +of my friend Brutus, which I thought to be worth my attention, or which +contributed, in any degree, to the anxiety of my heart."--"That was +certainly my intention," answered Brutus; "and if I had the happiness to +succeed, I was sufficiently rewarded for my trouble. But I could wish to +be informed, what you received from Atticus which gave you such uncommon +pleasure."--"That," said I, "which not only entertained me; but, I hope, +has restored me entirely to myself."--"Indeed!" replied he; "and what +miraculous composition could that be?"--"Nothing," answered I; "could have +been a more acceptable, or a more seasonable present, than that excellent +Treatise of his which roused me from a state of languor and despondency." +--"You mean," said he, "his short, and, I think, very accurate abridgment +of Universal History."--"The very same," said I; "for that little Treatise +has absolutely saved me."--"I am heartily glad of it," said Atticus; "but +what could you discover in it which was either new to you, or so +wonderfully beneficial as you pretend?"--"It certainly furnished many +hints," said I, "which were entirely new to me: and the exact order of +time which you observed through the whole, gave me the opportunity I had +long wished for, of beholding the history of all nations in one regular +and comprehensive view. The attentive perusal of it proved an excellent +remedy for my sorrows, and led me to think of attempting something on your +own plan, partly to amuse myself, and partly to return your favour, by a +grateful, though not an equal acknowledgment. We are commanded, it is +true, in that precept of Hesiod, so much admired by the learned, to return +with the same measure we have received; or, if possible, with a larger. As +to a friendly inclination, I shall certainly return you a full proportion +of it; but as to a recompence in kind, I confess it to be out of my power, +and therefore hope you will excuse me: for I have no first-fruits (like a +prosperous husbandman) to acknowledge the obligation I have received; my +whole harvest having sickened and died, for want of the usual manure: and +as little am I able to present you with any thing from those hidden stores +which are now consigned to perpetual darkness, and to which I am denied +all access; though, formerly, I was almost the only person who was able to +command them at pleasure. I must therefore, try my skill in a long- +neglected and uncultivated soil; which I will endeavour to improve with so +much care, that I may be able to repay your liberality with interest; +provided my genius should be so happy as to resemble a fertile field, +which, after being suffered to lie fallow a considerable time, produces a +heavier crop than usual."--"Very well," replied Atticus, "I shall expect +the fulfilment of your promise; but I shall not insist upon it till it +suits your convenience; though, after all, I shall certainly be better +pleased if you discharge the obligation."--"And I also," said Brutus, +"shall expect that you perform your promise to my friend Atticus: nay, +though I am only his voluntary solicitor, I shall, perhaps, be very +pressing for the discharge of a debt, which the creditor himself is +willing to submit to your own choice."--"But I shall refuse to pay you," +said I, "unless the original creditor takes no farther part in the suit." +--"This is more than I can promise," replied he, "for I can easily +foresee, that this easy man, who disclaims all severity, will urge his +demand upon you, not indeed to distress you, but yet very closely and +seriously."--"To speak ingenuously," said Atticus, "my friend Brutus, I +believe, is not much mistaken: for as I now find you in good spirits, for +the first time, after a tedious interval of despondency, I shall soon make +bold to apply to you; and as this gentleman has promised his assistance, +to recover what you owe me, the least I can do is to solicit, in my turn, +for what is due to him." + +"Explain your meaning," said I.--"I mean," replied he, "that you must +write something to amuse us; for your pen has been totally silent this +long time; and since your Treatise on Politics, we have had nothing from +you of any kind; though it was the perusal of that which fired me with the +ambition to write an Abridgment of Universal History. But we shall, +however, leave you to answer this demand, when, and in what manner you +shall think most convenient. At present, if you are not otherwise engaged, +you must give us your sentiments on a subject on which we both desire to +be better informed."--"And what is that?" said I.--"What you gave me a +hasty sketch of," replied he, "when I saw you last at Tusculanum,--the +History of Famous Orators;--_when_ they made their appearance, and _who_ +and _what_ they were; which, furnished such an agreeable train of +conversation, that when I related the substance of it to _your_, or I +ought rather to have said our _common_ friend, Brutus, he expressed a +violent desire to hear the whole of it from your own mouth. Knowing you, +therefore, to be at leisure, we have taken the present opportunity to wait +upon you; so that, if it is really convenient, you will oblige us both by +resuming the subject."--"Well, gentlemen," said I, "as you are so +pressing, I will endeavour to satisfy you in the best manner I am able."-- +"You are _able_ enough," replied he; "only unbend yourself a little, or, +if you can set your mind at full liberty."--"If I remember right," said I, +"Atticus, what gave rise to the conversation, was my observing, that the +cause of Deiotarus, a most excellent Sovereign, and a faithful ally, was +pleaded by our friend Brutus, in my hearing, with the greatest elegance +and dignity."--"True," replied he, "and you took occasion from the ill +success of Brutus, to lament the loss of a fair administration of justice +in the Forum."--"I did so," answered I, "as indeed I frequently do: and +whenever I see you, my Brutus, I am concerned to think where your +wonderful genius, your finished erudition, and unparalleled industry will +find a theatre to display themselves. For after you had thoroughly +improved your abilities, by pleading a variety of important causes; and +when my declining vigour was just giving way, and lowering the ensigns of +dignity to your more active talents; the liberty of the State received a +fatal overthrow, and that Eloquence, of which we are now to give the +History, was condemned to perpetual silence."--"Our other misfortunes," +replied Brutus, "I lament sincerely; and I think I ought to lament them:-- +but as to Eloquence, I am not so fond of the influence and the glory it +bestows, as of the study and the practice of it, which nothing can deprive +me of, while you are so well disposed to assist me: for no man can be an +eloquent speaker, who has not a clear and ready conception. Whoever, +therefore, applies himself to the study of Eloquence, is at the same time +improving his judgment, which is a talent equally necessary in all +military operations." + +"Your remark," said I, "is very just; and I have a higher opinion of the +merit of eloquence, because, though there is scarcely any person so +diffident as not to persuade himself, that he either has, or may acquire +every other accomplishment which, formerly, could have given him +consequence in the State; I can find no person who has been made an orator +by the success of his military prowess.--But that we may carry on the +conversation with greater ease, let us seat ourselves."--As my visitors +had no objection to this, we accordingly took our seats in a private lawn, +near a statue of Plato. + +Then resuming the conversation,--"to recommend the study of eloquence," +said I, "and describe its force, and the great dignity it confers upon +those who have acquired it, is neither our present design, nor has any +necessary connection with it. But I will not hesitate to affirm, that +whether it is acquired by art or practice, or the mere powers of nature, +it is the most difficult of all attainments; for each of the five branches +of which it is said to consist, is of itself a very important art; from +whence it may easily be conjectured, how great and arduous must be the +profession which unites and comprehends them all. + +"Greece alone is a sufficient witness of this:--for though she was fired +with a wonderful love of Eloquence, and has long since excelled every +other nation in the practice of it, yet she had all the rest of the arts +much earlier; and had not only invented, but even compleated them, a +considerable time before she was mistress of the full powers of elocution. +But when I direct my eyes to Greece, your beloved Athens, my Atticus, +first strikes my sight, and is the brightest object in my view: for in +that illustrious city the _orator_ first made his appearance, and it is +there we shall find the earliest records of eloquence, and the first +specimens of a discourse conducted by rules of art. But even in Athens +there is not a single production now extant which discovers any taste for +ornament, or seems to have been the effort of a real orator, before the +time of Pericles (whose name is prefixed to some orations which still +remain) and his cotemporary Thucydides; who flourished,--not in the +infancy of the State, but when it was arrived at its full maturity of +power. + +"It is, however, supposed, that Pisistratus (who lived many years before) +together with Solon, who was something older, and Clisthenes, who survived +them both, were very able speakers for the age they lived in. But some +years after these, as may be collected from the Attic Annals, came the +above-mentioned Themistocles, who is said to have been as much +distinguished by his eloquence as by his political abilities;--and after +him the celebrated Pericles, who, though adorned with every kind of +excellence, was most admired for his talent of speaking. Cleon also (their +cotemporary) though a turbulent citizen, was allowed to be a tolerable +orator. + +"These were immediately succeeded by Alcibiades, Critias, and Theramenes, +whose manner of speaking may be easily inferred from the writings of +Thucydides, who lived at the same time: their discourses were nervous and +stately, full of sententious remarks, and so excessively concise as to be +sometimes obscure. But as soon as the force of a regular and a well- +adjusted speech was understood, a sudden crowd of rhetoricians appeared,-- +such as Gorgias the Leontine, Thrasymachus the Chalcedonian, Protagoras +the Abderite, and Hippias the Elean, who were all held in great esteem,-- +with many others of the same age, who professed (it must be owned, rather +too arrogantly) to teach their scholars,--_how the worse might be made, by +the force of eloquence, to appear the better cause_. But these were openly +opposed by the famous Socrates, who, by an adroit method of arguing which +was peculiar to himself, took every opportunity to refute the principles +of their art. His instructive conferences produced a number of intelligent +men, and _Philosophy_ is said to have derived her birth from him;--not the +doctrine of _Physics_, which was of an earlier date, but that Philosophy +which treats of men, and manners, and of the nature of good and evil. But +as this is foreign to our present subject, we must defer the Philosophers +to another opportunity, and return to the Orators, from whom I have +ventured to make a sort digression. + +"When the professors therefore, abovementioned were in the decline of +life, Isocrates made his appearance, whos house stood open to all Greece +as the _School of Eloquence_. He was an accomplished orator, and an +excellent teacher; though he did not display his talents in the Forum, but +cherished and improved that glory within the walls of his academy, which, +in my opinion, no poet has ever yet acquired. He composed many valuable +specimens of his art, and taught the principles of it to others; and not +only excelled his predecessors in every part of it, but first discovered +that a certain _metre_ should be observed in prose, though totally +different from the measured rhyme of the poets. Before _him_, the +artificial structure and harmony of language was unknown;--or if there are +any traces of it to be discovered, they appear to have been made without +design; which, perhaps, will be thought a beauty:--but whatever it may be +deemed, it was, in the present case, the effect rather of native genius, +or of accident, than of art and observation. For mere nature itself will +measure and limit our sentences by a convenient compass of words; and when +they are thus confined to a moderate flow of expression, they will +frequently have a _numerous_ cadence:--for the ear alone can decide what +is full and complete, and what is deficient; and the course of our +language will necessarily be regulated by our breath, in which it is +excessively disagreeable, not only to fail, but even to labour. + +"After Isocrates came Lysias, who, though not personally engaged in +forensic causes, was a very artful and an elegant composer, and such a one +as you might almost venture to pronounce a complete orator: for +Demosthenes is the man who approaches the character so nearly, that you +may apply it to him without hesitation. No keen, no artful turns could +have been contrived for the pleadings he has left behind him, which he did +not readily discover;--nothing could have been expressed with greater +nicety, or more clearly and poignantly, than it has been already expressed +by him;--and nothing greater, nothing more rapid and forcible, nothing +adorned with a nobler elevation either of language, or sentiment, can be +conceived than what is to be found in his orations. He was soon rivalled +by his cotemporaries Hyperides, Aeschines, Lycurgus, Dinarchus, and +Demades (none of whose writings are extant) with many others that might be +mentioned: for this age was adorned with a profusion of good orators; and +the genuine strength and vigour of Eloquence appears to me to have +subsisted to the end of this period, which was distinguished by a natural +beauty of composition without disguise or affectation. + +"When these orators were in the decline of life, they were succeeded by +Phalereus; who was then in the prime of youth. He was indeed a man of +greater learning than any of them, but was fitter to appear on the parade, +than in the field; and, accordingly, he rather pleased and entertained the +Athenians, than inflamed their passions; and marched forth into the dust +and heat of the Forum, not from a weather-beaten tent, but from the shady +recesses of Theophrastus, a man of consummate erudition. He was the first +who relaxed the force of Eloquence, and gave her a soft and tender air: +and he rather chose to be agreeable, as indeed he was, than great and +striking; but agreeable in such a manner as rather charmed, than warmed +the mind of the hearer. His greatest ambition was to impress his audience +with a high opinion of his elegance, and not, as Eupolis relates of +Pericles, to _sting_ as well as to _please_. + +"You see, then, in the very city in which Eloquence was born and nurtured, +how late it was before she grew to maturity; for before the time of Solon +and Pisistratus, we meet with no one who is so much as mentioned for his +talent of speaking. These, indeed, if we compute by the Roman date, may be +reckoned very ancient; but if by that of the Athenians, we shall find them +to be moderns. For though they flourished in the reign of Servius Tullius, +Athens had then subsisted much longer than Rome has at present. I have +not, however, the least doubt that the power of Eloquence has been always +more or less conspicuous. For Homer, we may suppose, would not have +ascribed such superior talents of elocution to Ulysses, and Nestor (one of +whom he celebrates for his force, and the other for his sweetness) unless +the art of Speaking had then been held in some esteem; nor could the Poet +himself have been master of such an ornamental style, and so excellent a +vein of Oratory as we actually find in him.--The time indeed in which he +lived is undetermined: but we are certain that he flourished many years +before Romulus: for he was at least of as early a date as the elder +Lycurgus, the legislator of the Spartans. + +"But a particular attention to the art, and a greater ability in the +practice of it, may be observed in Pisistratus. He was succeeded in the +following century by Themistocles, who, according to the Roman date, was a +person of the remotest antiquity; but, according to that of the Athenians, +he was almost a modern. For he lived when Greece was in the height of her +power, but when the city of Rome had but lately freed herself from the +shackles of regal tyranny;--for the dangerous war with the Volsci, who +were headed by Coriolanus (then a voluntary exile) happened nearly at the +same time as the Persian war; and we may add, that the fate of both +commanders was remarkably similar. Each of them, after distinguishing +himself as an excellent citizen, being driven from his country by the +wrongs of an ungrateful people, went over to the enemy: and each of them +repressed the efforts of his resentment by a voluntary death. For though +you, my Atticus, have represented the exit of Coriolanus in a different +manner, you must give me leave to dispatch him in the way I have +mentioned."--"You may use your pleasure," replied Atticus with a smile: +"for it is the privilege of rhetoricians to exceed the truth of history, +that they may have an opportunity of embellishing the fate of their +heroes: and accordingly, Clitarchus and Stratocles have entertained us +with the same pretty fiction about the death of Themistocles, which you +have invented for Coriolanus. Thucydides, indeed, who was himself an +Athenian of the highest rank and merit, and lived nearly at the same time, +has only informed us that he died, and was privately buried in Attica, +adding, that it was suspected by some that he had poisoned himself. But +these ingenious writers have assured us, that, having slain a bull at the +altar, he caught the blood in a large bowl, and, drinking it off, fell +suddenly dead upon the ground. For this species of death had a tragical +air, and might be described with all the pomp of rhetoric; whereas the +ordinary way of dying afforded no opportunity for ornament. As it will, +therefore, suit your purpose, that Coriolanus should resemble Themistocles +in every thing, I give you leave to introduce the fatal bowl; and you may +still farther heighten the catastrophe by a solemn sacrifice, that +Coriolanus may appear in all respects to have been a second Themistocles." + +"I am much obliged to you," said I, "for your courtesy: but, for the +future, I shall be more cautious in meddling with History when you are +present; whom I may justly commend as a most exact and scrupulous relator +of the Roman History; but nearly at the time we are speaking of (though +somewhat later) lived the above-mentioned Pericles, the illustrious son of +Xantippus, who first improved his eloquence by the friendly aids of +literature;--not that kind of literature which treats professedly of the +art of Speaking, of which there was then no regular system; but after he +had studied under Anaxagoras the Naturalist, he easily transferred his +capacity from abstruse and intricate speculations to forensic and popular +debates. + +"All Athens was charmed with the sweetness of his language; and not only +admired him for his fluency, but was awed by the superior force and the +_terrors_ of his eloquence. This age, therefore, which may be considered +as the infancy of the Art, furnished Athens with an Orator who almost +reached the summit of his profession: for an emulation to shine in the +Forum is not usually found among a people who are either employed in +settling the form of their government, or engaged in war, or struggling +with difficulties, or subjected to the arbitrary power of Kings. Eloquence +is the attendant of peace, the companion of ease and prosperity, and the +tender offspring of a free and a well established constitution. Aristotle, +therefore, informs us, that when the Tyrants were expelled from Sicily, +and private property (after a long interval of servitude) was determined +by public trials, the Sicilians Corax and Tisias (for this people, in +general, were very quick and acute, and had a natural turn for +controversy) first attempted to write precepts on the art of Speaking. +Before them, he says, there was no one who spoke by method, and rules of +art, though there were many who discoursed very sensibly, and generally +from written notes: but Protagoras took the pains to compose a number of +dissertations, on such leading and general topics as are now called common +places. Gorgias, he adds, did the same, and wrote panegyrics and +invectives on every subject: for he thought it was the province of an +Orator to be able either to exaggerate, or extenuate, as occasion might +require. Antiphon the Rhamnusian composed several essays of the same +species; and (according to Thucydides, a very respectable writer, who was +present to hear him) pleaded a capital cause in his own defence, with as +much eloquence as had ever yet been displayed by any man. But Lysias was +the first who openly professed the _Art_; and, after him, Theodorus, being +better versed in the theory than the practice of it, begun to compose +orations for others to pronounce; but reserved the method of doing it to +himself. In the same manner, Isocrates at first disclaimed the Art, but +wrote speeches for other people to deliver; on which account, being often +prosecuted for assisting, contrary to law, to circumvent one or another of +the parties in judgment, he left off composing orations for other people, +and wholly applied himself to writing rules and systems. + +"Thus then we have traced the birth and origin of the Orators of Greece, +who were, indeed, very ancient, as I have before observed, if we compute +by the Roman Annals; but of a much later date, if we reckon by their own: +for the Athenian State had signalized itself by a variety of great +exploits, both at home and abroad, a considerable time before she was +ravished with the charms of Eloquence. But this noble Art was not common +to Greece in general, but almost peculiar to Athens. For who has ever +heard of an Argive, a Corinthian, or a Theban Orator at the times we are +speaking of? unless, perhaps, some merit of the kind may be allowed to +Epaminondas, who was a man of uncommon erudition. But I have never read of +a Lacedemonian Orator, from the earliest period of time to the present. +For Menelaus himself, though said by Homer to have possessed a sweet +elocution, is likewise described as a man of few words. Brevity, indeed, +upon some occasions, is a real excellence; but it is very far from being +compatible with the general character of Eloquence. + +"The Art of Speaking was likewise studied, and admired, beyond the limits +of Greece; and the extraordinary honours which were paid to Oratory have +perpetuated the names of many foreigners who had the happiness to excel in +it. For no sooner had Eloquence ventured to sail from the Pireaeus, but +she traversed all the isles, and visited every part of Asia; till at last +she infected herself with their manners, and lost all the purity and the +healthy complexion of the Attic style, and indeed had almost forgot her +native language. The Asiatic Orators, therefore, though not to be +undervalued for the rapidity and the copious variety of their elocution, +were certainly too loose and luxuriant. But the Rhodians were of a sounder +constitution, and more resembled the Athenians. So much, then, for the +Greeks; for, perhaps, what I have already said of them, is more than was +necessary." + +"As to the necessity of it," answered Brutus, "there is no occasion to +speak of it: but what you have said of them has entertained me so +agreeably, that instead of being longer, it has been much shorter than I +could have wished."--"A very handsome compliment," said I;--"but it is +time to begin with our own countrymen, of whom it is difficult to give any +further account than what we are able to conjecture from our Annals.--For +who can question the address, and the capacity of Brutus, the illustrious +founder of your family? That Brutus, who so readily discovered the meaning +of the Oracle, which promised the supremacy to him who should first salute +his mother? That Brutus, who concealed the most consummate abilities under +the appearance of a natural defect of understanding? Who dethroned and +banished a powerful monarch, the son of an illustrious sovereign? Who +settled the State, which he had rescued from arbitrary power, by the +appointment of an annual magistracy, a regular system of laws, and a free +and open course of justice? And who abrogated the authority of his +colleague, that he might rid the city of the smallest vestige of the +_regal_ name?--Events, which could never have been produced without +exerting the powers of Persuasion!--We are likewise informed that a few +years after the expulsion of the Kings, when the Plebeians retired to the +banks of the Anio, about three miles from the city, and had possessed +themselves of what is called The _sacred_ Mount, M. Valerius the dictator +appeased their fury by a public harangue; for which he was afterwards +rewarded with the highest posts of honour, and was the first Roman who was +distinguished by the surname of _Maximus_. Nor can L. Valerius Potitus be +supposed to have been destitute of the powers of utterance, who, after the +odium which had been excited against the Patricians by the tyrannical +government of the _Decemviri_, reconciled the people to the Senate, by his +prudent laws and conciliatory speeches. We may likewise suppose, that +Appius Claudius was a man of some eloquence; since he dissuaded the Senate +from consenting to a peace with King Pyrrhus, though they were much +inclined to it. The same might be said of Caius Fabricius, who was +dispatched to Pyrrhus to treat for the ransom of his captive fellow- +citizens; and of Titus Coruncanius, who appears by the memoirs of the +pontifical college, to have been a person of no contemptible genius: and +likewise of M. Curius (then a tribune of the people) who, when the +Interrex Appius _the Blind_, an artful Speaker, held the _Comitia_ +contrary to law, by refusing to admit any consuls of plebeian rank, +prevailed upon the Senate to protest against the conduct: of his +antagonist; which, if we consider that the Moenian law was not then in +being, was a very bold attempt. We may also conjecture, that M. Popilius +was a man of abilities, who, in the time of his consulship, when he was +solemnizing a public sacrifice in the proper habit of his office, (for he +was also a Flamen Carmentalis) hearing of the mutiny and insurrection of +the people against the Senate, rushed immediately into the midst of the +assembly, covered as he was with his sacerdotal robes, and quelled the +sedition by his authority and the force of his elocution. I do not pretend +to have read that the persons I have mentioned were then reckoned Orators, +or that any fort of reward or encouragement was given to Eloquence: I only +conjecture what appears very probable. It is also recorded, that C. +Flaminius, who, when tribune of the people proposed the law for dividing +the conquered territories of the Gauls and Piceni among the citizens, and +who, after his promotion to the consulship, was slain near the lake +Thrasimenus, became very popular by the mere force of his address, Quintus +Maximus Verrucosus was likewise reckoned a good Speaker by his +cotemporaries; as was also Quintus Metellus, who, in the second Punic war, +was joint consul with L. Veturius Philo. But the first person we have any +certain account of, who was publicly distinguished as an _Orator_, and who +really appears to have been such, was M. Cornelius Cethegus; whose +eloquence is attested by Q. Ennius, a voucher of the highest credibility; +since he actually heard him speak, and gave him this character after his +death; so that there is no reason to suspect that he was prompted by the +warmth of his friendship to exceed the bounds of truth. In his ninth book +of Annals, he has mentioned him in the following terms: + + "_Additur Orator Corneliu' suaviloquenti + Ore Cethegus Marcu', Tuditano collega, + Marci Filius._" + +"_Add the_ Orator _M. Cornelius Cethegus, so much admired for his +mellifluent tongue; who was the colleague of Tuditanus, and the son of +Marcus_." + +"He expressly calls him an _Orator_, you see, and attributes to him a +remarkable sweetness of elocution; which, even now a-days, is an +excellence of which few are possessed: for some of our modern Orators are +so insufferably harsh, that they may rather be said to bark than to speak. +But what the Poet so much admires in his friend, may certainly be +considered as one of the principal ornaments of Eloquence. He adds; + +" ----_is dictus, ollis popularibus olim, + Qui tum vivebant homines, atque aevum agitabant, + Flos delibatus populi_." + +"_He was called by his cotemporaries, the choicest Flower of the State_." + +"A very elegant compliment! for as the glory of a man is the strength of +his mental capacity, so the brightest ornament of that is Eloquence; in +which, whoever had the happiness to excel, was beautifully styled, by the +Ancients, the _Flower_ of the State; and, as the Poet immediately +subjoins, + + "'--_Suadaeque medulla:' + +"the very marrow and quintessence of Persuasion_." + +"That which the Greeks call [Greek: Peitho], _(i.e. Persuasion)_ and which +it is the chief business of an Orator to effect, is here called _Suada_ by +Ennius; and of this he commends Cethegus as the _quintessence_; so that he +makes the Roman Orator to be himself the very substance of that amiable +Goddess, who is said by Eupolis to have dwelt on the lips of Pericles. +This Cethegus was joint-consul with P. Tuditanus in the second Punic war; +at which time also M. Cato was Quaestor, about one hundred and forty years +before I myself was promoted to the consulship; which circumstance would +have been absolutely lost, if it had not been recorded by Ennius; and the +memory of that illustrious citizen, as has probably been the case of many +others, would have been obliterated by the rust of antiquity. The manner +of speaking which was then in vogue, may easily be collected from the +writings of _Naevius_: for Naevius died, as we learn from the memoirs of +the times, when the persons above-mentioned were consuls; though Varro, a +most accurate investigator of historical truth, thinks there is a mistake +in this, and fixes the death of Naevius something later. For Plautus died +in the consulship of P. Claudius and L. Porcius, twenty years after the +consulship of the persons we have been speaking of, and when Cato was +Censor. Cato, therefore, must have been younger than Cethegus, for he was +consul nine years after him: but we always consider him as a person of the +remotest antiquity, though he died in the consulship of Lucius Marcius and +M. Manilius, and but eighty-three years before my own promotion to the +same office. He is certainly, however, the most ancient Orator we have, +whose writings may claim our attention; unless any one is pleased with the +above-mentioned speech of Appius, on the peace with Pyrrhus, or with a set +of panegyrics on the dead, which, I own, are still extant. For it was +customary in most families of note to preserve their images, their +trophies of honour, and their memoirs, either to adorn a funeral when any +of the family deceased, or to perpetuate the fame of their ancestors, or +prove their own nobility. But the truth of History has been much corrupted +by these laudatory essays; for many circumstances were recorded in them +which never existed; such as false triumphs, a pretended succession of +consulships, and false alliances and elevations, when men of inferior rank +were confounded with a noble family of the same name: as if I myself +should pretend that I am descended from M. Tullius, who was a Patrician, +and shared the consulship with Servius Sulpicius, about ten years after +the expulsion of the kings. + +"But the real speeches of Cato are almost as numerous as those of Lysias +the Athenian; a great number of whose are still extant. For Lysias was +certainly an Athenian; because he not only died but received his birth at +Athens, and served all the offices of the city; though Timaesus, as if he +acted by the Licinian or the Mucian law, remands him back to Syracuse. +There is, however, a manifest resemblance between _his_ character and that +of _Cato_: for they are both of them distinguished by their acuteness, +their elegance, their agreeable humour, and their brevity. But the Greek +has the happiness to be most admired: for there are some who are so +extravagantly fond of him, as to prefer a graceful air to a vigorous +constitution, and who are perfectly satisfied with a slender and an easy +shape, if it is only attended with a moderate share of health. It must, +however, be acknowledged, that even Lysias often displays a strength of +arm, than which nothing can be more strenuous and forcible; though he is +certainly, in all respects, of a more thin and feeble habit than Cato, +notwithstanding he has so many admirers, who are charmed with his very +slenderness. But as to Cato, where will you find a modern Orator who +condescends to read him?--nay, I might have said, who has the least +knowledge of him?--And yet, good Gods! what a wonderful man! I say nothing +of his merit as a Citizen, a Senator, and a General; we must confine our +attention to the Orator. Who, then, has displayed more dignity as a +panegyrist?--more severity as an accuser?--more ingenuity in the turn of +his sentiments?--or more neatness and address in his narratives and +explanations? Though he composed above a hundred and fifty orations, +(which I have seen and read) they are crowded with all the beauties of +language and sentiment. Let us select from these what deserves our notice +and applause: they will supply us with all the graces of Oratory. Not to +omit his _Antiquities_, who will deny that these also are adorned with +every flower, and with all the lustre of Eloquence? and yet he has +scarcely any admirers; which some ages ago was the case of Philistus the +Syracusan, and even of Thucydides himself. For as the lofty and elevated +style of Theopompus soon diminished the reputation of their pithy and +laconic harangues, which were sometimes scarcely intelligible through +their excessive brevity and quaintness; and as Demosthenes eclipsed the +glory of Lysias, so the pompous and stately elocution of the moderns has +obscured the lustre of Cato. But many of us are shamefully ignorant and +inattentive; for we admire the Greeks for their antiquity, and what is +called their Attic neatness, and yet have never noticed the same quality +in Cato. It was the distinguishing character, say they, of Lysias and +Hyperides. I own it, and I admire them for it: but why not allow a share +of it to Cato? They are fond, they tell us, of the _Attic_ style of +Eloquence: and their choice is certainly judicious, provided they borrow +the blood and the healthy juices, as well as the bones and membranes. What +they recommend, however, is, to do it justice, an agreeable quality. But +why must Lysias and Hyperides be so fondly courted, while Cato is entirely +overlooked? His language indeed has an antiquated air, and some of his +expressions are rather too harsh and crabbed. But let us remember that +this was the language of the time: only change and modernize it, which it +was not in his power to do;--add the improvements of number and cadence, +give an easier turn to his sentences, and regulate the structure and +connection of his words, (which was as little practised even by the older +Greeks as by him) and you will discover no one who can claim the +preference to Cato. The Greeks themselves acknowledge that the chief +beauty of composition results from the frequent use of those +_translatitious_ forms of expression which they call _Tropes_, and of +those various attitudes of language and sentiment which they call +_Figures_: but it is almost incredible in what numbers, and with what +amazing variety, they are all employed by Cato. I know, indeed, that he is +not sufficiently polished, and that recourse must be had to a more perfect +model for imitation: for he is an author of such antiquity, that he is the +oldest now extant, whose writings can be read with patience; and the +ancients in general acquired a much greater reputation in every other art, +than in that of Speaking. But who that has seen the statues of the +moderns, will not perceive in a moment, that the figures of Canachus are +too stiff and formal, to resemble life? Those of Calamis, though evidently +harsh, are somewhat softer. Even the statues of Myron are not sufficiently +alive; and yet you would not hesitate to pronounce them beautiful. But +those of Polycletes are much finer, and, in my mind, completely finished. +The case is the same in Painting; for in the works of Zeuxis, Polygnotus, +Timanthes, and several other masters who confined themselves to the use of +four colours, we commend the air and the symmetry of their figures; but in +Aetion, Nicomachus, Protogenes, and Apelles, every thing is finished to +perfection. This, I believe, will hold equally true in all the other arts; +for there is not one of them which was invented and completed at the same +time. I cannot doubt, for instance, that there were many Poets before +Homer: we may infer it from those very songs which he himself informs us +were sung at the feasts of the Phaeacians, and of the profligate suitors +of Penelope. Nay, to go no farther, what is become of the ancient poems of +our own countrymen?" + + "Such as the Fauns and rustic Bards compos'd, + When none the rocks of poetry had cross'd, + Nor wish'd to form his style by rules of art, + Before this vent'rous man: &c. + +"Old Ennius here speaks of himself; nor does he carry his boast beyond the +bounds of truth: the case being really as he describes it. For we had only +an Odyssey in Latin, which resembled one of the rough and unfinished +statues of Daedalus; and some dramatic pieces of Livius, which will +scarcely bear a second reading. This Livius exhibited his first +performance at Rome in the Consulship of M. Tuditanus, and C. Clodius the +son of Caecus, the year before Ennius was born, and, according to the +account of my friend Atticus, (whom I choose to follow) the five hundred +and fourteenth from the building of the city. But historians are not +agreed about the date of the year. Attius informs us that Livius was taken +prisoner at Tarentum by Quintus Maximus in his fifth Consulship, about +thirty years after he is said by Atticus, and our ancient annals, to have +introduced the drama. He adds that he exhibited his first dramatic piece +about eleven years after, in the Consulship of C. Cornelius and Q. +Minucius, at the public games which Salinator had vowed to the Goddess of +Youth for his victory over the Senones. But in this, Attius was so far +mistaken, that Ennius, when the persons above-mentioned were Consuls, was +forty years old: so that if Livius was of the same age, as in this case he +would have been, the first dramatic author we had must have been younger +than Plautus and Naevius, who had exhibited a great number of plays before +the time he specifies. If these remarks, my Brutus, appear unsuitable to +the subject before us, you must throw the whole blame upon Atticus, who +has inspired me with a strange curiosity to enquire into the age of +illustrious men, and the respective times of their appearance."--"On the +contrary," said Brutus, "I am highly pleased that you have carried your +attention so far; and I think your remarks well adapted to the curious +task you have undertaken, the giving us a history of the different classes +of Orators in their proper order."--"You understand me right," said I; +"and I heartily wish those venerable Odes were still extant, which Cato +informs us in his Antiquities, used to be sung by every guest in his turn +at the homely feasts of our ancestors, many ages before, to commemorate +the feats of their heroes. But the _Punic war_ of that antiquated Poet, +whom Ennius so proudly ranks among the _Fauns and rustic Bards_, affords +me as exquisite a pleasure as the finest statue that was ever formed by +Myron. Ennius, I allow, was a more finished writer: but if he had really +undervalued the other, as he pretends to do, he would scarcely have +omitted such a bloody war as the first _Punic_, when he attempted +professedly to describe all the wars of the Republic. Nay he himself +assigns the reason. + + "Others" (said he) "that cruel war have sung:" + +Very true, and they have sung it with great order and precision, though +not, indeed, in such elegant strains as yourself. This you ought to have +acknowledged, as you must certainly be conscious that you have borrowed +many ornaments from Naevius; or if you refuse to own it, I shall tell you +plainly that you have _pilfered_ them. + +"Cotemporary with the Cato above-mentioned (though somewhat older) were C. +Flaminius, C. Varro, Q. Maximus, Q. Metellus, P. Lentulus, and P. Crassus +who was joint Consul with the elder Africanus. This Scipio, we are told, +was not destitute of the powers of Elocution: but his son, who adopted the +younger Scipio (the son of Paulus Aemilius) would have stood foremost in +the list of Orators, if he had possessed a firmer constitution. This is +evident from a few Speeches, and a Greek History of his, which are very +agreeably written. In the same class we may place Sextus Aelius, who was +the best lawyer of his time, and a ready speaker. A little after these, +was C. Sulpicius Gallus, who was better acquainted with the Grecian +literature than all the rest of the nobility, and was reckoned a graceful +Orator, being equally distinguished, in every other respect, by the +superior elegance of his taste; for a more copious and splendid way of +speaking began now to prevail. When this Sulpicius, in quality of Praetor, +was celebrating the public shews in honour of Apollo, died the Poet +Ennius, in the Consulship of Q. Marcius and Cn. Servilius, after +exhibiting his Tragedy of _Thyestes_. At the same time lived Tiberius +Gracchus, the son of Publius, who was twice Consul and Censor: a Greek +Oration of his to the Rhodians is still extant, and he bore the character +of a worthy citizen, and an eloquent Speaker. We are likewise told that P. +Scipio Nasica, surnamed The Darling of the People, and who also had the +honor to be twice chosen Consul and Censor, was esteemed an able Orator: +To him we may add L. Lentulus, who was joint Consul with C. Figulus;--Q. +Nobilior, the son of Marcus, who was inclined to the study of literature +by his father's example, and presented Ennius (who had served under his +father in Aetolia) with the freedom of the City, when he founded a colony +in quality of Triumvir: and his colleague, T. Annius Luscus, who is said +to have been tolerably eloquent. We are likewise informed that L. Paulus, +the father of Africanus, defended the character of an eminent citizen in a +public speech; and that Cato, who died in the 83d year of his age, was +then living, and actually pleaded, that very year, against the defendant +Servius Galba, in the open Forum, with great energy and spirit:--he has +left a copy of this Oration behind him. But when Cato was in the decline +of life, a crowd of Orators, all younger than himself, made their +appearance at the same time: For A. Albinus, who wrote a History in Greek, +and shared the Consulship with L. Lucullus, was greatly admired for his +learning and Elocution: and almost equal to him were Servius Fulvius, and +Servius Fabius Pictor, the latter of whom was well acquainted with the +laws of his country, the Belles Lettres, and the History of Antiquity. +Quintus Fabius Labeo was likewise adorned with the same accomplishments. +But Q. Metellus whose four sons attained the consular dignity, was admired +for his Eloquence beyond the rest;--he undertook the defence of L. Cotta, +when he was accused by Africanus,--and composed many other Speeches, +particularly that against Tiberius Gracchus, which we have a full account +of in the Annals of C. Fannius. L. Cotta himself was likewise reckoned a +_veteran_; but C. Laelius, and P. Africanus were allowed by all to be more +finished Speakers: their Orations are still extant, and may serve as +specimens of their respective abilities. But Servius Galba, who was +something older than any of them, was indisputably the best speaker of the +age. He was the first among the Romans who displayed the proper and +distinguishing talents of an Orator, such as, digressing from his subject +to embellish and diversify it,--soothing or alarming the passions, +exhibiting every circumstance in the strongest light,--imploring the +compassion of his audience, and artfully enlarging on those topics, or +general principles of Prudence or Morality, on which the stress of his +argument depended: and yet, I know not how, though he is allowed to have +been the greatest Orator of his time, the Orations he has left are more +lifeless, and have a more antiquated air, than those of Laelius, or +Scipio, or even of Cato himself: in short, the strength and substance of +them has so far evaporated, that we have scarcely any thing of them +remaining but the bare skeletons. In the same manner, though both Laelius +and Scipio are greatly extolled for their abilities; the preference was +given to Laelius as a speaker; and yet his Oration, in defence of the +privileges of the Sacerdotal College, has no greater merit than any one +you may please to fix upon of the numerous speeches of Scipio. Nothing, +indeed, can be sweeter and milder than that of Laelius, nor could any +thing have been urged with greater dignity to support the honour of +religion: but, of the two, Laelius appears to me to be rougher, and more +old-fashioned than Scipio; and, as different Speakers have different +tastes, he had in my mind too strong a relish for antiquity, and was too +fond of using obsolete expressions. But such is the jealousy of mankind, +that they will not allow the same person to be possessed of too many +perfections. For as in military prowess they thought it impossible that +any man could vie with Scipio, though Laelius had not a little +distinguished himself in the war with Viriathus; so for learning, +Eloquence, and wisdom, though each was allowed to be above the reach of +any other competitor, they adjudged the preference to Laelius. Nor was +this only the opinion of the world, but it seems to have been allowed by +mutual consent between themselves: for it was then a general custom, as +candid in this respect as it was fair and just in every other, to give his +due to each. I accordingly remember that P. Rutilius Rufus once told me at +Smyrna, that when he was a young man, the two Consuls P. Scipio and D. +Brutus, by order of the Senate, tried a capital cause of great +consequence. For several persons of note having been murdered in the Silan +Forest, and the domestics, and some of the sons, of a company of gentlemen +who farmed the taxes of the pitch-manufactory, being charged with the +fact, the Consuls were ordered to try the cause in person. Laelius, he +said, spoke very sensibly and elegantly, as indeed he always did, on the +side of the farmers of the customs. But the Consuls, after hearing both +sides, judging it necessary to refer the matter to a second trial, the +same Laelius, a few days after, pleaded their cause again with more +accuracy, and much better than at first. The affair, however, was once +more put off for a further hearing. Upon this, when his clients attended +Laelius to his own house, and, after thanking him for what he had already +done, earnestly begged him not to be disheartened by the fatigue he had +suffered;--he assured them he had exerted his utmost to defend their +reputation; but frankly added, that he thought their cause would be more +effectually supported by Servius Galba, whose manner of speaking was more +embellished and more spirited than his own. They, accordingly, by the +advice of Laelius, requested Galba to undertake it. To this he consented; +but with the greatest modesty and reluctance, out of respect to the +illustrious advocate he was going to succeed:--and as he had only the next +day to prepare himself, he spent the whole of it in considering and +digesting his cause. When the day of trial was come, Rutilius himself, at +the request of the defendants, went early in the morning to Galba, to give +him notice of it, and conduct him to the court in proper time. But till +word was brought that the Consuls were going to the bench, he confined +himself in his study, where he suffered no one to be admitted; and +continued very busy in dictating to his Amanuenses, several of whom (as +indeed he often used to do) he kept fully employed at once. While he was +thus engaged, being informed that it was high time for him to appear in +court, he left his house with so much life in his eyes, and such an ardent +glow upon his countenance, that you would have thought he had not only +_prepared_ his cause, but actually _carried_ it. Rutilius added, as +another circumstance worth noticing, that his scribes, who attended him to +the bar, appeared excessively fatigued: from whence he thought it probable +that he was equally warm and vigorous in the composition, as in the +delivery of his speeches. But to conclude the story, Galba pleaded his +cause before Laelius himself, and a very numerous and attentive audience, +with such uncommon force and dignity, that every part of his Oration +received the applause of his hearers: and so powerfully did he move the +feelings, and affect the pity of the judges, that his clients were +immediately acquitted of the charge, to the satisfaction of the whole +court. + +"As, therefore, the two principal qualities required in an Orator, are to +be neat and clear in stating the nature of his subject, and warm and +forcible in moving the passions; and as he who fires and inflames his +audience, will always effect more than he who can barely inform and amuse +them; we may conjecture from the above narrative, which I was favoured +with by Rutilius, that Laelius was most admired for his elegance, and +Galba for his pathetic force. But this force of his was most remarkably +exerted, when, having in his Praetorship put to death some Lusitanians, +contrary (it was believed) to his previous and express engagement;--T. +Libo the Tribune exasperated the people against him, and preferred a bill +which was to operate against his conduct as a subsequent law. M. Cato (as +I have before mentioned) though extremely old, spoke in support of the +bill with great vehemence; which Speech he inserted in his Book of +_Antiquities_, a few days, or at most only a month or two, before his +death. On this occasion, Galba refusing to plead to the charge, and +submitting his fate to the generosity of the people, recommended his +children to their protection, with tears in his eyes; and particularly his +young ward the son of C. Gallus Sulpicius his deceased friend, whose +orphan state and piercing cries, which were the more regarded for the sake +of his illustrious father, excited their pity in a wonderful manner;--and +thus (as Cato informs us in his History) he escaped the flames which would +otherwise have consumed him, by employing the children to move the +compassion of the people. I likewise find (what may be easily judged from +his Orations still extant) that his prosecutor Libo was a man of some +Eloquence." + +As I concluded these remarks with a short pause;--"What can be the +reason," said Brutus, "if there was so much merit in the Oratory of Galba, +that there is no trace of it to be seen in his Orations;--a circumstance +which I have no opportunity to be surprized at in others, who have left +nothing behind them in writing."--"The reasons," said I, "why some have +not wrote any thing, and others not so well as they spoke, are very +different. Some of our Orators have writ nothing through mere indolence, +and because they were loath to add a private fatigue to a public one: for +most of the Orations we are now possessed of were written not before they +were spoken, but some time afterwards. Others did not choose the trouble +of improving themselves; to which nothing more contributes than frequent +writing; and as to perpetuating the fame of their Eloquence, they thought +it unnecessary; supposing that their eminence in that respect was +sufficiently established already, and that it would be rather diminished +than increased by submitting any written specimen of it to the arbitrary +test of criticism. Some also were sensible that they spoke much better +than they were able to write; which is generally the case of those who +have a great genius, but little learning, such as Servius Galba. When he +spoke, he was perhaps so much animated by the force of his abilities, and +the natural warmth and impetuosity of his temper, that his language was +rapid, bold, and striking; but afterwards, when he took up the pen in his +leisure hours, and his passion had sunk into a calm, his Elocution became +dull and languid. This indeed can never happen to those whose only aim is +to be neat and polished; because an Orator may always be master of that +discretion which will enable him both to speak and write in the same +agreeable manner: but no man can revive at pleasure the ardour of his +passions; and when that has once subsided, the fire and pathos of his +language will be extinguished. This is the reason why the calm and easy +spirit of Laelius seems still to breathe in his writings, whereas the +force of Galba is entirely withered and lost. + +"We may also reckon in the number of middling Orators, the two brothers L. +and Sp. Mummius, both whose Orations are still in being:--the style of +Lucius is plain and antiquated; but that of Spurius, though equally +unembellished, is more close, and compact; for he was well versed in the +doctrine of the Stoics. The Orations of Sp. Alpinus, their cotemporary, +are very numerous: and we have several by L. and C. Aurelius Oresta, who +were esteemed indifferent Speakers. P. Popilius also was a worthy citizen, +and had a tolerable share of utterance: but his son Caius was really +eloquent. To _these_ we may add C. Tuditanus, who was not only very +polished, and genteel, in his manners and appearance, but had an elegant +turn of expression; and of the same class was M. Octavius, a man of +inflexible constancy in every just and laudable measure; and who, after +being affronted and disgraced in the most public manner, defeated his +rival Tiberius Gracchus by the mere dint of his perseverance. But M. +Aemilius Lepidus, who was surnamed Porcina, and flourished at the same +time as Galba, though he was indeed something younger, was esteemed an +Orator of the first eminence; and really appears, from his Orations which +are still extant, to have been a masterly writer. For he was the first +Speaker, among the Romans, who gave us a specimen of the easy gracefulness +of the Greeks; and who was distinguished by the measured flow of his +language, and a style regularly polished and improved by art. His manner +was carefully studied by C. Carbo and Tib. Gracchus, two accomplished +youths who were nearly of an age: but we must defer their character as +public Speakers, till we have finished our account of their elders. For Q. +Pompeius, according to the style of the time, was no contemptible Orator; +and actually raised himself to the highest honours of the State by his own +personal merit, and without being recommended, as usual, by the quality of +his ancestors. Lucius Cassius too derived his influence, which was very +considerable, not indeed from his _Eloquence_, but from his manly way of +speaking: for it is remarkable that he made himself popular, not, as +others did, by his complaisance and liberality, but by the gloomy rigour +and severity of his manners. His law for collecting the votes of the +people by way of ballot, was strongly opposed by the Tribune M. Antius +Briso, who was supported by M. Lepidus one of the Consuls: and it was +afterwards objected to Africanus, that Briso dropped the opposition by his +advice. At this time the two Scipios were very serviceable to a number of +clients by their superior judgment, and Eloquence; but still more so by +their extensive interest and popularity. But the written speeches of +Pompeius (though it must be owned they have rather an antiquated air) +discover an amazing sagacity, and are very far from being dry and +spiritless. To these we must add P. Crassus, an orator of uncommon merit, +who was qualified for the profession by the united efforts of art and +nature, and enjoyed some other advantages which were almost peculiar to +his family. For he had contracted an affinity with that accomplished +Speaker Servius Galba above-mentioned, by giving his daughter in marriage +to Galba's son; and being likewise himself the son of Mucius, and the +brother of P. Scaevola, he had a fine opportunity at home (which he made +the best use of) to gain a thorough knowledge of the Civil Law. He was a +man of unusual application, and was much beloved by his fellow-citizens; +being constantly employed either in giving his advice, or pleading causes +in the Forum. Cotemporary with the Speakers I have mentioned were the two +C. Fannii, the sons of C. and M. one of whom, (the son of C.) who was +joint Consul with Domitius, has left us an excellent speech against +Gracchus, who proposed the admission of the Latin and Italian allies to +the freedom of Rome."--"Do you really think, then," said Atticus, "that +Fannius was the author of that Oration? For when we were young, there were +different opinions about it. Some asserted it was wrote by C. Persius, a +man of letters, and the same who is so much extolled for his learning by +Lucilius: and others believed it was the joint production of a number of +noblemen, each of whom contributed his best to complete it."--"This I +remember," said I; "but I could never persuade myself to coincide with +either of them. Their suspicion, I believe, was entirely founded on the +character of Fannius, who was only reckoned among the _middling_ Orators; +whereas the speech in question is esteemed the best which the time +afforded. But, on the other hand, it is too much of a piece to have been +the mingled composition of many: for the flow of the periods, and the turn +of the language, are perfectly similar, throughout the whole of it.--and +as to _Persius_, if _he_ had composed it for Fannius to pronounce, +Gracchus would certainly have taken some notice of it in his reply; +because Fannius rallies Gracchus pretty severely, in one part of it, for +employing Menelaus of Marathon, and several others, to manufacture his +speeches. We may add that Fannius himself was no contemptible Orator: for +he pleaded a number of causes, and his Tribuneship, which was chiefly +conducted under the management and direction of P. Africanus, was very far +from being an idle one. But the other C. Fannius, (the son of M.) and son- +in-law of C. Laelius, was of a rougher cast, both in his temper, and +manner of speaking. By the advice of his father-in-law, (of whom, by the +bye, he was not remarkably fond, because he had not voted for his +admission into the college of augurs, but gave the preference to his +younger son-in-law Q. Scaevola; though Laelius genteely excused himself, +by saying that the preference was not given to the youngest son, but to +his wife the eldest daughter,) by his advice, I say, he attended the +lectures of Panaetius. His abilities as a Speaker may be easily +conjectured from his History, which is neither destitute of elegance, nor +a perfect model of composition. As to his brother Mucius the augur, +whenever he was called upon to defend himself, he always pleaded his own +cause; as, for instance, in the action which was brought against him for +bribery by T. Albucius. But he was never ranked among the Orators; his +chief merit being a critical knowledge of the Civil Law, and an uncommon +accuracy of judgment. L. Caelius Antipater likewise (as you may see by his +works) was an elegant and a handsome writer for the time he lived in; he +was also an excellent Lawyer, and taught the principles of jurisprudence +to many others, particularly to L. Crassus. As to Caius Carbo and T. +Gracchus, I wish they had been as well inclined to maintain peace and good +order in the State, as they were qualified to support it by their +Eloquence: their glory would then have been out-rivaled by no one. But the +latter, for his turbulent Tribuneship, which he entered upon with a heart +full of resentment against the great and good, on account of the odium he +had brought upon himself by the treaty of Numantia, was slain by the hands +of the Republic: and the other, being impeached of a seditious affectation +of popularity, rescued himself from the severity of the judges by a +voluntary death. That both of them were excellent Speakers, is very plain +from the general testimony of their cotemporaries: for as to their +Speeches now extant, though I allow them to be very artful and judicious, +they are certainly defective in Elocution. Gracchus had the advantage of +being carefully instructed by his mother Cornelia from his very childhood, +and his mind was enriched with all the stores of Grecian literature: for +he was constantly attended by the ablest masters from Greece, and +particularly, in his youth, by Diophanes of Mitylene, who was the most +eloquent Grecian of his age: but though he was a man of uncommon genius, +he had but a short time to improve and display it. As to Carbo, his whole +life was spent in trials, and forensic debates. He is said by very +sensible men who heard him, and, among others, by our friend L. Gellius +who lived in his family in the time of his Consulship, to have been a +sonorous, a fluent, and a spirited Speaker, and likewise, upon occasion, +very pathetic, very engaging, and excessively humorous: Gellius used to +add, that he applied himself very closely to his studies, and bestowed +much of his time in writing and private declamation. He was, therefore, +esteemed the best pleader of his time; for no sooner had he began to +distinguish himself in the Forum, but the depravity of the age gave birth +to a number of law-suits; and it was first found necessary, in the time of +his youth, to settle the form of public trials, which had never been done +before. We accordingly find that L. Piso, then a Tribune of the people, +was the first who proposed a law against bribery; which he did when +Censorinus and Manilius were Consuls. This Piso too was a professed +pleader, and the proposer and opposer of a great number of laws: he left +some Orations behind him, which are now lost, and a Book of Annals very +indifferently written. But in the public trials, in which Carbo was +concerned, the assistance of an able advocate had become more necessary +than ever, in consequence of the law for voting by ballots, which was +proposed and carried by L. Cassius, in the Consulship of Lepidus and +Mancinus. + +"I have likewise been often assured by the poet Attius, (an intimate +friend of his) that your ancestor D. Brutus, the son of M. was no +inelegant Speaker; and that for the time he lived in, he was well versed +both in the Greek and Roman literature. He ascribed the same +accomplishments to Q. Maximus, the grandson of L. Paulus: and added that, +a little prior to Maximus, the Scipio, by whose instigation (though only +in a private capacity) T. Gracchus was assassinated, was not only a man of +great ardour in all other respects, but very warm and spirited in his +manner of speaking. P. Lentulus too, the Father of the Senate, had a +sufficient share of eloquence for an honest and useful magistrate. About +the same time L. Furius Philus was thought to speak our language as +elegantly, and more correctly than any other man; P. Scaevola to be very +artful and judicious, and rather more fluent than Philus; M. Manilius to +possess almost an equal share of judgment with the latter; and Appius +Claudius to be equally fluent, but more warm and pathetic. M. Fulvius +Flaccus, and C. Cato the nephew of Africanus, were likewise tolerable +Orators: some of the writings of Flaccus are still in being, in which +nothing, however, is to be seen but the mere scholar. P. Decius was a +professed rival of Flaccus; he too was not destitute of Eloquence; but his +style, as well as his temper, was too violent. M. Drusus the son of C. +who, in his Tribuneship, baffled [Footnote: _Laffiea_. In the original it +runs, "_Caium Gracchum collegam, iterum Tribinum fecit_." but this was +undoubtedly a mistake of the transcriber, as being contrary not only to +the truth of History, but to Cicero's own account of the matter in lib. +IV. _Di Finibus_. Pighius therefore has very properly recommended the word +_fregit_ instead of _fecit_.] his colleague Gracchus (then raised to the +same office a second time) was a nervous Speaker, and a man of great +popularity: and next to him was his brother C. Drusus. Your kinsman also, +my Brutus, (M. Pennus) successfully opposed the Tribune Gracchus, who was +something younger than himself. For Gracchus was Quaestor, and Pennus (the +son of that M. who was joint Consul with Q. Aelius) was Tribune, in the +Consulship of M. Lepidus and L. Orestes: but after enjoying the +Aedileship, and a prospect: of succeeding to the highest honours, he was +snatched off by an untimely death. As to T. Flaminius, whom I myself have +seen, I can learn nothing but that he spoke our language with great +accuracy. To these we may join C. Curio, M. Scaurus, P. Rutilius, and C. +Gracchus. It will not be amiss to give a short account of Scaurus and +Rutilius; neither of whom, indeed, had the reputation of being a first- +rate Orator, though each of them pleaded a number of causes. But some +deserving men, who were not remarkable for their genius, may be justly +commended for their industry; not that the persons I am speaking of were +really destitute of genius, but only of that particular kind of it which +distinguishes the Orator. For it is of little consequence to discover what +is proper to be said, unless you are able to express it in a free and +agreeable manner: and even that will be insufficient, if not recommended +by the voice, the look, and the gesture. It is needless to add that much +depends upon _Art_: for though, even without this, it is possible, by the +mere force of nature, to say many striking things; yet, as they will after +all be nothing more than so many lucky hits, we shall not be able to +repeat them at our pleasure. The style of Scaurus, who was a very sensible +and honest man, was remarkably serious, and commanded the respect of the +hearer: so that when he was speaking for his client, you would rather have +thought he was giving evidence in his favour, than pleading his cause. +This manner of speaking, however, though but indifferently adapted to the +bar, was very much so to a calm, debate in the Senate, of which Scaurus +was then esteemed the Father: for it not only bespoke his prudence, but +what was still a more important recommendation, his credibility. This +advantage, which it is not easy to acquire by art, he derived entirely +from nature: though you know that even _here_ we have some precepts to +assist us. We have several of his Orations still extant, and three books +inscribed to L. Fufidius containing the History of his own Life, which, +though a very useful work, is scarcely read by any body. But the +_Institution of Cyrus_, by Xenophon, is read by every one; which, though +an excellent performance of the kind, is much less adapted to our manners +and form of government, and not superior in merit to the honest simplicity +of Scaurus. Fufidius himself was likewise a tolerable pleader. But +Rutilius was distinguished by his solemn and austere way of speaking; and +both of them were naturally warm, and spirited. Accordingly, after they +had rivalled each other for the Consulship, he who had lost his election, +immediately sued his competitor for bribery; and Scaurus, the defendant, +being honourably acquitted of the charge, returned the compliment to +Rutilius, by commencing a similar prosecution against _him_. Rutilius was +a man of great industry and application; for which he was the more +respected, because, besides his pleadings, he undertook the office (which +was a very troublesome one) of giving advice to all who applied to him, in +matters of law. His Orations are very dry, but his juridical remarks are +excellent: for he was a learned man, and well versed in the Greek +literature, and was likewise an attentive and constant hearer of +Panaetius, and a thorough proficient in the doctrine of the Stoics; whose +method of discoursing, though very close and artful, is too precise, and +not at all adapted to engage the attention of common people. That self- +confidence, therefore, which is so peculiar to the sect, was displayed by +_him_ with amazing firmness and resolution; for though he was perfectly +innocent of the charge, a prosecution was commenced against him for +bribery (a trial which raised a violent commotion in the city)--and yet +though L. Crassus and M. Antonius, both of Consular dignity, were, at that +time, in very high repute for their Eloquence, he refused the assistance +of either; being determined to plead his cause himself, which he +accordingly did. C. Cotta, indeed, who was his nephew, made a short speech +in his vindication, which he spoke in the true style of an Orator, though +he was then but a youth. Q. Mucius too said much in his defence, with his +usual accuracy and elegance; but not with that force, and extension, which +the mode of trial, and the importance of the cause demanded. Rutilius, +therefore, was an Orator of the _Stoical_, and Scaurus of the _Antique_ +cast: but they are both entitled to our commendation; because, in _them_, +even this formal and unpromising species of Elocution has appeared among +us with some degree of merit. For as in the Theatre, so in the Forum, I +would not have our applause confined to those alone who act the busy, and +more important characters; but reserve a share of it for the quiet and +unambitious performer who is distinguished by a simple truth of gesture, +without any violence. As I have mentioned the Stoics, I must take some +notice of Q. Aelius Tubero, the grandson of L. Paullus, who made his +appearance at the time we are speaking of. He was never esteemed an +Orator, but was a man of the most rigid virtue, and strictly conformable +to the doctrine he professed: but, in truth, he was rather too crabbed. In +his Triumvirate, he declared, contrary to the opinion of P. Africanus his +uncle, that the Augurs had no right of exemption from sitting in the +courts of justice: and as in his temper, so in his manner of speaking, he +was harsh, unpolished, and austere; on which account, he could never raise +himself to the honourable ports which were enjoyed by his ancestors. But +he was a brave and steady citizen, and a warm opposer of Gracchus, as +appears from an Oration of Gracchus against him: we have likewise some of +Tubero's speeches against Gracchus. He was not indeed a shining Orator: +but he was a learned, and a very skilfull disputant. + +"I find," said Brutus, "that the case is much the same among us, as with +the Greeks; and that the Stoics, in general, are very judicious at an +argument, which they conduct by certain rules of art, and are likewise +very neat and exact in their language; but if we take them from this, to +speak in Public, they make a poor appearance. Cato, however, must be +excepted; in whom, though as rigid a Stoic as ever existed, I could not +wish for a more consummate degree of Eloquence: I can likewise discover a +moderate share of it in Fannius,--not so much in Rutilius;--but none at +all in Tubero."--"True," said I; "and we may easily account for it: Their +whole attention was so closely confined to the study of Logic, that they +never troubled themselves to acquire the free, diffusive, and variegated +style which is so necessary for a public Speaker. But your uncle, you +doubtless know, was wise enough to borrow only that from the Stoics, which +they were able to furnish for his purpose (the art of reasoning:) but for +the art of Speaking, he had recourse to the masters of Rhetoric, and +exercised himself in the manner they directed. If, however, we must be +indebted for everything to the Philosophers, the Peripatetic discipline +is, in my mind, much the properest to form our language. For which reason, +my Brutus, I the more approve your choice, in attaching yourself to a +sect, (I mean the Philosophers of the Old Academy,) in whose system, a +just and accurate way of reasoning is enlivened by a perpetual sweetness +and fluency of expression: but even the delicate and flowing style of the +Peripatetics, and Academics, is not sufficient to complete an Orator; nor +yet can he be complete without it. For as the language of the Stoics is +too close, and contracted, to suit the ears of common people; so that of +the latter is too diffusive and luxuriant for a spirited contest in the +Forum, or a pleading at the bar. Who had a richer style than Plato? The +Philosophers tell us, that if Jupiter himself was to converse in Greek, he +would speak like _him_. Who also was more nervous than Aristotle? Who +sweeter than Theophrastus? We are told that even Demosthenes attended the +lectures of Plato, and was fond of reading what he published; which, +indeed, is sufficiently evident from the turn, and the majesty of his +language and he himself has expressly mentioned it in one of his Letters. +But the style of this excellent Orator is, notwithstanding, much too +fierce for the Academy; as that of the Philosophers is too mild and placid +for the Forum. I shall now, with your leave, proceed to the age and merits +of the rest of the Roman Orators."--"Nothing," said Atticus, "(for I can +safely answer for my friend Brutus) would please us better."--"Curio, +then," said I, "was nearly of the age I have just mentioned,--a celebrated +Speaker, whose genius may be easily decided from his Orations. For, among +several others, we have a noble Speech of his for Ser. Fulvius, in a +prosecution for incest. When we were children, it was esteemed the best +then extant; but now it is almost overlooked among the numerous +performances of the same kind which have been lately published."--"I am +very sensible," replied Brutus, "to whom we are obliged for the numerous +performances you speak of."--"And I am equally sensible," said I, "who is +the person you intend: for I have at least done a service to my young +countrymen, by introducing a loftier, and more embellished way of +speaking, than was used before: and, perhaps, I have also done some harm, +because after _mine_ appeared, the Speeches of our ancestors and +predecessors began to be neglected by most people; though never by _me_, +for I can assure you, I always prefer them to my own."--"But you must +reckon me," said Brutus, "among the _most people_; though I now see, from +your recommendation, that I have a great many books to read, of which +before I had very little opinion."--"But this celebrated Oration," said I, +"in the prosecution for incest, is in some places excessively puerile; and +what is said in it of the passion of love, the inefficacy of questioning +by tortures, and the danger of trusting to common hear-say, is indeed +pretty enough, but would be insufferable to the tutored ears of the +moderns, and to a people who are justly distinguished for the solidity of +their knowledge. He likewise wrote several other pieces, spoke a number of +good Orations, and was certainly an eminent pleader; so that I much +wonder, considering how long he lived, and the character he bore, that he +was never preferred to the Consulship. But I have a man here, [Footnote: +He refers, perhaps, to the Works of Gracchus, which he might then have in +his hand; or, more probably, to a statue of him, which stood near the +place where he and his friends were sitting.] (C. Gracchus) who had an +amazing genius, and the warmest application; and was a Scholar from his +very childhood: For you must not imagine, my Brutus, that we have ever yet +had a Speaker, whose language was richer and more copious than his."--"I +really think so," answered Brutus; "and he is almost the only author we +have, among the ancients, that I take the trouble to read." "And he well +_deserves_ it," said I; "for the Roman name and literature were great +losers by his untimely fate. I wish he had transferred his affection for +his brother to his country! How easily, if he had thus prolonged his life, +would he have rivalled the glory of his father, and grandfather! In +Eloquence, I scarcely know whether we should yet have had his equal. His +language was noble; his sentiments manly and judicious; and his whole +manner great and striking. He wanted nothing but the finishing touch: for +though his first attempts were as excellent as they were numerous, he did +not live to complete them. In short, my Brutus, _he_, if any one, should +be carefully studied by the Roman youth: for he is able, not only to edge, +but to feed and ripen their talents. After _him_ appeared C. Galba, the +son of the eloquent Servius, and the son-in-law of P. Crassus, who was +both an eminent Speaker, and a skilful Civilian. He was much commended by +our fathers, who respected him for the sake of _his_: but he had the +misfortune to be stopped in his career. For being tried by the Mamilian +law, as a party concerned in the conspiracy to support Jugurtha, though he +exerted all his abilities to defend himself, he was unhappily cast. His +peroration, or, as it is often called, his epilogue, is still extant; and +was so much in repute, when we were school-boys, that we used to learn it +by heart: he was the first member of the Sacerdotal College, since the +building of Rome, who was publicly tried and condemned. As to P. Scipio, +who died in his Consulship, he neither spoke much, nor often: but he was +inferior to no one in the purity of his language, and superior to all in +wit and pleasantry. His colleague L. Bestia, who begun his Tribuneship +very successfully, (for, by a law which he preferred for the purpose, he +procured the recall of Popillius, who had been exiled by the influence of +Caius Gracchus) was a man of spirit, and a tolerable Speaker: but he did +not finish his Consulship so happily. For, in consequence of the invidious +law of Mamilius above-mentioned, C. Galba one of the Priests, and the four +Consular gentlemen L. Bestia, C. Cato, Sp. Albinus, and that excellent +citizen L. Opimius, who killed Gracchus; of which he was acquitted by the +people, though he had constantly sided against them,--were all condemned +by their judges, who were of the Gracchan party. Very unlike him in his +Tribuneship, and indeed in every other part of his life, was that infamous +citizen C. Licinius Nerva; but he was not destitute of Eloquence. Nearly +at the same time, (though, indeed, he was somewhat older) flourished C. +Fimbria, who was rather rough and abusive, and much too warm and hasty: +but his application, and his great integrity and firmness made him a +serviceable Speaker in the Senate. He was likewise a tolerable Pleader, +and Civilian, and distinguished by the same rigid freedom in the turn of +his language, as in that of his virtues. When we were boys, we used to +think his Orations worth reading; though they are now scarcely to be met +with. But C. Sextius Calvinus was equally elegant both in his taste, and +his language, though, unhappily, of a very infirm constitution:--when the +pain in his feet intermitted, he did not decline the trouble of pleading, +but he did not attempt it very often. His fellow-citizens, therefore, made +use of his advice, whenever they had occasion for it; but of his +patronage, only when his health permitted. Cotemporary with these, my good +friend, was your namesake M. Brutus, the disgrace of your noble family; +who, though he bore that honourable name, and had the best of men, and an +eminent Civilian, for his father, confined his practice to accusations, as +Lycurgus is said to have done at Athens. He never sued for any of our +magistracies; but was a severe, and a troublesome prosecutor: so that we +easily see that, in _him_, the natural goodness of the flock was corrupted +by the vicious inclinations of the man. At the same time lived L. +Caesulenus, a man of Plebeian rank, and a professed accuser, like the +former: I myself heard him in his old age, when he endeavoured, by the +Aquilian law, to subject L. Sabellius to a fine, for a breach of justice. +But I should not have taken any notice of such a low-born wretch, if I had +not thought that no person I ever heard, could give a more suspicious turn +to the cause of the defendant, or exaggerate it to a higher degree of +criminality. T. Albucius, who lived in the same age, was well versed in +the Grecian literature, or, rather, was almost a Greek himself. I speak of +him, as I think; but any person, who pleases, may judge what he was by his +Orations. In his youth, he studied at Athens, and returned from thence a +thorough proficient in the doctrine of Epicurus; which, of all others, is +the least adapted to form an orator. His cotemporary, Q. Catulus, was an +accomplished Speaker, not in the ancient taste, but (unless any thing more +perfect can be exhibited) in the finished style of the moderns. He had a +plentiful stock of learning; an easy, winning elegance, not only in his +manners and disposition, but in his very language; and an unblemished +purity and correctness of style. This may be easily seen by his Orations; +and particularly, by the History of his Consulship, and of his subsequent +transactions, which he composed in the soft and agreeable manner of +Xenophon, and made a present of to the poet, A. Furius, an intimate +acquaintance of his: but this performance is as little known, as the three +books of Scaurus before-mentioned."--"Indeed, I must confess," said +Brutus, "that both the one and the other, are perfectly unknown to me: but +that is entirely my _own_ fault. I shall now, therefore, request a sight +of them from _you_; and am resolved, in future, to be more careful in +collecting such valuable curiosities."--"This Catulus," said I, "as I have +just observed, was distinguished by the purity of his language; which, +though a material accomplishment, is too much neglected by most of the +Roman orators; for as to the elegant tone of his voice, and the sweetness +of his accent, as you knew his son, it will be needless to take any notice +of them. His son, indeed, was not in the list of Orators: but whenever he +had occasion to deliver his sentiments in public, he neither wanted +judgment, nor a neat and liberal turn of expression. Nay, even the father +himself was not reckoned the foremost in the list of Orators: but still he +had that kind of merit, that notwithstanding, after you had heard two or +three speakers, who were particularly eminent in their profession, you +might judge him inferior; yet, whenever you heard him _alone_, and without +an immediate opportunity of making a comparison, you would not only be +satisfied with him, but scarcely wish for a better advocate. As to Q. +Metellus Numidicus, and his Colleague M. Silanus, they spoke, on matters +of government, with as much eloquence as was really necessary for men of +their illustrious character, and of consular dignity. But M. Aurelius +Scaurus, though he spoke in public but seldom, always spoke very neatly, +and he had a more elegant command of the Roman language than most men. A. +Albinus was a speaker of the same kind; but Albinus, the Flamen, was +esteemed an _orator_. Q. Capio too had a great deal of spirit, and was a +brave citizen: but the unlucky chance of war was imputed to him as a +crime, and the general odium of the people proved his ruin. C. and L. +Memmius were likewise indifferent orators, and distinguished by the +bitterness and asperity of their accusations: for they prosecuted many, +but seldom spoke for the defendant. Sp. Torius, on the other hand, was +distinguished by his _popular_ way of speaking; the very same man, who, by +his corrupt and frivolous law, diminished [Footnote: By dividing great +part of them among the people.] the taxes which were levied on the public +lands. M. Marcellus, the father of Aeserninus, though not reckoned a +professed pleader, was a prompt, and, in some degree, a practised speaker; +as was also his son P. Lentulus. L. Cotta likewise, a man of Praetorian +rank, was esteemed a tolerable orator; but he never made any great +progress; on the contrary, he purposely endeavoured, both in the choice of +his words, and the rusticity of his pronunciation, to imitate the manner +of the ancients. I am indeed sensible that in this instance of Cotta, and +in many others, I have, and shall again insert in the list of Orators, +those who, in reality, had but little claim to the character. For it was, +professedly, my design, to collect an account of all the Romans, without +exception, who made it their business to excel in the profession of +_Eloquence_: and it may be easily seen from this account, by what slow +gradations they advanced, and how excessively difficult it is, in every +thing, to rise to the summit of perfection. As a proof of this, how many +orators have been already recounted, and how much time have we bestowed +upon them, before we could force our way, after infinite fatigue and +drudgery, as, among the Greek's, to _Demosthenes_ and _Hyperides_, so now, +among our own countrymen, to _Antonius_ and _Crassus_! For, in my mind, +these were consummate Orators, and the first among the Romans whose +diffusive Eloquence rivalled the glory of the Greeks. Antonius discovered +every thing which could be of service to his cause, and that in the very +order in which it would be most so: and as a skilful General posts the +cavalry, the infantry, and the light troops, where each of them can act to +most advantage; so Antonius drew up his arguments in those parts of his +discourse, where they were likely to have the best effect. He had a quick +and retentive memory, and a frankness of manner which precluded any +suspicion of artifice. All his speeches were, in appearance, the +unpremeditated effusions of an honest heart; and yet, in reality, they +were preconcerted with so much skill, that the judges were, sometimes, not +so well prepared, as they should have been, to withstand the force of +them. His language, indeed, was not so refined as to pass for the standard +of elegance; for which reason he was thought to be rather a careless +speaker; and yet, on the other hand, it was neither vulgar nor incorrect, +but of that solid and judicious turn, which constitutes the real merit of +an Orator, as to the choice of his words. For, as to a purity of style, +though this is certainly (as before observed) a very commendable quality, +it is not so much so for its intrinsic consequence, as because it is too +generally neglected. In short, it is not so meritorious to speak our +native tongue correctly, as it is scandalous to speak it otherwise; nor is +it so much the property of a good Orator, as of a well-bred Citizen. But +in the choice of his words (in which he had more regard to their weight +than their brilliance) and likewise in the structure of his language, and +the compass of his periods, Antonius conformed himself to the dictates of +reason, and, in a great measure, to the nicer rules of art: though his +chief excellence was a judicious management of the figures and decorations +of sentiment. This was likewise the distinguishing excellence of +Demosthenes; in which he was so far superior to all others, as to be +allowed, in the opinion of the best judges, to be the Prince of Orators. +For the _figures_ (as they are called by the Greeks) are the principal +ornaments of an able speaker, I mean those which contribute not so much to +paint and embellish our language, as to give a lustre to our sentiments. +But besides these, of which Antonius had a great command, he had a +peculiar excellence in his manner of delivery, both as to his voice and +gesture; for the latter was such as to correspond to the meaning of every +sentence, without beating time to the words. His hands, his shoulders, the +turn of his body, the stamp of his foot, his posture, his air, and, in +short, his every motion, was adapted to his language and sentiments: and +his voice was strong and firm, though naturally hoarse;--a defect which he +alone was capable of improving to his advantage; for in capital causes, it +had a mournful dignity of accent, which was exceedingly proper, both to +win the assent of the judges, and excite their compassion for a suffering +client: so that in _him_ the observation of Demosthenes was eminently +verified, who being asked what was the _first_ quality of a good Orator, +what the _second_, and what the _third_, constantly replied, A good +enunciation. + +"But many thought that he was equalled, and others that he was even +excelled by Lucius Crassus. All, however, were agreed in this, that +whoever had either of them for his advocate, had no cause to wish for a +better. For my own part, notwithstanding the uncommon merit I have +ascribed to Antonius, I must also acknowlege, that there cannot be a more +finished character than that of Crassus. He possessed a wonderful dignity +of elocution, with an agreeable mixture of wit and pleasantry, which was +perfectly genteel, and without the smallest tincture of scurrility. His +style was correct and elegant without stiffness or affectation: his method +of reasoning was remarkably clear and distinct: and when his cause turned +upon any point of law, or equity, he had an inexhaustible fund of +arguments, and comparative illustrations. For as Antonius had an admirable +turn for suggesting apposite hints, and either suppressing or exciting the +suspicions of the hearer; so no man could explain and define, or discuss a +point of equity, with a more copious facility than Crassus; as +sufficiently appeared upon many other occasions, but particularly in the +cause of M. Curius, which was tried before the Centum Viri. For he urged a +great variety of arguments in the defence of right and equity, against the +literal _jubeat_ of the law; and supported them by such a numerous series +of precedents, that he overpowered Q. Scaevola (a man of uncommon +penetration, and the ablest Civilian of his time) though the case before +them was only a matter of legal right. But the cause was so ably managed +by the two advocates, who were nearly of an age, and both of consular +rank, that while each endeavoured to interpret the law in favour of his +client, Crassus was universally allowed to be the best Lawyer among the +Orators, and Scaevola to be the most eloquent Civilian of the age: for the +latter could not only discover with the nicest precision what was +agreeable to law and equity; but had likewise a conciseness and propriety +of expression, which was admirably adapted to his purpose. In short, he +had such a wonderful vein of oratory in commenting, explaining, and +discussing, that I never beheld his equal; though in amplifying, +embellishing, and refuting, he was rather to be dreaded as a formidable +critic, than admired as an eloquent speaker."--"Indeed," said Brutus, +"though I always thought I sufficiently understood the character of +Scaevola, by the account I had heard of him from C. Rutilius, whose +company I frequented for the sake of his acquaintance with him, I had not +the least idea of his merit as an orator. I am now, therefore, not a +little pleased to be informed, that our Republic has had the honour of +producing so accomplished a man, and such an excellent genius."--"Really, +my Brutus," said I, "you may take it from me, that the Roman State had +never been adorned with two finer characters than these. For, as I have +before observed, that the one was the best Lawyer among the Orators, and +the other the best Speaker among the Civilians of his time; so the +difference between them, in all other respects, was of such a nature, that +it would almost be impossible for you to determine which of the two you +would rather choose to resemble. For, as Crassus was the closest of all +our elegant speakers, so Scaevola was the most elegant among those who +were distinguished by the frugal accuracy of their language: and as +Crassus tempered his affability with a proper share of severity, so the +rigid air of Scaevola was not destitute of the milder graces of an affable +condescension. Though this was really their character, it is very possible +that I may be thought to have embellished it beyond the bounds of truth, +to give an agreeable air to my narrative: but as your favourite sect, my +Brutus, the Old Academy, has defined all Virtue to be a just Mediocrity, +it was the constant endeavour of these two eminent men to pursue this +Golden Mean; and yet it so happened, that while each of them shared a part +of the other's excellence, he preserved his own entire."--"To speak what I +think," replied Brutus, "I have not only acquired a proper acquaintance +with their characters from your account of them, but I can likewise +discover, that the same comparison might be drawn between _you_ and Serv. +Sulpicius, which you have just been making between Crassus and Scaevola." +--"In what manner?" said I.--"Because _you_," replied Brutus, "have taken +the pains to acquire as extensive a knowledge of the law as is necessary +for an Orator; and Sulpicius, on the other hand, took care to furnish +himself with sufficient eloquence to support the character of an able +Civilian. Besides, your age corresponded as nearly to his, as the age of +Crassus did to that of Scaevola."--"As to my own abilities," said I, "the +rules of decency forbid me to speak of them: but your character of Servius +is a very just one, and I may freely tell you what I think of him. There +are few, I believe, who have applied themselves more assiduously to the +art of Speaking than he did, or indeed to the study of every useful +science. In our youth, we both of us followed the same liberal exercises; +and he afterwards accompanied me to Rhodes, to pursue those studies which +might equally improve him as a Man and a Scholar; but when he returned +from thence, he appears to me to have been rather ambitious to be the +foremost man in a secondary profession, than the second in that which +claims the highest dignity. I will not pretend to say that he could not +have ranked himself among the foremost in the latter profession; but he +rather chose to be, what he actually made himself, the first Lawyer of his +time."--"Indeed!" said Brutus: "and do you really prefer Servius to Q. +Scaevola?"--"My opinion," said I, "Brutus, is, that Q. Scaevola, and many +others, had a thorough practical knowledge of the law; but that Servius +alone understood it as _science_: which he could never have done by the +mere study of the law, and without a previous acquaintance with the art +which teaches us to divide a whole into its subordinate parts, to, decide +an indeterminate idea by an accurate definition: to explain what is +obscure, by a clear interpretation; and first to discover what things are +of a _doubtful_ nature, then to distinguish them by their different +degrees of probability; and lastly, to be provided with a certain rule or +measure by which we may judge what is true, and what false, and what +inferences fairly may, or may not be deduced from any given premises. This +important art he applied to those subjects which, for want of it, were +necessarily managed by others without due order and precision."--"You +mean, I suppose," said Brutus, "the Art of Logic."--"You suppose very +right," answered I: "but he added to it an extensive acquaintance with +polite literature, and an elegant manner of expressing himself; as is +sufficiently evident from the incomparable writings he has left behind +him. And as he attached himself, for the improvement of his eloquence, to +L. Lucilius Balbus, and C. Aquilius Gallus, two very able speakers; he +effectually thwarted the prompt celerity of the latter (though a keen, +experienced man) both in supporting and refuting a charge, by his accuracy +and precision, and overpowered the deliberate formality of Balbus (a man +of great learning and erudition) by his adroit and dextrous method of +arguing: so that he equally possessed the good qualities of both, without +their defects. As Crassus, therefore, in my mind, acted more prudently +than Scaevola; (for the latter was very fond of pleading causes, in which +he was certainly inferior to Crassus; whereas the former never engaged +himself in an unequal competition with Scaevola, by assuming the character +of a Civilian;) so Servius pursued a plan which sufficiently discovered +his wisdom; for as the profession of a Pleader, and a Lawyer, are both of +them held in great esteem, and give those who are masters of them the most +extensive influence among their fellow-citizens; he acquired an undisputed +superiority in the one, and improved himself as much in the other as was +necessary to support the authority of the Civil Law, and promote him to +the dignity of a Consul."--"This is precisely the opinion I had formed of +him," said Brutus. "For, a few years ago I heard him often and very +attentively at Samos, when I wanted to be instructed by him in the +Pontifical Law, as far as it is connected with the Civil; and I am now +greatly confirmed in my opinion of him, by finding that it coincides so +exactly with yours. I am likewise not a little pleased to observe, that +the equality of your ages, your sharing the same honours and preferments, +and the vicinity of your respective studies and professions, has been so +far from precipitating either of you into that envious detraction of the +other's merit, which most people are tormented with, that, instead of +wounding your mutual friendship, it has only served to increase and +strengthen it; for, to my own knowlege, he had the same affection for, and +the same favourable sentiments of _you_, which I now discover in you +towards _him_. I cannot, therefore, help regretting very sincerely, that +the Roman State has so long been deprived of the benefit of his advice, +and of your Eloquence;--a circumstance which is indeed calamitous enough +in itself; but must appear much more so to him who considers into what +hands that once respectable authority has been of late, I will not say +transferred, but forcibly wrested."--"You certainly forget," said Atticus, +"that I proposed, when we began the conversation, to drop all matters of +State; by all means, therefore, let us keep to our plan: for if we once +begin to repeat our grievances, there will be no end, I need not say to +our inquiries, but to our sighs and lamentations."--"Let us proceed, +then," said I, "without any farther digression, and pursue the plan we set +out upon. Crassus (for he is the Orator we were just speaking of) always +came into the Forum ready prepared for the combat. He was expected with +impatience, and heard with pleasure. When he first began his Oration +(which he always did in a very accurate style) he seemed worthy of the +great expectations he had raised. He was very moderate in the sway of his +body, had no remarkable variation of voice, never advanced from the ground +he stood upon, and seldom stamped his foot: his language was forcible, and +sometimes warm and pathetic; he had many strokes of humour, which were +always tempered with a becoming dignity; and, what is a difficult +character to hit, he was at once very florid, and very concise. In a close +contest, he never met with his equal; and there was scarcely any kind of +causes, in which he had not signalized his abilities; so that he enrolled +himself very early among the first Orators of the time. He accused C. +Carbo, though a man of great Eloquence, when he was but a youth;--and +displayed his talents in such a manner, that they were not only applauded, +but admired by every body. He afterwards defended the Virgin Licinia, when +he was only twenty-seven years of age; on which occasion he discovered an +uncommon share of Eloquence, as is evident from those parts of his Oration +which he left behind him in writing. As he was then desirous to have the +honour of settling the colony of Narbonne (as he afterwards did) he +thought it adviseable to recommend himself, by undertaking the management +of some popular cause. His Oration, in support of the act which was +proposed for that purpose, is still extant; and discovers a greater +maturity of genius than might have been expected at that time of life. He +afterwards pleaded many other causes: but his tribuneship was such a +remarkably silent one, that if he had not supped with Granius the beadle +when he enjoyed that office (a circumstance which has been twice mentioned +by Lucilius) we should scarcely have known that a tribune of that name had +existed."--"I believe so," replied Brutus: "but I have heard as little of +the tribuneship of Scaevola, though I must naturally suppose that he was +the colleague of Crassus."--"He was so," said I, "in all his other +preferments; but he was not tribune till the year after him; and when he +sat in the Rostrum in that capacity, Crassus spoke in support of the +Servilian law. I must observe, however, that Crassus had not Scaevola for +his colleague in the censorship; for none of the Scaevolas ever sued for +that office. But when the last-mentioned Oration of Crassus was published +(which I dare say you have frequently read) he was thirty-four years of +age, which was exactly the difference between his age and mine. For he +supported the law I have just been speaking of, in the very consulship +under which I was born; whereas he himself was born in the consulship of +Q. Caepio, and C. Laelius, about three years later than Antonius. I have +particularly noticed this circumstance, to specify the time when the Roman +Eloquence attained its first _maturity_; and was actually carried to such +a degree of perfection, as to leave no room for any one to carry it +higher, unless by the assistance of a more complete and extensive +knowledge of philosophy, jurisprudence, and history."--"But does there," +said Brutus, "or will there ever exist a man, who is furnished with all +the united accomplishments you require?"--"I really don't know," said I; +"but we have a speech made by Crassus in his consulship, in praise of Q. +Caepio, intermingled with a defence of his conduct, which, though a short +one if we consider it as an Oration, is not so as a Panegyric;--and +another, which was his last, and which he spoke in the 48th year of his +age, at the time he was censor. In these we have the genuine complexion of +Eloquence, without any painting or disguise: but his periods (I mean +Crassus's) were generally short and concise; and he was fond of expressing +himself in those minuter sentences, or members, which the Greeks call +Colons."--"As you have spoken so largely," said Brutus, "in praise of the +two last-mentioned Orators, I heartily wish that Antonius had left us some +other specimen of his abilities, than his trifling Essay on the Art of +Speaking, and Crassus more than he has: by so doing, they would have +transmitted their fame to _posterity_; and to us a valuable system of +Eloquence. For as to the elegant language of Scaevola, we have sufficient +proofs of it in the Orations he has left behind him."--"For my part," said +I, "the Oration I was speaking of, on Caepio's case, has been my pattern, +and my tutoress, from my very childhood. It supports the dignity of the +Senate, which was deeply interested in the debate; and excites the +jealousy of the audience against the party of the judges and accusers, +whose power it was necessary to expose in the most popular terms. Many +parts of it are very strong and nervous, many others very cool and +composed; and some are distinguished by the asperity of their language, +and not a few by their wit and pleasantry: but much more was said than was +committed to writing, as is sufficiently evident from several heads of the +Oration, which are merely proposed without any enlargement or explanation. +But the oration in his censorship against his colleague Cn. Domitius, is +not so much an Oration, as an analysis of the subject, or a general sketch +of what he had said, with here and there a few ornamental touches, by way +of specimen: for no contest was ever conducted with greater spirit than +this. Crassus, however, was eminently distinguished by the popular turn of +his language: but that of Antonius was better adapted to judicial trials, +than to a public debate. As we have had occasion to mention him, Domitius +himself must not be left unnoticed: for though he is not enrolled in the +list of Orators, he had a sufficient share both of utterance and genius, +to support his character as a magistrate and his dignity as a consul. I +might likewise observe of C. Caelius, that he was a man of great +application, and many eminent qualities, and had eloquence enough to +support the private interests of his friends, and his own dignity in the +State. At the same time lived M. Herennius, who was reckoned among the +middling Orators, whose principal merit was the purity and correctness of +their language; and yet, in a suit for the consulship, he got the better +of L. Philippus, a man of the first rank and family, and of the most +extensive connections, and who was likewise a member of the College, and a +very eloquent speaker. _Then_ also lived C. Clodius, who, besides his +consequence as a nobleman of the first distinction, and a man of the most +powerful influence, was likewise possessed of a moderate share of +Eloquence. Nearly of the same age was C. Titius, a Roman knight, who, in +my judgment, arrived at as high a degree of perfection as a Roman orator +was able to do, without the assistance of the Grecian literature, and a +good share of practice. His Orations have so many delicate turns, such a +number of well-chosen examples, and such an agreeable vein of politeness, +that they almost seem to have been composed in the true Attic style. He +likewise transferred his delicacies into his very Tragedies, with +ingenuity enough, I confess, but not in the tragic taste. But the poet L. +Afranius, whom he studiously imitated, was a very smart writer, and, as +you well know, a man of great expression in the dramatic way. Q. Rubrius +Varro, who with C. Marius, was declared an enemy by the Senate, was +likewise a warm, and a very spirited prosecutor. My relation, M. +Gratidius, was a plausible speaker of the same kind, well versed in the +Grecian literature, formed by nature for the profession of Eloquence, and +an intimate acquaintance of M. Antonius: he commanded under him in +Cilicia, where he lost his life: and he once commenced a prosecution +against C. Fimbria, the father of M. Marius Gratidianus. There have +likewise been several among the Allies, and the Latins, who were esteemed +good Orators; as, for instance, Q. Vettius of Vettium, one of the Marsi, +whom I myself was acquainted with, a man of sense, and a concise speaker; +--the Q. and D. Valerii of Sora, my neighbours and acquaintances, who were +not so remarkable for their talent of speaking, as for their skill both in +the Greek and Roman literature; and C. Rusticellus of Bononia, an +experienced Orator, and a man of great natural volubility. But the most +eloquent of all those who were not citizens of Rome, was T. Betucius +Barrus of Asculum, some of whose Orations, which were spoken in that city, +are still extant: that which he made at Rome against Caepio, is really an +excellent one: the speech which Caepio delivered in answer to it, was made +by Aelius, who composed a number of Orations, but pronounced none himself. +But among those of a remoter date, L. Papirius of Fregellae in Latium, who +was almost cotemporary with Ti. Gracchus, was universally esteemed the +most eloquent: we have a speech of his in vindication of the Fregellani, +and the Latin Colonies, which was delivered before the Senate."--"And what +then is the merit," said Brutus, "which you mean to ascribe to these +provincial Orators?"--"What else," replied I, "but the very same which I +have ascribed to the city-orators; excepting that their language is not +tinctured with the same fashionable delicacy?"--"What fashionable delicacy +do you mean?" said he.--"I cannot," said I, "pretend to define it: I only +know that there is such a quality existing. When you go to your province +in Gaul, you will be convinced of it. You will there find many expressions +which are not current in Rome; but these may be easily changed, and +corrected. But, what is of greater importance, our Orators have a +particular accent in their manner of pronouncing, which is more elegant, +and has a more agreeable effect than any other. This, however, is not +peculiar to the Orators, but is equally common to every well-bred citizen. +I myself remember that T. Tineas, of Placentia, who was a very facetious +man, once engaged in a repartee skirmish with my old friend Q. Granius, +the public crier."--"Do you mean that Granius," said Brutus, "of whom +Lucilius has related such a number of stories?"--"The very same," said I: +"but though Tineas said as many smart things as the other, Granius at last +overpowered him by a certain vernacular _goūt_, which gave an additional +relish to his humour: so that I am no longer surprised at what is said to +have happened to Theophrastus, when he enquired of an old woman who kept a +stall, what was the price of something which he wanted to purchase. After +telling him the value of it,--"Honest _stranger_," said she, "I cannot +afford it for less": "an answer which nettled him not a little, to think +that _he_ who had resided almost all his life at Athens, and spoke the +language very correctly, should be taken at last for a foreigner. In the +same manner, there is, in my opinion, a certain accent as peculiar to the +native citizens of Rome, as the other was to those of Athens. But it is +time for us to return home; I mean to the Orators of our own growth. Next, +therefore, to the two capital Speakers above-mentioned, (that is Crassus +and Antonius) came L. Philippus,--not indeed till a considerable time +afterwards; but still he must be reckoned the next. I do not mean, +however, though nobody appeared in the interim who could dispute the prize +with him, that he was entitled to the second, or even the third post of +honour. For, as in a Chariot-race I cannot properly consider _him_ as +either the second, or third winner, who has scarcely got clear of the +starting-post, before the first has reached the goal; so, among Orators, I +can scarcely honour him with the name of a competitor, who has been so far +distanced by the foremost as hardly to appear on the same ground with him. +But yet there were certainly some talents to be observed in Philippus, +which any person who considers them, without subjecting them to a +comparison with the superior merits of the two before-mentioned, must +allow to have been respectable. He had an uncommon freedom of address, a +large fund of humour, great facility in the invention of his sentiments, +and a ready and easy manner of expressing them. He was likewise, for the +time he lived in, a great adept in the literature of the Greeks; and, in +the heat of a debate, he could sting, and gash, as well as ridicule his +opponents. Almost cotemporary with these was L. Gellius, who was not so +much to be valued for his positive, as for his negative merits: for he was +neither destitute of learning, nor invention, nor unacquainted with the +history and the laws of his country; besides which, he had a tolerable +freedom of expression. But he happened to live at a time when many +excellent Orators made their appearance; and yet he served his friends +upon many occasions to good purpose: in short, his life was so long, that +he was successively cotemporary with a variety of Orators of different +dates, and had an extensive series of practice in judicial causes. Nearly +at the same time lived D. Brutus, who was fellow-consul with Mamercus;-- +and was equally skilled both in the Grecian and Roman literature. L. +Scipio likewise was not an unskilful Speaker; and Cnaeus Pompeius, the son +of Sextus, had some reputation as an Orator; for his brother Sextus +applied the excellent genius he was possessed of, to acquire a thorough +knowledge of the Civil Law, and a complete acquaintance with geometry and +the doctrine of the Stoics. A little before these, M. Brutus, and very +soon after him, C. Bilienus, who was a man of great natural capacity, made +themselves, by nearly the same application, equally eminent in the +profession of the law;--the latter would have been chosen Consul, if he +had not been thwarted by the repeated promotion of Marius, and some other +collateral embarrassments which attended his suit. But the eloquence of +Cn. Octavius, which was wholly unknown before his elevation to the +Consulship, was effectually displayed, after his preferment to that +office, in a great variety of speeches. It is, however, time for us to +drop those who were only classed in the number of good _speakers_, and +turn our attention to such as were really _Orators_."--"I think so too," +replied Atticus; "for I understood that you meant to give us an account, +not of those who took great pains to be eloquent, but of those who were so +in reality."--"C. Julius then," said I, (the son of Lucius) was certainly +superior, not only to his predecessors, but to all his cotemporaries, in +wit and humour: he was not, indeed, a nervous and striking Orator, but, in +the elegance, the pleasantry, and the agreeableness of his manner, he has +not been excelled by any man. There are some Orations of his still extant, +in which, as well as in his Tragedies, we may discover a pleasing +tranquillity of expression with very little energy. P. Cethegus, his +cotemporary, had always enough to say on matters of civil regulation; for +he had studied and comprehended them with the minutest accuracy; by which +means he acquired an equal authority in the Senate with those who had +served the office of consul, and though he made no figure in a public +debate, he was a serviceable veteran in any suit of a private nature. Q. +Lucretius Vispillo was an acute Speaker, and a good Civilian in the same +kind of causes: but Osella was better qualified for a public harangue, +than to conduct a judicial process. T. Annius Velina was likewise a man of +sense, and a tolerable pleader; and T. Juventius had a great deal of +practice in the same way:--the latter indeed was rather too heavy and +unanimated, but at the same time he was keen and artful, and knew how to +seize every advantage which was offered by his antagonist; to which we may +add, that he was far from being a man of no literature, and had an +extensive knowledge of the Civil Law. His scholar, P. Orbius, who was +almost cotemporary with me, had no great practice as a pleader; but his +skill in the Civil Law was nothing inferior to his master's. As to Titus +Aufidius, who lived to a great age, he was a professed imitator of both; +and was indeed a worthy inoffensive man, but seldom spoke at the bar. His +brother, M. Virgilius, who when he was a tribune of the people, commenced +a prosecution against L. Sylla, then advanced to the rank of General, had +as little practice as Aufidius. Virgilius's colleague, P. Magius, was more +copious and diffusive. But of all the Orators, or rather _Ranters_, I ever +knew, who were totally illiterate and unpolished, and (I might have added) +absolutely coarse and rustic, the readiest and keenest, were Q. Sertorius, +and C. Gorgonius, the one of consular, and the other of equestrian rank. +T. Junius (the son of L.) who had served the office of tribune, and +prosecuted and convicted P. Sextius of bribery, when he was praetor elect, +was a prompt and an easy speaker: he lived in great splendor, and had a +very promising genius; and, if he had not been of a weak, and indeed a +sickly constitution, he would have advanced much farther than he did in +the road to preferment. I am sensible, however, that in the account I have +been giving, I have included many who were neither real, nor reputed +Orators; and that I have omitted others, among those of a remoter date, +who well deserved not only to have been mentioned, but to be recorded with +honour. But this I was forced to do, for want of better information: for +what could I say concerning men of a distant age, none of whose +productions are now remaining, and of whom no mention is made in the +writings of other people? But I have omitted none of those who have fallen +within the compass of my own knowledge, or that I myself remember to have +heard. For I wish to make it appear, that in such a powerful and ancient +republic as ours, in which the greatest rewards have been proposed to +Eloquence, though all have desired to be good speakers, not many have +attempted the talk, and but very few have succeeded. But I shall give my +opinion of every one in such explicit terms, that it may be easily +understood whom I consider as a mere Declaimer, and whom as an Orator." + +"About the same time, or rather something later than the above-mentioned +Julius, but almost cotemporary with each other, were C. Cotta, P. +Sulpicius, Q. Varius, Cn. Pomponius, C. Curio, L. Fufius, M. Drusus, and +P. Antistius; for no age whatsoever has been distingushed by a more +numerous progeny of Orators. Of these, Cotta and Sulpicius, both in my +opinion, and in that of the Public at large, had an evident claim to the +preference."--"But wherefore," interrupted Atticus, "do you say, _in your +own opinion, and in that of the Public at large?_ In deciding the merits +of an Orator, does the opinion of the vulgar, think you, always coincide +with that of the learned? Or rather does not one receive the approbation +of the populace, while another of a quite opposite character is preferred +by those who are better qualified to give their judgment?"--"You have +started a very pertinent question," said I; "but, perhaps, _the Public at +large_ will not approve my answer to it."--"And what concern need _that_ +give you," replied Atticus, "if it meets the approbation of Brutus?"-- +"Very true," said I; "for I had rather my _sentiments_ on the +qualifications of an Orator would please you and Brutus, than all the +world besides: but as to my _Eloquence_, I should wish _this_ to please +every one. For he who speaks in such a manner as to please the people, +must inevitably receive the approbation of the learned. As to the truth +and propriety of what I hear, I am indeed to judge of this for myself, as +well as I am able: but the general merit of an Orator must and will be +decided by the effects which his eloquence produces. For (in my opinion at +least) there are three things which an Orator should be able to effect; +_viz_. to _inform_ his hearers, to _please_ them, and to _move their +passions_. By what qualities in the Speaker each of these, effects may be +produced, or by what deficiencies they are either lost, or but imperfectly +performed, is an enquiry which none but an artist can resolve: but whether +an audience is really so affected by an Orator as shall best answer his +purpose, must be left to their own feelings, and the decision of the +Public. The learned, therefore, and the people at large, have never +disagreed about who was a good Orator, and who was otherwise. For do you +suppose, that while the Speakers above-mentioned were in being, they had +not the same degree of reputation among the learned as among the populace? +If you had enquired of one of the latter, _who was the most eloquent man +in the city_, he might have hesitated whether to say _Antonius_ or +_Crassus_; or this man, perhaps, would have mentioned the one, and that +the other. But would any one have given the preference to _Philippus_, +though otherwise a smooth, a sensible, and a facetious Speaker?--that +_Philippus_ whom we, who form our judgment upon these matters by rules of +art, have decided to have been the next in merit? Nobody would, I am +certain. For it is the invariable, property of an accomplished Orator, to +be reckoned such in the opinion of the people. Though Antigenidas, +therefore, the musician, might say to his scholar, who was but coldly +received by the Public, Play on, to please me and the Muses;--I shall say +to my friend Brutus, when he mounts the Rostra, as he frequently does,-- +Play to me and the people;--that those who hear him may be sensible of the +effect of his Eloquence, while I can likewise amuse myself with remarking +the causes which produce it. When a Citizen hears an able Orator, he +readily credits what is said;--he imagines every thing to be true, he +believes and relishes the force of it; and, in short, the persuasive +language of the Speaker wins his absolute, his hearty assent. You, who are +possessed of a critical knowledge of the art, what more will you require? +The listening multitude is charmed and captivated by the force of his +Eloquence, and feels a pleasure which is not to be resisted. What here can +you find to censure? The whole audience is either flushed with joy, or +overwhelmed with grief;--it smiles, or weeps,--it loves, or hates,--it +scorns or envies,--and, in short, is alternately seized with the various +emotions of pity, shame, remorse, resentment, wonder, hope, and fear, +according as it is influenced by the language, the sentiments, and the +action of the speaker. In this case, what necessity is there to await the +sanction of a critic? For here, whatever is approved by the feelings of +the people, must be equally so by men of taste and erudition: and, in this +instance of public decision, there can be no disagreement between the +opinion of the vulgar, and that of the learned. For though many good +Speakers have appeared in every species of Oratory, which of them who was +thought to excel the rest in the judgment of the populace, was not +approved as such by every man of learning? or which of our ancestors, when +the choice of a pleader was left to his own option, did not immediately +fix it either upon Crassus or Antonius? There were certainly many others +to be had: but though any person might have hesitated to which of the +above two he should give the preference, there was nobody, I believe, who +would have made choice of a third. And in the time of my youth, when Cotta +and Hortensius were in such high reputation, who, that had liberty to +choose for himself, would have employed any other?"--"But what occasion is +there," said Brutus, "to quote the example of other speakers to support +your assertion? have we not seen what has always been the wish of the +defendant, and what the judgment of Hortensius, concerning yourself? for +whenever the latter shared a cause with you, (and I was often present on +those occasions) the peroration, which requires the greatest exertion of +the powers of Eloquence, was constantly left to _you_."--"It was," said I; +"and Hortensius (induced, I suppose, by the warmth of his friendship) +always resigned the post of honour to me. But, as to myself, what rank I +hold in the opinion of the people I am unable to determine: as to others, +however, I may safely assert, that such of them as were reckoned most +eloquent in the judgment of the vulgar, were equally high in the +estimation of the learned. For even Demosthenes himself could not have +said what is related of Antimachus, a poet of Claros, who, when he was +rehearsing to an audience assembled for the purpose, that voluminous piece +of his which you are well acquainted with, and was deserted by all his +hearers except Plato, in the midst of his performance, cried out, "I +shall proceed notwithstanding_; for Plato alone is of _more consequence to +me than many thousands_." "The remark was very just. For an abstruse poem, +such as his, only requires the approbation of the judicious few; but a +discourse intended for the people should be perfectly suited to their +taste. If Demosthenes, therefore, after being deserted by the rest of his +audience, had even Plato left to hear him, and no one else, I will answer +for it, he could not have uttered another syllable. 'Nay, or could you +yourself, my Brutus, if the whole assembly was to leave you, as it once +did Curio?"--"To open my whole mind to you," replied he, "I must confess +that even in such causes as fall under the cognizance of a few select +judges, and not of the people at large, if I was to be deserted by the +casual crowd who came to hear the trial, I should not be able to +proceed."--"The case, then, is plainly this," said I: "as a flute, which +will not return its proper sound when it is applied to the lips, would be +laid aside by the musician as useless; so, the ears of the people are the +instrument upon which an Orator is to play: and if these refuse to admit +the breath he bestows upon them, or if the hearer, like a restive horse, +will not obey the spur, the speaker must cease to exert himself any +farther. There is, however, the exception to be made; the people sometimes +give their approbation to an orator who does not deserve it. But even here +they approve what they have had no opportunity of comparing with something +better: as, for instance, when they are pleased with an indifferent, or, +perhaps, a bad speaker. His abilities satisfy their expectation: they have +seen nothing preferable: and, therefore, the merit of the day, whatever it +may happen to be, meets their full applause. For even a middling Orator, +if he is possessed of any degree of Eloquence, will always captivate the +ear; and the order and beauty of a good discourse has an astonishing +effect upon the human mind. Accordingly, what common hearer who was +present when Q. Scaevola pleaded for M. Coponius, in the cause above- +mentioned, would have wished for, or indeed thought it possible to find +any thing which was more correct, more elegant, or more complete? When he +attempted to prove, that, as M. Curius was left heir to the estate only in +case of the death of his future ward before he came of age, he could not +possibly be a legal heir, when the expected ward was never born;--what did +he leave unsaid of the scrupulous regard which should be paid to the +literal meaning of every testament? what of the accuracy and preciseness +of the old and established forms; of law? and how carefully did he specify +the manner in which the will would have been expressed, if it had intended +that Curius should be the heir in case of a total default of issue? in +what a masterly manner did he represent the ill consequences to the +Public, if the letter of a will should be disregarded, its intention +decided by arbitrary conjectures, and the written bequests of plain +illiterate men, left to the artful interpretation of a pleader? how often +did he urge the authority of his father, who had always been an advocate +for a strict adherence to the letter of a testament? and with what +emphasis did he enlarge upon the necessity of supporting the common forms +of law? All which particulars he discussed not only very artfully, and +skilfully; but in such a neat,--such a close,--and, I may add, in so +florid, and so elegant a style, that there was not a single person among +the common part of the audience, who could expect any thing more complete, +or even think it possible to exist. But when Crassus, who spoke on the +opposite side, began with the story of a notable youth, who having found a +cock-boat as he was rambling along the shore, took it into his head +immediately that he would build a ship to it;--and when he applied the +tale to Scaevola, who, from the cock-boat of an argument [which he had +deduced from certain imaginary ill consequences to the Public] represented +the decision of a private will to be a matter of such importance as to +deserve he attention of the _Centum-viri_;--when Crassus, I say, in the +beginning of his discourse, had thus taken off the edge of the strongest +plea of his antagonist, he entertained his hearers with many other turns +of a similar kind; and, in a short time, changed the serious apprehensions +of all who were present into open mirth and good-humour; which is one of +those three effects which I have just observed an Orator should be able to +produce. He then proceeded to remark that it was evidently the intention +and the will of the testator, that in cafe, either by death, or default of +issue, there should happen to be no son to fall to his charge, the +inheritance should devolve to Curius:--'that most people in a similar case +would express themselves in the same manner, and that it would certainly +stand good in law, and always had. By these, and many other observations +of the same kind, he gained the assent of his hearers; which is another of +the three duties of an Orator. Lastly, he supported, at all events, the +true meaning and spirit of a will, against the literal construction: +justly observing, that there would be an endless cavilling about words, +not only in wills, but in all other legal deeds, if the real intention of +the party was to be disregarded: and hinting very smartly, that his +friend Scaevola had assumed a most unwarrantable degree of importance, if +no person must afterwards presume to indite a legacy, but in the musty +form which he himself might please to prescribe. As he enlarged on each of +these arguments with great force and propriety, supported them by a number +of precedents, exhibited them in a variety of views, and enlivened them +with many occasional turns of wit and pleasantry, he gained so much +applause, and gave such general satisfaction, that it was scarcely +remembered that any thing had been said on the contrary side of the +question. This was the third, and the most important duty we assigned to +an Orator. + +"Here, if one of the people was to be judge, the same person who had heard +the first Speaker with a degree of admiration, would, on hearing the +second, despise himself for his former want of judgment:--whereas a man of +taste and erudition, on hearing Scaevola, would have observed that he was +really master of a rich and ornamental style; but if, on comparing the +manner in which each of them concluded his cause, it was to be enquired +which of the two was the best Orator, the decision of the man of learning +would not have differed from that of the vulgar. What advantage, then, it +will be said, has the skilful critic over the illiterate hearer? A great +and very important advantage; if it is indeed a matter of any consequence, +to be able to discover by what means that which is the true and real end +of speaking, is either obtained or lost. He has likewise this additional +superiority, that when two or more Orators, as has frequently happened, +have shared the applauses of the Public, he can judge, on a careful +observation of the principal merits of each, what is the most perfect +character of Eloquence: since whatever does not meet the approbation of +the people, must be equally condemned by a more intelligent hearer. For as +it is easily understood by the sound of a harp, whether the strings are +skilfully touched; so it may likewise be discovered from the manner in +which the passions of an audience are affected, how far the Speaker is +able to command them. A man, therefore, who is a real connoisseur in the +art, can sometimes by a single glance as he passes through the Forum, and +without stopping to listen attentively to what is said, form a tolerable +judgment of the ability of the Speaker. When he observes any of the Bench +either yawning, or speaking to the person who is next to him, or looking +carelessly about him, or sending to enquire the time of day, or teazing +the Quaestor to dismiss the court; he concludes very naturally that the +cause upon trial is not pleaded by an Orator who understands how to apply +the powers of language to the passions of the judges, as a skilful +musician applies his fingers to the harp. On the other hand, if, as he +passes by, he beholds the judges looking attentively before them, as if +they were either receiving some material information, or visibly approved +what they had already heard--if he sees them listening to the voice of the +Pleader with a kind of extasy like a fond bird to some melodious tune;-- +and, above all, if he discovers in their looks any strong indications of +pity, abhorrence, or any other emotion of the mind;--though he should not +be near enough to hear a single word, he immediately discovers that the +cause is managed by a real Orator, who is either performing, or has +already played his part to good purpose." + +After I had concluded these digressive remarks, my two friends were kind +enough to signify their approbation, and I resumed my subject.--"As this +digression," said I, "took its rise from Cotta and Sulpicius, whom I +mentioned as the two most approved Orators of the age they lived in, I +shall first return to _them,_ and afterwards notice the rest in their +proper order, according to the plan we began upon. I have already observed +that there are two classes of _good_ Orators (for we have no concern with +any others) of which the former are distinguished by the simple neatness +and brevity of their language, and the latter by their copious dignity and +elevation: but although the preference must always be given to that which +is great and striking; yet, in speakers of real merit, whatever is most +perfect of the kind, is justly entitled to our commendation. It must, +however, be observed, that the close and simple Orator should be careful +not to sink into a driness and poverty of expression; while, on the other +hand, the copious and more stately Speaker should be equally on his guard +against a swelling and empty parade of words. + +"To begin with Cotta, he had a ready, quick Invention, and spoke correctly +and freely; and as he very prudently avoided every forcible exertion of +his voice on account of the weakness of his lungs, so his language was +equally adapted to the delicacy of his constitution. There was nothing in +his style but what was neat, compact, and healthy; and (what may justly be +considered as his greatest excellence) though he was scarcely able, and +therefore never attempted to force the passions of the judges by a strong +and spirited elocution, yet he managed them so artfully, that the gentle +emotions he raised in them, answered exactly the same purpose, and +produced the same effect, as the violent ones which were excited by +Sulpicius. For Sulpicius was really the most striking, and, if I may be +allowed the expression, the most tragical Orator I ever heard:--his voice +was strong and sonorous, and yet sweet, and flowing:--his gesture, and the +sway of his body, was graceful and ornamental, but in such a style as to +appear to have been formed for the Forum, and not for the stage:--and his +language, though rapid and voluble, was neither loose nor exuberant. He +was a professed imitator of Crassus, while Cotta chose Antonius for his +model: but the latter wanted the force of Antonius, and the former the +agreeable humour of Crassus."--"How extremely difficult, then," said +Brutus, "must be the art of speaking, when such consummate Orators as +these were each of them destitute of one of its principal beauties!"--"We +may likewise observe," said I, "in the present instance, that two Orators +may have the highest degree of merit, who are totally unlike each other: +for none could be more so than Cotta and Sulpicius, and yet both of them +were far superior to any of their cotemporaries. It is therefore the +business of every intelligent matter to take notice what is the natural +bent of his pupil's capacity; and, taking that for his guide, to imitate +the conduct of Socrates with his two scholars Theopompus and Ephorus, who, +after remarking the lively genius of the former, and the mild and timid +bashfulness of the latter, is reported to have said that he applied a spur +to the one, and a curb to the other. The Orations now extant, which bear +the name of Sulpicius, are supposed to have been written after his decease +by my cotemporary P. Canutius, a man indeed of inferior rank, but who, in +my mind, had a great command of language. But we have not a single speech +of Sulpicius that was really his own: for I have often heard him say, that +he neither had, nor ever could commit any thing of the kind to writing. +And as to Cotta's speech in defence of himself, called a vindication of +the _Varian Law_, it was composed, at his own request, by L. Aelius. This +Aelius was a man of merit, and a very worthy Roman knight, who was +thoroughly versed in the Greek and Roman literature. He had likewise a +critical knowledge of the antiquities of his country, both as to the date +and particulars of every new improvement, and every memorable transaction, +and was perfectly well read in the ancient writers;--a branch of learning +in which he was succeeded by our friend Varro, a man of genius, and of the +most extensive erudition, who afterwards enlarged the plan by many +valuable collections of his own, and gave a much fuller and more elegant +system of it to the Public. For Aelius himself chose to assume the +character of a Stoic, and neither aimed to be, nor ever was an Orator: but +he composed several Orations for other people to pronounce; as for Q. +Metellus, F. Q. Caepio, and Q. Pompeius Rufus; though the latter composed +those speeches himself which he spoke in his own defence, but not without +the assistance of Aelius. For I myself was present at the writing of them, +in the younger part of my life, when I used to attend Aelius for the +benefit of his instructions. But I am surprised, that Cotta, who was +really an excellent Orator, and a man of good learning, should be willing +that the trifling Speeches of Aelius mould be published to the world as +_his_. + +"To the two above-mentioned, no third person of the same age was esteemed +an equal: Pomponius, however, was a Speaker much to my taste; or, at +least, I have very little fault to find with him. But there was no +employment for any in capital causes, excepting for those I have already +mentioned; because Antonius, who was always courted on these occasions, +was very ready to give his service; and Crassus, though not so compliable, +generally consented, on any pressing sollicitation, to give _his_. Those +who had not interest enough to engage either of these, commonly applied to +Philip, or Caesar; but when Cotta and Sulpicius were at liberty, they +generally had the preference: so that all the causes in which any honour +was to be acquired, were pleaded by these six Orators. We may add, that +trials were not so frequent then as they are at present; neither did +people employ, as they do now, several pleaders on the same side of the +question,--a practice which is attended with many disadvantages. For +hereby we are often obliged to speak in reply to those whom we had not an +opportunity of hearing; in which case, what has been alledged on the +opposite side, is often represented to us either falsely or imperfectly; +and besides, it is a very material circumstance, that I myself should be +present to see with what countenance my antagonist supports his +allegations, and, still more so, to observe the effect of every part of +his discourse upon the audience. And as every defence should be conducted +upon one uniform plan, nothing can be more improperly contrived, than to +re-commence it by assigning the peroration, or pathetical part of it, to a +second advocate. For every cause can have but one natural introduction and +conclusion; and all the other parts of it, like the members of an animal +body, will best retain their proper strength and beauty, when they are +regularly disposed and connected. We may add, that as it is very difficult +in a single Oration of any length, to avoid saying something which does +not comport with the rest of it so well as it ought to do, how much more +difficult must it be to contrive that nothing shall be said, which does +not tally exactly with the speech of another person who has spoken before +you? But as it certainly requires more labour to plead a whole cause, than +only a part of it, and as many advantageous connections are formed by +assisting in a suit in which several persons are interested, the custom, +however preposterous in itself, has been readily adopted. + +"There were some, however, who esteemed Curio the third best Orator of the +age; perhaps, because his language was brilliant and pompous, and because +he had a habit (for which I suppose he was indebted to his domestic +education) of expressing himself with tolerable correctness: for he was a +man of very little learning. But it is a circumstance of great importance, +what sort of people we are used to converse with at home, especially in +the more early part of life; and what sort of language we have been +accustomed to hear from our tutors and parents, not excepting the mother. +We have all read the Letters of Cornelia, the mother of the Gracchi; and +are satisfied, that her sons were not so much nurtured in their mother's +lap, as in the elegance and purity of her language. I have often too +enjoyed the agreeable conversation of Laelia, the daughter of Caius, and +observed in her a strong tincture of her father's elegance. I have +likewise conversed with his two daughters, the Muciae, and his +granddaughters, the two Liciniae, with one of whom (the wife of Scipio) +you, my Brutus, I believe, have sometimes been in company."--"I have," +replied he, "and was much pleased with her conversation; and the more so, +because she was the daughter of Crassus."--"And what think you," said I, +"of Crassus, the son of that Licinia, who was adopted by Crassus in his +will?"--"He is said," replied he, "to have been a man of great genius: and +the Scipio you have mentioned, who was my colleague, likewise appears to +me to have been a good Speaker, and an elegant companion."--"Your opinion, +my Brutus," said I, "is very just. For this family, if I may be allowed +the expression, seems to have been the offspring of Wisdom. As to their +two grandfathers, Scipio and Crassus, we have taken notice of them +already: as we also have of their great grandfathers, Q. Metellus, who had +four sons,--P. Scipio, who, when a private citizen, freed the Republic +from the arbitrary influence of T. Gracchus,--and Q. Scaevola, the augur, +who was the ablest and most affable Civilian of his time. And lastly, how +illustrious are the names of their next immediate progenitors, P. Scipio, +who was twice Consul, and was called the Darling of the People,--and C. +Laelius, who was esteemed the wisest of men?"--"A generous stock indeed!" +cries Brutus, "into which the wisdom of many has been successively +ingrafted, like a number of scions on the same tree!"--"I have likewise a +suspicion," replied I, "(if we may compare small things with great) that +Curio's family, though he himself was left an orphan, was indebted to his +father's instruction, and good example, for the habitual purity of their +language: and so much the more, because, of all those who were held in any +estimation for their Eloquence, I never knew one who was so totally rude +and unskilled in every branch of liberal science. He had not read a single +poet, or studied a single orator; and he knew little or nothing either of +Public, Civil, or Common law. We might say almost the same, indeed, of +several others, and some of them very able Orators, who (we know) were but +little acquainted with these useful parts of knowledge; as, for instance, +of Sulpicius and Antonius. But this deficiency was supplied in them by an +elaborate knowledge of the art of Speaking; and there was not one of them +who was totally unqualified in any of the five [Footnote: Invention, +Disposition, Elocution, Memory, and Pronunciation.] principal parts of +which it is composed; for whenever this is the case, (and it matters not +in which of those parts it happens) it intirely incapacitates a man to +shine as an Orator. Some, however, excelled in one part, and some in +another. Thus Antonius could readily invent such arguments as were most in +point, and afterwards digest and methodize them to the best advantage; and +he could likewise retain the plan he had formed with great exactness: but +his chief merit was the goodness of his delivery, in which he was justly +allowed to excel. In some of these qualifications he was upon an equal +footing with Crassus, and in others he was superior: but then the language +of Crassus was indisputably preferable to _his_. In the same manner, it +cannot be said that either Sulpicius or Cotta, or any other Speaker of +repute, was absolutely deficient in any one of the five parts of Oratory. +But we may justly infer from the example of Curio, that nothing will more +recommend an Orator, than a brilliant and ready flow of expression; for he +was remarkably dull in the invention, and very loose and unconnected in +the disposition of his arguments. The two remaining parts are +Pronunciation and Memory; in each of which he was so poorly qualified, as +to excite the laughter and the ridicule of his hearers. His gesture was +really such as C. Julius represented it, in a severe sarcasm, that will +never be forgotten; for as he was swaying and reeling his whole body from +side to side, Julius enquired very merrily, _who it was that was speaking +from a boat_. To the same purpose was the jest of Cn. Sicinius, a very +vulgar sort of man, but exceedingly humourous, which was the only +qualification he had to recommend him as an Orator. When this man, as +Tribune of the people, had summoned Curio and Octavius, who were then +Consuls, into the Forum, and Curio had delivered a tedious harangue, while +Octavius sat silently by him, wrapt up in flannels, and besmeared with +ointments, to ease the pain of the gout;"--"_Octavius," said he, "you are +infinitely obliged to your colleague; for if he had not tossed and flung +himself about to-day, in the manner he did, you would have certainly have +been devoured by the flies._"--"As to his memory, it was so extremely +treacherous, that after he had divided his subject into three general +heads, he would sometimes, in the course of speaking, either add a fourth, +or omit the third. In a capital trial, in which I had pleaded for Titinia, +the daughter of Cotta, when he attempted to reply to me in defence of +Serv. Naevius, he suddenly forgot every thing he had intended to say, and +attributed it to the pretended witchcraft, and magic artifices of Titinia. +These were undoubted proofs of the weakness of his memory. But, what is +still more inexcusable, he sometimes forgot, even in his written +treatises, what he had mentioned but a little before. Thus, in a book of +his, in which he introduces himself as entering into conversation with our +friend Pansa, and his son Curio, when he was walking home from the Senate- +house; the Senate is supposed to have been summoned by Caesar in his first +Consulship; and the whole conversation arises from the son's enquiry what +the House had resolved upon. Curio launches out into a long invective +against the conduct of Caesar, and, as is generally the custom in +dialogues, the parties are engaged in a close dispute on the subject: but +very unhappily, though the conversation commences at the breaking up of +the Senate which Caesar held when he was first Consul, the author censures +those very actions of the same Caesar, which did not happen till the next, +and several other succeeding years of his government in Gaul."--"Is it +possible then," said Brutus, with an air of surprize, "that any man, (and +especially in a written performance) could be so forgetful as not to +discover, upon a subsequent perusal of his own work, what an egregious +blunder he had committed?"--"Very true," said I; "for if he wrote with a +design to discredit the measures which he represents in such an odious +light, nothing could be more stupid than not to commence his dialogue at a +period which was subsequent to those measures. But he so entirely forgets +himself, as to tell us, that he did not choose to attend a Senate which +was held in one of Caesar's future consulships, in the very same dialogue +in which he introduces himself as returning home from a Senate which was +held in his first consulship. It cannot, therefore, be wondered at, that +he who was so remarkably defective in a faculty which is the steward of +our other intellectual powers, as to forget, even in a written treatise, a +material circumstance which he had mentioned but a little before, should +find his memory fail him, as it generally did, in a sudden and +unpremeditated harangue. It accordingly happened, though he had many +connections, and was fond of speaking in public, that few causes were +intrusted to his management. But, among his cotemporaries, he was esteemed +next in merit to the first Orators of the age; and that merely, as I said +before, for his good choice of words, and his uncommon readiness, and +great fluency of expression. His Orations, therefore, may deserve a +cursory perusal. It is true, indeed, they are much too languid and +spiritless; but they may yet be of service to enlarge and improve an +accomplishment, of which he certainly had a moderate share; and which has +so much force and efficacy, that it gave Curio the appearance and +reputation of an Orator, without the assistance of any other good quality. + +"But to return to our subject,--C. Carbo, of the same age, was likewise +reckoned an Orator of the second class: he was the son, indeed, of the +truly eloquent man before-mentioned, but was far from being an acute +Speaker himself: he was, however, esteemed an Orator. His language was +tolerably nervous, he spoke with ease,--and there was an air of authority +in his address that was perfectly natural. But Q. Varius was a man of +quicker invention, and, at the same time, had an equal freedom of +expression: besides which, he had a bold and spirited delivery, and a vein +of elocution which was neither poor, nor coarse and vulgar;--in short, you +need not hesitate to pronounce him an _Orator_. Cn. Pomponius was a +vehement, a rousing, and a fierce and eager Speaker, and more inclined to +act the part of a prosecutor, than of an advocate. But far inferior to +these was L. Fufius; though his application was, in some measure, rewarded +by the success of his prosecution against M. Aquilius. For as to M. +Drusus, your great uncle, who spoke like an Orator only upon matters of +government;--L. Lucullus, who was indeed an artful Speaker, and your +father, my Brutus, who was well acquainted with the Common and Civil Law; +--M. Lucullus, and M. Octavius, the son of Cnaeus, who was a man of so +much authority and address, as to procure the repeal of Sempronius's +corn-act, by the suffrages of a full assembly of the people;--Cn. +Octavius, the son of Marcus,--and M. Cato, the father, and Q. Catulus, +the son;--we must excuse these (if I may so express myself) from the +fatigues and dangers of the field,--that is, from the management of +judicial causes, and place them in garison over the general interests +of the Republic, a duty to which they seem to have been sufficiently +adequate. I should have assigned the same post to Q. Caepio, if he +had not been so violently attached to the Equestrian Order, as to set +himself at variance with the Senate. I have also remarked, that Cn. +Carbo, M. Marius, and several others of the same stamp, who would +not have merited the attention of an audience that had any taste for +elegance, were extremely well suited to address a tumultuous crowd. +In the same class, (if I may be allowed to interrupt the series of +my narrative) L. Quintius lately made his appearance: though Palicanus, +it must be owned, was still better adapted to please the ears of the +populace. But, as I have mentioned this inferior kind of Speakers, +I must be so just to L. Apuleius Saturninus, as to observe that, of all +the factious declaimers since the time of the Gracchi, he was generally +esteemed the ablest: and yet he caught the attention of the Public, more +by his appearance, his gesture, and his dress, than by any real fluency of +expression, or even a tolerable share of good sense. But C. Servilius +Glaucia, though the most abandoned wretch that ever existed, was very keen +and artful, and excessively humourous; and notwithstanding the meanness of +his birth, and the depravity of his life, he would have been advanced to +the dignity of a Consul in his Praetorship, if it had been judged lawful +to admit his suit: for the populace were entirely at his devotion, and he +had secured the interest of the Knights, by an act he had procured in +their favour. He was slain in the open Forum, while he was Praetor, on the +same day as the tribune Saturninus, in the Consulship of Marius and +Flaccus; and bore a near resemblance to Hyperbolus, the Athenian, whose +profligacy was so severely stigmatized in the old Attic Comedies. These +were succeeded by Sext. Titius, who was indeed a voluble Speaker, and +possessed a ready comprehension, but he was so loose and effeminate in his +gesture, as to furnish room for the invention of a dance, which was called +the _Titian jigg_: so careful should we be to avoid every oddity in our +manner of speaking, which may afterwards be exposed to ridicule by a +ludicrous imitation. + +"But we have rambled back insensibly to a period which has been already +examined: let us, therefore, return to that which we were reviewing a +little before. Cotemporary with Sulpicius was P. Antistius,--a plausible +declaimer, who, after being silent for several years, and exposed, (as he +often was) not only to the contempt, but the derision of his hearers, +first spoke with applause in his tribuneship, in a real and very +interesting protest against the illegal application of C. Julius for the +consulship; and that so much the more, because though Sulpicius himself, +who then happened to be his colleague, spoke on the same side of the +debate, Antistius argued more copiously, and to better purpose. This +raised his reputation so high, that many, and (soon afterwards) every +cause of importance, was eagerly recommended to his patronage. To speak +the truth, he had a quick conception, a methodical judgment, and a +retentive memory; and though his language was not much embellished, it was +very far from being low. In short, his style was easy, and flowing, and +his appearance rather genteel than otherwise: but his action was a little +defective, partly through the disagreeable tone of his voice, and partly +by a few ridiculous gestures, of which he could not entirely break +himself. He flourished in the time between the flight and the return of +Sylla, when the Republic was deprived of a regular administration of +justice, and of its former dignity and splendor. But the very favourable +reception he met with was, in some measure, owing to the great scarcity of +good Orators which then prevailed in the Forum. For Sulpicius was dead; +Cotta and Curio were abroad; and no pleaders of any eminence were left but +Carbo and Pomponius, from each of whom he easily carried off the palm. His +nearest successor in the following age was L. Sisenna, who was a man of +learning, had a taste for the liberal Sciences, spoke the Roman language +with accuracy, was well acquainted with the laws and constitution of his +country, and had a tolerable share of wit; but he was not a Speaker of any +great application, or extensive practice; and as he happened to live in +the intermediate time between the appearance of Sulpicius and Hortensius, +he was unable to equal the former, and forced to yield to the superior +talents of the latter. We may easily form a judgment of his abilities from +the historical Works he has left behind him; which, though evidently +preferable to any thing of the kind which had appeared before, may serve +as a proof that he was far below the standard of perfection, and that this +species of composition had not then been improved to any great degree of +excellence among the Romans. But the genius of Q. Hortensius, even in his +early youth, like one of Phidias's statues, was no sooner beheld than it +was universally admired! He spoke his first Oration in the Forum in the +consulship of L. Crassus and Q. Scaevola, to whom it was personally +adressed; and though he was then only nineteen years old, he descended +from the Rostra with the hearty approbation not only of the audience in +general, but of the two Consuls themselves, who were the most intelligent +judges in the whole city. He died in the consulship of L. Paulus and C. +Marcellus; from which it appears that he was four-and-forty years a +Pleader. We shall review his character more at large in the sequel: but in +this part of my history, I chose to include him in the number of Orators +who were rather of an earlier date. This indeed must necessarily happen to +all whose lives are of any considerable length: for they are equally +liable to a comparison with their Elders and their Juniors; as in the case +of the poet Attius, who says that both he and Pacuvius applied themselves +to the cultivation of the drama under the fame Aediles; though, at the +time, the one was eighty, and the other only thirty years old. Thus +Hortensius may be paralleled not only with those who were properly his +contemporaries, but with me, and you, my Brutus, and with others of a +prior date. For he began to speak in public while Crassus was living but +his fame increased when he appeared as a joint advocate with Antonius and +Philip (at that time in the decline of life) in defence of Cn. Pompeius,-- +a cause in which (though a mere youth) he distinguished himself above the +rest. He may therefore be included in the lift of those whom I have placed +in the time of Sulpicius; but among his proper coėvals, such as M. Piso, +M. Crassus, Cn. Lentulus, and P. Lentulus Sura, he excelled beyond the +reach of competition; and after these he happened upon me, in the early +part of my life (for I was eight years younger than himself) and spent a +number of years with me in pursuit of the same forensic glory: and at +last, (a little before his death) he once pleaded with _you_, in defence +of Appius Claudius, as I have frequently done for others. Thus you see, my +Brutus, I am come insensibly to _yourself_, though there was undoubtedly a +great variety of Orators between my first appearance in the Forum, and +yours. But as I determined, when we began the conversation, to make no +mention of those among them who are still living, to prevent your +enquiring too minutely what is my opinion concerning each; I shall confine +myself to such as are now no more."--"That is not the true reason," said +Brutus, "why you choose to be silent about the living."--"What then do you +suppose it to be," said I?--"You are only fearful," replied he, "that your +remarks should afterwards be mentioned by us in other company, and that, +by this means, you should expose yourself to the resentment of those, whom +you may not think it worth your while to notice."--"Indeed," answered I, +"I have not the least doubt of your secresy."--"Neither have you any +reason," said he; "but after all, I suppose, you had rather be silent +_yourself_, than rely upon our taciturnity."--"To confess the truth," +replied I, "when I first entered upon the subject, I never imagined that I +should have extended it to the age now before us; whereas I have been +drawn by a continued series of history among the moderns of latest date." +--"Introduce, then," said he, "those intermediate Orators you may think +worthy of our notice: and afterwards let us return to yourself, and +Hortensius."--"To Hortensius," replied I, "with all my heart; but as to my +_own_ character, I shall leave it to other people to examine, if they +choose to take the trouble."--"I can by no means agree to _that_," said +he: "for though every part of the account you have favoured us with, has +entertained me very agreeably, it now begins to seem tedious, because I am +impatient to hear something of _yourself_: I do not mean the wonderful +qualities, but the _progressive steps_, and advances of your Eloquence; +for the former are sufficiently known already both to me, and the whole +world."--"As you do not require me," said I, "to sound the praises of my +own genius, but only to describe my labour and application to improve it, +your request shall be complied with. But to preserve the order of my +narrative, I shall first introduce such other Speakers as I think ought to +be previously noticed: and I shall begin with M. Crassus, who was +contemporary with Hortensius. With a tolerable share of learning, and a +very moderate capacity, his application, assiduity, and interest, procured +him a place among the ablest Pleaders of the time for several years. His +language was pure, his expression neither low nor ungenteel, and his ideas +well digested: but he had nothing in him that was florid, and ornamental; +and the real ardor of his mind was not supported by any vigorous exertion +of his voice, so that he pronounced almost every thing in the same uniform +tone. His equal, and professed antagonist C. Fimbria was not able to +maintain his character so long; and though he always spoke with a strong +and elevated voice, and poured forth a rapid torrent of well-chosen +expressions, he was so immoderately vehement that you might justly be +surprised that the people should have been so absent and inattentive as to +admit a _madman_, like him, into the lift of Orators. As to Cn. Lentulus, +his action acquired him a reputation for his Eloquence very far beyond his +real abilities: for though he was not a man of any great penetration +(notwithstanding he carried the appearance of it in his countenance) nor +possessed any real fluency of expression (though he was equally specious +in this respect as in the former)--yet by his sudden breaks, and +exclamations, he affected such an ironical air of surprize, with a sweet +and sonorous turn of voice, and his whole action was so warm and lively, +that his defects were scarcely noticed. For as Curio acquired the +reputation of an Orator with no other quality than a tolerable freedom of +Elocution; so Cn. Lentulus concealed the mediocrity of his other +accomplishments by his _action_, which was really excellent. Much the same +might be said of P. Lentulus, whose poverty of invention and expression +was secured from notice by the mere dignity of his presence, his correct +and graceful gesture, and the strength and sweetness of his voice: and his +merit depended so entirely upon his action, that he was more deficient in +every other quality than his namesake. But M. Piso derived all his talents +from his erudition; for he was much better versed in the Grecian +literature than any of his predecessors. He had, however, a natural +keenness of discernment, which he greatly improved by art, and exerted +with great address and dexterity, though in very indifferent language: but +he was frequently warm and choleric, sometimes cold and insipid, and now +and then rather smart and humourous. He did not long support the fatigue, +and emulous contention of the Forum; partly, on account of the weakness of +his constitution; and partly, because he could not submit to the follies +and impertinencies of the common people (which we Orators are forced to +swallow) either, as it was generally supposed, from a peculiar moroseness +of temper, or from a liberal and ingenuous pride of heart. After +acquiring, therefore, in his youth, a tolerable degree of reputation, his +character began to sink: but in the trial of the Vestals, he again +recovered it with some additional lustre, and being thus recalled to the +theatre of Eloquence, he kept his rank, as long as he was able to support +the fatigue of it; after which his credit declined, in proportion as he +remitted his application.--P. Murena had a moderate genius, but was +passionately fond of the study of Antiquity; he applied himself with equal +diligence to the Belles Lettres, in which he was tolerably versed; in +short, he was a man of great industry, and took the utmost pains to +distinguish himself.--C. Censorinus had a good stock of Grecian +literature, explained whatever he advanced with great neatness and +perspicuity, and had a graceful action, but was too cold and unanimated +for the Forum.--L. Turius with a very indifferent genius, but the most +indefatigable application, spoke in public very often, in the best manner +he was able; and, accordingly, he only wanted the votes of a few Centuries +to promote him to the Consulship.--C. Macer was never a man of much +interest or authority, but was one of the most active Pleaders of his +time; and if his life, his manners, and his very looks, had not ruined the +credit of his genius, he would have ranked higher in the lift of Orators. +He was neither copious, nor dry and barren; neither eat and embellished, +nor wholly inelegant; and his voice, his gesture, and every part of his +action, was without any grace: but in inventing and digesting his ideas, +he had a wonderful accuracy, such as no man I ever saw either possessed +or exerted in a more eminent degree; and yet, some how, he displayed it +rather with the air of a Quibbler, than of an Orator. Though he had +acquired some reputation in public causes, he appeared to most advantage +and was most courted and employed in private ones.--C. Piso, who comes +next in order, had scarcely any exertion, but he was a Speaker of a very +convertible style; and though, in fact, he was far from being slow of +invention, he had more penetration in his look and appearance than he +really possessed.--His cotemporary M. Glabrio, though carefully instructed +by his grandfather Scaevola, was prevented from distinguishing himself by +his natural indolence and want of attention.--L. Torquatus, on the +contrary, had an elegant turn of expression, and a clear comprehension, +and was perfectly genteel and well-bred in his whole manner.--But Cn. +Pompeius, my coeval, a man who was born to excel in every thing, would +have acquired a more distinguished reputation for his Eloquence, if he had +not been diverted from the pursuit of it by the more dazzling charms of +military fame. His language was naturally bold and elevated, and he was +always master of his subject; and as to his powers of enunciation, his +voice was sonorous and manly, and his gesture noble, and full of dignity. +--D. Silanus, another of my cotemporaries, and your father-in-law, was not +a man of much application, but he had a very competent share of +discernment, and elocution.--Q. Pompeius, the son of Aulus, who had the +title of _Bithynicus_, and was about two years older than myself, was, to +my own knowledge, remarkably fond of the study of Eloquence, had an +uncommon stock of learning, and was a man of indefatigable industry and +perseverance: for he was connected with me and M. Piso, not only as an +intimate acquaintance, but as an associate in our studies, and private +exercises. His elocution was but poorly recommended by his action: for +though the former was sufficiently copious and diffusive, there was +nothing graceful in the latter.--His contemporary, P. Autronius, had a +very clear, and strong voice; but he was distinguished by no other +accomplishment.--L. Octavius Reatinus died in his youth, while he was in +full practice: but he ascended the rostra with more assurance, than +ability.--C. Staienus, who changed his name into Aelius by a kind of self- +adoption, was a warm, an abusive, and indeed a furious speaker; which was +so agreeable to the taste of many, that he would have risen to some rank +in the State, if it had not been for a crime of which he was clearly +convicted, and for which he afterwards suffered.--At the same time were +the two brothers C. and L. Caepasius, who, though men of an obscure +family, and little previous consequence, were yet, by mere dint of +application, suddenly promoted to the Quaestorship, with no other +recommendation than a provincial and unpolished kind of Oratory.--That I +may not seem to have put a wilful slight on any of the vociferous tribe, I +must also notice C. Cosconius Calidianus, who, without any discernment, +amused the people with a rapidity of language (if such it might be called) +which he attended with a perpetual hurry of action, and a most violent +exertion of his voice.--Of much the same cast was Q. Arrius, who may be +considered as a second-hand M. Crassus. He is a striking proof of what +consequence it is in such a city as ours to devote one's-self to the +occasions of _the many_, and to be as active as possible in promoting +their safety, or their honour. For by these means, though of the lowest +parentage, having raised himself to offices of rank, and to considerable +wealth and influence, he likewise acquired the reputation of a tolerable +patron, without either learning or abilities. But as inexperienced +champions, who, from a passionate desire to distinguish themselves in the +Circus, can bear the blows of their opponents without shrinking, are often +overpowered by the heat of the sun, when it is increased by the reflection +of the sand; so _he_, who had hitherto supported even the sharpest +encounters with good success, could not stand the severity of that year of +judicial contest, which blazed upon him like a summer's sun." + +"Upon my word," cried Atticus, "you are now treating us with the very +_dregs_ of Oratory, and you have entertained us in this manner for some +time: but I did not offer to interrupt you, because I never dreamed you +would have descended so low as to mention the _Staieni_ and _Autronii_!"-- +"As I have been speaking of the dead, you will not imagine, I suppose," +said I, "that I have done it to court their favour: but in pursuing the +order of history, I was necessarily led by degrees to a period of time +which falls within the compass of our own knowledge. But I wish it to be +noticed, that after recounting all who ever ventured to speak in public, +we find but few, (very few indeed!) whose names are worth recording; and +not many who had even the repute of being Orators. Let us, however, return +to our subject. T. Torquatus, then, the son of Titus, was a man of +learning, (which he first acquired in the school of Molo in Rhodes,) and +of a free and easy elocution which he received from Nature. If he had +lived to a proper age, he would have been chosen Consul, without any +canvassing; but he had more ability for speaking than inclination; _so_ +that, in fact, he did not do justice to the art he professed; and yet he +was never wanting to his duty, either in the private causes of his +friends and dependents, or in his senatorial capacity.--My townsman too, +P. Pontidius, pleaded a number of private causes. He had a rapidity of +expression, and a tolerable quickness of comprehension: but he was very +warm, and indeed rather too choleric and irascible; so that he often +wrangled not only with his antagonist, but (what appears very strange) +with the judge himself, whom it was rather his business to sooth and +gratify.--M. Messala, who was something younger than myself, was far from +being a poor and an abject Pleader, and yet he was not a very embellished +one. He was judicious, penetrating, and wary, very exact in digesting and +methodizing his subject, and a man of uncommon diligence and application, +and of very extensive practice.--As to the two Metelli (Celer and Nepos) +these also had a moderate share of employment at the bar; but being +destitute neither of learning nor abilities, they chiefly applied +themselves (and with some success) to debates of a more popular kind.--But +Caius Lentulus Marcellinus, who was never reckoned a bad Speaker, was +esteemed a very eloquent one in his Consulship. He wanted neither +sentiment, nor expression; his voice was sweet and sonorous; and he had a +sufficient stock of humour.--C. Memmius, the son of Lucius, was a perfect +adept in the _belles lettres_ of the Greeks; for he had an insuperable +disgust to the literature of the Romans. He was a neat and polished +Speaker, and had a sweet and harmonious turn of expression; but as he was +equally averse to every laborious effort either of the mind or the tongue, +his Eloquence declined in proportion as he lessened his application."-- +"But I heartily wish," said Brutus, "that you would give us your opinion +of those Orators who are still living; or, if you are determined to say +nothing of the rest, there are two at least, (that is Caesar and +Marcellus, whom I have often heard you speak of with the highest +approbation) whose characters would give me as much entertainment as any +of those you have already specified."--"But why," answered I, "would you +expect that I would give you my opinion of men who are as well known to +yourself as to me?"--"Marcellus, indeed," replied he, "I am very well +acquainted with; but as to Caesar, I know little of _him_. For I have +_heard_ the former very often: but, by the time I was able to judge for +myself, the latter had set out for his province."--"Mighty well," said I; +"and what think you of him you have heard so often?"--"What else can I +think," replied he, "but that you will soon have an Orator, who will very +nearly resemble yourself?"--"If that is the case," answered I, "pray think +of him as favourably as you can." "I do," said he; "for he pleases me very +highly; and not without reason. He is absolutely master of his trade, and, +neglecting every other profession, has applied himself solely to _this_; +and, for that purpose, has persevered in the rigorous task of composing a +daily Essay in writing. His words are well chosen; his language is full +and copious; and every thing he says receives an additional ornament from +the graceful tone of his voice, and the dignity of his action. In short, +he is so compleat an Orator, that there is no quality I know of, in which +I can think him deficient. But he is still more to be admired, for being +able, in these unhappy times, (which are marked with a distress that, by +some cruel fatality, has overwhelmed us all) to console himself, as +opportunity offers, with the consciousness of his own integrity, and by +the frequent renewal of his literary pursuits. I saw him lately at +Mitylene; and then (as I have already hinted) I saw him a thorough man. +For though I had before discovered in him a strong resemblance of +yourself, the likeness was much improved, after he was enriched by the +instructions of your learned, and very intimate friend Cratippus."-- +"Though I acknowledge," said I, "that I have listened with pleasure to +your Elogies on a very worthy man, for whom I have the warmest esteem, +they have led me insensibly to the recollection of our common miseries, +which our present conversation was intended to suspend. But I would +willingly hear what is Atticus's opinion of Caesar."--"Upon my word," +replied Atticus, "you are wonderfully consistent with your plan, to say +nothing _yourself_ of the living: and indeed, if you was to deal with +_them_, as you already have with the _dead_, and say something of every +paltry fellow that occurs to your memory, you would plague us with +_Autronii_ and _Steiani_ without end. But though you might possibly have +it in view not to incumber yourself with such a numerous crowd of +insignificant wretches; or perhaps, to avoid giving any one room to +complain that he was either unnoticed, or not extolled according to his +imaginary merit; yet, certainly, you might have said something of Caesar; +especially, as your opinion of _his_ abilities is well known to every +body, and his concerning _your's_ is very far from being a secret. But, +however," said he, (addressing himself to Brutus) "I really think of +Caesar, and every body else says the same of this accurate connoisseur in +the Art of Speaking, that he has the purest and the most elegant command +of the Roman language of all the Orators that have yet appeared: and that +not merely by domestic habit, as we have lately heard it observed of the +families of the Laelii and the Mucii, (though even here, I believe, this +might partly have been the case) but he chiefly acquired and brought it to +its present perfection, by a studious application to the most intricate +and refined branches of literature, and by a careful and constant +attention to the purity of his style. But that _he_, who, involved as he +was in a perpetual hurry of business, could dedicate to _you_, my Cicero, +a laboured Treatise on the Art of Speaking correctly; that _he_, who, in +the first book of it, laid it down as an axiom, that an accurate choice of +words is the foundation of Eloquence; and who has bestowed," said he, +(addressing himself again to Brutus) "the highest encomiums on this friend +of ours, who yet chooses to leave Caesar's character to _me_;--that _he_ +should be a perfect master of the language of polite conservation, is a +circumstance which is almost too obvious to be mentioned." "I said, _the +highest encomiums_," pursued Atticus, "because he says in so many words, +when he addresses himself to Cicero--_if others have bestowed all their +time and attention to acquire a habit of expressing themselves with ease +and correctness, how much is the name and dignity of the Roman people +indebted to you, who are the highest pattern, and indeed the first +inventor of that rich fertility of language which distinguishes your +performances?_"--Indeed," said Brutus, "I think he has extolled your merit +in a very friendly, and a very magnificent style: for you are not only the +_highest pattern_, and even the _first inventor_ of all our _fertility_ of +language, which alone is praise enough to content any reasonable man, but +you have added fresh honours to the name and dignity of the Roman people; +for the very excellence in which we had hitherto been conquered by the +vanquished Greeks, has now been either wrested from their hands, or +equally shared, at least, between us and them. So that I prefer this +honourable testimony of Caesar, I will not say to the public thanksgiving, +which was decreed for your _own_ military services, but to the triumphs of +many heroes."--"Very true," replied I, "provided this honourable testimony +was really the voice of Caesar's judgment, and not of his friendship: for +_he_ certainly has added more to the dignity of the Roman people, whoever +he may be (if indeed any such man has yet existed) who has not only +exemplified and enlarged, but first produced this rich fertility of +expression, than the doughty warrior who has stormed a few paltry castles +of the Ligurians, which have furnished us, you know, with many repeated +triumphs. In reality, if we can submit to hear the truth, it may be +asserted (to say nothing of those god-like plans, which, supported by the +wisdom of our Generals, has frequently saved the sinking State both abroad +and at home) that an Orator is justly entitled to the preference to any +Commander in a petty war. But the General, you will say, is the more +serviceable man to the public. Nobody denies it: and yet (for I am not +afraid of provoking your censure, in a conversation which leaves each of +us at liberty to say what he thinks) I had rather be the author of the +single Oration of Crassus, in defence of Curius, than be honoured with two +Ligurian triumphs. You will, perhaps, reply, that the storming a castle of +the Ligurians was a thing of more consequence to the State, than that the +claim of Curius should be ably supported. This I own to be true. But it +was also of more consequence to the Athenians, that their houses should be +securely roofed, than to have their city graced with a most beautiful +statue of Minerva: and yet, notwithstanding this, I would much rather have +been a Phidias, than the most skilful joiner in Athens. In the present +case, therefore, we are not to consider a man's usefulness, but the +strength of his abilities; especially as the number of painters and +statuaries, who have excelled in their profession, is very small; whereas, +there can never be any want of joiners and mechanic labourers. But +proceed, my Atticus, with Caesar; and oblige us with the remainder of his +character."--"We see then," said he, "from what has just been mentioned, +that a pure and correct style is the groundwork, and the very basis and +foundation, upon which an Orator must build his other accomplishments: +though, it is true, that those who had hitherto possessed it, derived it +more from early habit, than from any principles of art. It is needless to +refer you to the instances of Laelius and Scipio; for a purity of +language, as well as of manners, was the characteristic of the age they +lived in. It could not, indeed, be applied to every one; for their two +cotemporaries, Caecilius and Pacuvius, spoke very incorrectly: but yet +people in general, who had not resided out of the city, nor been corrupted +by any domestic barbarisms, spoke the Roman language with purity. Time, +however, as well at Rome as in Greece, soon altered matters for the worse: +for this city, (as had formerly been the case at Athens) was resorted to +by a crowd of adventurers from different parts, who spoke very corruptly; +which shews the necessity of reforming our language, and reducing it to a +certain standard, which shall not be liable to vary like the capricious +laws of custom. Though we were then very young, we can easily remember T. +Flaminius, who was joint-consul with Q. Metellus: he was supposed to speak +his native language with correctness, but was a man of no Literature. As +to Catulus, he was far indeed from being destitute of learning, as you +have already observed: but his reputed purity of diction was chiefly owing +to the sweetness of his voice, and the delicacy of his accent. Cotta, who, +by his broad pronunciation, threw off all resemblance of the elegant tone +of the Greeks, and affected a harsh and rustic utterance, quite opposite +to that of Catulus, acquired the same reputation of correctness by +pursuing a wild and unfrequented path. But Sisenna, who had the ambition +to think of reforming our phraseology, could not be lashed out of his +whimsical and new-fangled turns of expression, by all the raillery of C. +Rufius."--"What do you refer to?" said Brutus; "and who was the Caius +Rufius you are speaking of?"--"He was a noted prosecutor," replied he, +"some years ago. When this man had supported an indictment against one +Christilius, Sisenna, who was counsel for the defendant, told him, that +several parts of his accusation were absolutely _spitatical_. [Footnote: +In the original _sputatilica_, worthy to be spit upon. It appears, from +the connection, to have been a very unclassical word, whimsically derived +by the author of it from _sputa_, spittle.] _My Lords_, cried Rufius to +the judges, _I shall be cruelly over-reached, unless you give me your +assistance. His charge overpowers my comprehension; and I am afraid he has +some unfair design upon me. What, in the name of Heaven, can be intend by_ +SPITATICAL? _I know the meaning of_ SPIT, _or_ SPITTLE; _but this horrid_ +ATICAL, _at the end of it, absolutely puzzles me._ The whole Bench laughed +very heartily at the singular oddity of the expression: my old friend, +however, was still of opinion, that to speak correctly, was to speak +differently from other people. But Caesar, who was guided by the +principles of art, has corrected the imperfections of a vicious custom, by +adopting the rules and improvements of a good one, as he found them +occasionally displayed in the course of polite conversation. Accordingly, +to the purest elegance of expression, (which is equally necessary to every +well-bred Citizen, as to an Orator) he has added all the various ornaments +of Elocution; so that he seems to exhibit the finest painting in the most +advantageous point of view. As he has such extraordinary merit even in the +common run of his language, I must confess that there is no person I know +of, to whom he should yield the preference. Besides, his manner of +speaking, both as to his voice and gesture, is splendid and noble, without +the least appearance of artifice or affectation: and there is a dignity in +his very presence, which bespeaks a great and elevated mind."--"Indeed," +said Brutus, "his Orations please me highly; for I have had the +satisfaction to read several of them. He has likewise wrote some +commentaries, or short memoirs, of his own transactions;"--"and such," +said I, "as merit the highest approbation: for they are plain, correct, +and graceful, and divested of all the ornaments of language, so as to +appear (if I may be allowed the expression) in a kind of undress. But +while he pretended only to furnish the loose materials, for such as might +be inclined to compose a regular history, he may, perhaps, have gratified +the vanity of a few literary _Frisseurs_: but he has certainly prevented +all sensible men from attempting any improvement on his plan. For in +history, nothing is more pleasing than a correct and elegant brevity of +expression. With your leave, however, it is high time to return to those +Orators who have quitted the stage of life. C. Sicinius then, who was a +grandson of the Censor Q. Pompey, by one of his daughters, died after his +advancement to the Quaestorship. He was a Speaker of some merit and +reputation, which he derived from the system of Hermagoras; who, though he +furnished but little assistance for acquiring an ornamental style, gave +many useful precepts to expedite and improve the invention of an Orator. +For in this System we have a collection of fixed and determinate rules for +public speaking; which are delivered indeed without any shew or parade, +(and, I might have added, in a trivial and homely form) but yet are so +plain and methodical, that it is almost impossible to mistake the road. By +keeping close to these, and always digesting his subject before he +ventured to speak upon it, (to which we may add, that he had a tolerable +fluency of expression) he so far succeeded, without any other assistance, +as to be ranked among the pleaders of the day.--As to C. Visellius Varro, +who was my cousin, and a cotemporary of Sicinius, he was a man of great +learning. He died while he was a member of the Court of Inquests, into +which he had been admitted after the expiration of his Aedileship. The +public, I confess, had not the same opinion of his abilities that I have; +for he never passed as a man of Sterling Eloquence among the people. His +style was excessively quick and rapid, and consequently obscure; for, in +fact, it was embarrassed and blinded by the celerity of its course: and +yet, after all, you will scarcely find a man who had a better choice of +words, or a richer vein of sentiment. He had besides a complete fund of +polite literature, and a thorough knowledge of the principles of +jurisprudence, which he learned from his father Aculeo. To proceed in our +account of the dead, the next that presents himself is L. Torquatus, whom +you will not so readily pronounce a connoisseur in the Art of Speaking +(though he was by no means destitute of elocution) as, what is called by +the Greeks, _a political Adept_. He had a plentiful stock of learning, not +indeed of the common sort, but of a more abstruse and curious nature: he +had likewise an admirable memory, and a very sensible and elegant turn of +expression; all which qualities derived an additional grace from the +dignity of his deportment, and the integrity of his manners. I was also +highly pleased with the style of his cotemporary Triarius, which expressed +to perfection, the character of a worthy old gentleman, who had been +thoroughly polished by the refinements of Literature.--What a venerable +severity was there in his look! What forcible solemnity in his language! +and how thoughtful and deliberate every word he spoke!"--At the mention of +Torquatus and Triarius, for each of whom he had the most affectionate +veneration,--"It fills my heart with anguish," said Brutus, "(to omit a +thousand other circumstances) when I reflect, as I cannot help doing, on +your mentioning the names of these worthy men, that your long-respected +authority was insufficient to procure an accommodation of our differences. +The Republic would not otherwise have been deprived of these, and many +other excellent Citizens."--"Not a word more," said I, on this melancholy +subject, which can only aggravate our sorrow: for as the remembrance of +what is already past is painful enough, the prospect of what is yet to +come is still more cutting. Let us, therefore, drop our unavailing +complaints, and (agreeably to our plan) confine our attention to the +forensic merits of our deceased friends. Among those, then, who lost their +lives in this unhappy war, was M. Bibulus, who, though not a professed +orator, was a very accurate writer, and a solid and experienced advocate: +and Appius Claudius, your father-in-law, and my colleague and intimate +acquaintance, who was not only a hard student, and a man of learning, but +a practised Orator, a skilful Augurist and Civilian, and a thorough Adept +in the Roman History.--As to L. Domitius, he was totally unacquainted +with any rules of art; but he spoke his native language with purity, and +had a great freedom of address. We had likewise the two Lentuli, men of +consular dignity; one of whom, (I mean Publius) the avenger of my wrongs, +and the author of my restoration, derived all his powers and +accomplishments from the assistance of Art, and not from the bounty of +Nature: but he had such a great and noble disposition, that he claimed all +the honours of the most illustrious Citizens, and supported them with the +utmost dignity of character.--The other (L. Lentulus) was an animated +Speaker, for it would be saying too much, perhaps, to call him an Orator-- +but, unhappily, he had an utter aversion to the trouble of thinking. His +voice was sonorous; and his language, though not absolutely harsh and +forbidding, was warm and rigorous, and carried in it a kind of terror. In +a judicial trial, you would probably have wished for a more agreeable and +a keener advocate: but in a debate on matters of government, you would +have thought his abilities sufficient.--Even Titus Postumius had such +powers of utterance, as were not to be despised: but in political matters, +he spoke with the same unbridled ardour he fought with: in short, he was +much too warm; though it must be owned he possessed an extensive knowledge +of the laws and constitution of his country."--"Upon my word," cried +Atticus, "if the persons you have mentioned were still living, I should be +apt to imagine, that you was endeavouring to solicit their favour. For you +introduce every body who had the courage to stand up and speak his mind: +so that I almost begin to wonder how M. Servilius has escaped your +notice."--"I am, indeed, very sensible," replied I, "that there have been +many who never spoke in public, that were much better qualified for the +talk, than those Orators I have taken the pains to enumerate: [Footnote: +This was probably intended as an indirect Compliment to Atticus.] but I +have, at least, answered one purpose by it, which is to shew you, that in +this populous City, we have not had very many who had the resolution to +speak at all; and that even among these, there have been few who were +entitled to our applause. I cannot, therefore, neglect to take some notice +of those worthy knights, and my intimate friends, very lately deceased, P. +Comminius Spoletinus, against whom I pleaded in defence of C. Cornelius, +and who was a methodical, a spirited, and a ready Speaker; and T. Accius, +of Pisaurum, to whom I replied in behalf of A. Cluentius, and who was an +accurate, and a tolerably copious Advocate: he was also well instructed in +the precepts of Hermagoras, which, though of little service to embellish +and enrich our Elocution, furnish a variety of arguments, which, like the +weapons of the light infantry, may be readily managed, and are adapted to +every subject of debate. I must add, that I never knew a man of greater +industry and application. As to C. Piso, my son-in-law, it is scarcely +possible to mention any one who was blessed with a finer capacity. He was +constantly employed either in public speaking, and private declamatory +exercises, or, at least, in writing and thinking: and, consequently, he +made such a rapid progress, that he rather seemed to fly than to run. He +had an elegant choice of expression, and the structure of his periods was +perfectly neat and harmonious; he had an astonishing variety and strength +of argument, and a lively and agreeable turn of sentiment: and his gesture +was naturally so graceful, that it appeared to have been formed (which it +really was not) by the nicest rules of art. I am rather fearful, indeed, +that I should be thought to have been prompted by my affection for him to +have given him a greater character than he deserved: but this is so far +from being the case, that I might justly have ascribed to him many +qualities of a different and more valuable nature: for in continence, +social piety, and every other kind of virtue, there was scarcely any of +his cotemporaries who was worthy to be compared with him.--M. Caelius too +must not pass unnoticed, notwithstanding the unhappy change, either of his +fortune or disposition, which marked the latter part of his life. As long +as he was directed by my influence, he behaved himself so well as a +Tribune of the people, that no man supported the interests of the Senate, +and of all the good and virtuous, in opposition to the factious and unruly +madness of a set of abandoned citizens, with more firmness than _he_ did: +a part in which he was enabled to exert himself to great advantage, by the +force and dignity of his language, and his lively humour, and genteel +address. He spoke several harangues in a very sensible style, and three +spirited invectives, which originated from our political disputes: and his +defensive speeches, though not equal to the former, were yet tolerably +good, and had a degree of merit which was far from being contemptible. +After he had been advanced to the Aedileship, by the hearty approbation of +all the better sort of citizens, as he had lost my company (for I was then +abroad in Cilicia) he likewise lost himself; and entirely sunk his credit, +by imitating the conduct of those very men, whom he had before so +successfully opposed.--But M. Calidius has a more particular claim to our +notice for the singularity of his character; which cannot so properly be +said to have entitled him to a place among our other Orators, as to +distinguish him from the whole fraternity; for in him we beheld the most +uncommon, and the most delicate sentiments, arrayed in the softest and +finest language imaginable. Nothing could be so easy as the turn and +compass of his periods; nothing so ductile; nothing more pliable and +obsequious to his will, so that he had a greater command of it than any +Orator whatever. In short, the flow of his language was so pure and +limpid, that nothing could be clearer; and so free, that it was never +clogged or obstructed. Every word was exactly in the place where it should +be, and disposed (as Lucilius expresses it) with as much nicety as in a +curious piece of Mosaic-work. We may add, that he had not a single +expression which was either harsh, unnatural, abject, or far-fetched; and +yet he was so far from confining himself to the plain and ordinary mode of +speaking, that he abounded greatly in the metaphor,--but such metaphors as +did not appear to usurp a post that belonged to another, but only to +occupy their own. These delicacies were displayed not in a loose and +disfluent style; but in such a one as was strictly _numerous_, without +_either_ appearing to be so, or running on with a dull uniformity of +sound. He was likewise master of the various ornaments of language and +sentiment which the Greeks call _figures_, whereby he enlivened and +embellished his style as with so many forensic decorations. We may add +that he readily discovered, upon all occasions, what was the real point of +debate, and where the stress of the argument lay; and that his method of +ranging his ideas was extremely artful, his action genteel, and his whole +manner very engaging and very sensible. In short, if to speak agreeably is +the chief merit of an Orator, you will find no one who was better +qualified than Calidius. But as we have observed a little before, that it +is the business of an Orator to instruct, to please, and _to move the +passions_; he was, indeed, perfectly master of the two first; for no one +could better elucidate his subject, or charm the attention of his +audience. But as to the third qualification,--the moving and alarming the +passions,--which is of much greater efficacy than the two former, he was +wholly destitute of it. He had no force,--no exertion;--either by his own +choice, and from an opinion that those who had a loftier turn of +expression, and a more warm and spirited action, were little betther than +madmen; or because it was contrary to his natural temper, and habitual +practice; or, lastly, because it was beyond the strength of his abilities. +If, indeed, it is a useless quality, his want of it was a real excellence: +but if otherwise, it was certainly a defect. I particularly remember, that +when he prosecuted Q. Gallius for an attempt to poison him, and pretended +that he had the plainest proofs of it, and could produce many letters, +witnesses, informations, and other evidences to put the truth of his +charge beyond a doubt, interspersing many sensible and ingenious remarks +on the nature of the crime;--I remember, I say, that when it came to my +turn to reply to him, after urging every argument which the case itself +suggested, I insisted upon it as a material circumstance in favour of my +client, that the prosecutor, while he charged him with a design against +his life, and assured us that he had the most indubitable proofs of it +then in his hands, related his story with as much ease, and as much +calmness, and indifference, as if nothing had happened."--"Would it have +been possible," said I, (addressing myself to Calidius) "that you should +speak with this air of unconcern, unless the charge was purely an +invention of your own? and, above all, that you, whose Eloquence has often +vindicated the wrongs of other people with so much spirit, should speak so +coolly of a crime which threatened your life? Where was that expression of +resentment which is so natural to the injured? Where that ardour, that +eagerness, which extorts the most pathetic language even from men of the +dullest capacities? There was no visible disorder in your mind, no emotion +in your looks and gesture, no smiting of the thigh or the forehead, nor +even a single stamp of the foot. You was, therefore, so far from +interesting our passions in your favour, that we could scarcely keep our +eyes open, while you was relating the dangers you had so narrowly escaped. +Thus we employed the natural defect, or if you please, the sensible +calmness of an excellent Orator, as an argument to invalidate his +charge."--"But is it possible to doubt," cried Brutus, "whether this was a +sensible quality, or a defect? For as the greatest merit of an Orator is +to be able to inflame the passions, and give them such a biass as shall +best answer his purpose; he who is destitute of this must certainly be +deficient in the most capital part of his profession."--"I am of the same +opinion," said I; "but let us now proceed to him (Hortensius) who is the +only remaining Orator worth noticing; after which, as you may seem to +insist upon it, I shall say something of myself. I must first, however, do +justice to the memory of two promising youths, who, if they had lived to a +riper age, would have acquired the highest reputation for their +Eloquence."--"You mean, I suppose," said Brutus, "C. Curio, and C. +Licinius Calvus."--"The very same," replied I. "One of them, besides his +plausible manner, had such an easy and voluble flow of expression, and +such an inexhaustible variety, and sometimes accuracy of sentiment, that +he was one of the most ready and ornamental speakers of his time. Though +he had received but little instruction from the professed masters of the +art, Nature had furnished him with an admirable capacity of the practice +of it. I never, indeed, discovered in him any great degree of application; +but he was certainly very ambitious to distinguish himself; and if he had +continued to listen to my advice, as he had begun to do, he would have +preferred the acquisition of real honour to that of untimely grandeur."-- +"What do you mean," said Brutus? "Or in what manner are these two objects +to be distinguished?"--"I distinguish them thus," replied I: "As honour is +the reward of virtue, conferred upon a man by the choice and affection of +his fellow-citizens, he who obtains it by their free votes and suffrages +is to be considered, in my opinion, as an honourable member of the +community. But he who acquires his power and authority by taking advantage +of every unhappy incident, and without the consent of his fellow-citizens, +as Curio aimed to do, acquires only the name of honour, without the +substance. Whereas, if he had hearkened to me, he would have risen to the +highest dignity, in an honourable manner, and with the hearty approbation +of all men, by a gradual advancement to public offices, as his father and +many other eminent citizens had done before. I often gave the same advice +to P. Crassus, the son of Marcus, who courted my friendship in the early +part of his life; and recommended it to him very warmly, to consider +_that_ as the truest path to honour which had been already marked out to +him by the example of his ancestors. For he had been extremely well +educated, and was perfectly versed in every branch of polite literature: +he had likewise a penetrating genius, and an elegant variety of +expression; and appeared grave and sententious without arrogance, and +modest and diffident without dejection. But like many other young men he +was carried away by the tide of ambition; and after serving a short time +with reputation as a volunteer, nothing could satisfy him but to try his +fortune as a General,--an employment which was confined by the wisdom of +our ancestors to men who had arrived at a certain age, and who, even then, +were obliged to submit their pretensions to the uncertain issue of a +public decision. Thus, by exposing himself to a fatal catastrophe, while +he was endeavouring to rival the fame of Cyrus and Alexander, who lived to +finish their desperate career, he lost all resemblance of L. Crassus, and +his other worthy Progenitors. + +"But let us return to Calvus whom we have just mentioned,--an Orator who +had received more literary improvements than Curio, and had a more +accurate and delicate manner of speaking, which he conducted with great +taste and elegance; but, (by being too minute and nice a critic upon +himself,) while he was labouring to correct and refine his language, he +suffered all the force and spirit of it to evaporate. In short, it was so +exquisitely polished, as to charm the eye of every skilful observer; but +it was little noticed by the common people in a crowded Forum, which is +the proper theatre of Eloquence."--"His aim," said Brutus, "was to be +admired as an _Attic_ Orator: and to this we must attribute that accurate +exility of style, which he constantly affected."--"This, indeed, was his +professed character," replied I: "but he was deceived himself, and led +others into the same mistake. It is true, whoever supposes that to speak +in the _Attic_ taste, is to avoid every awkward, every harsh, every +vicious expression, has, in this sense, an undoubted right to refuse his +approbation to every thing which is not strictly _Attic_. For he must +naturally detest whatever is insipid, disgusting, or invernacular; while +he considers a correctness and propriety of language as the religion, and +good-manners of an Orator:--and every one who pretends to speak in public +should adopt the same opinion. But if he bestows the name of Atticism on a +half-starved, a dry, and a niggardly turn of expression, provided it is +neat, correct, and genteel, I cannot say, indeed, that he bestows it +improperly; as the Attic Orators, however, had many qualities of a more +important nature, I would advise him to be careful that he does not +overlook their different kinds and degrees of merit, and their great +extent and variety of character. The Attic Speakers, he will tell me, are +the models upon which he wishes to form his Eloquence. But which of them +does he mean to fix upon? for they are not all of the same cast. Who, for +instance, could be more unlike each other than Demosthenes and Lysias? or +than Demosthenes and Hyperides? Or who more different from either of them, +than Aeschines? Which of them, then, do you propose to imitate? If only +_one_, this will be a tacit implication, that none of the rest were true +masters of Atticism: if _all_, how can you possibly succeed, when their +characters are so opposite? Let me further ask you, whether Demetrius +Phalereus spoke in the Attic style? In my opinion, his Orations have the +very smell of Athens. But he is certainly more florid than either +Hyperides or Lysias; partly from the natural turn of his genius, and +partly by choice. There were likewise two others, at the time we are +speaking of, whose characters were equally dissimilar; and yet both of +them were truly _Attic_. The first (Charisius) was the author of a number +of speeches, which he composed for his friends, professedly in imitation +of Lysias:--and the other (Demochares, the nephew of Demosthenes) wrote +several Orations, and a regular History of what was transacted in Athens +under his own observation; not so much, indeed, in the style of an +Historian, as of an Orator. Hegesias took the former for his model, and +had so vain a conceit of his own taste for Atticism, that he considered +his predecessors, who were really masters of it, as mere rustics in +comparison of himself. But what can be more insipid, more frivolous, or +more puerile, than that very concinnity of expression which he actually +acquired?"--"_But still we wish to resemble the Attic Speakers_."--"Do so, +by all means. But were not those, then, true Attic Speakers, we have just +been mentioning?"--"_Nobody denies it; and these are the men we +imitate._"--"But how? when they are so very different, not only from each +other, but from all the rest of their contemporaries?"--"_True; but +Thucydides is our leading pattern_."--"This too I can allow, if you design +to compose histories, instead of pleading causes. For Thucydides was both +an exact, and a stately historian: but he never intended to write models +for conducting a judicial process. I will even go so far as to add, that I +have often commended the speeches which he has inserted into his history +in great numbers; though I must frankly own, that I neither _could_ +imitate them, if I _would,_ nor indeed _would,_ if I _could;_ like a man +who would neither choose his wine so new as to have been turned off in the +preceding vintage, nor so excessively old as to date its age from the +consulship of Opimius or Anicius."--"_The latter_, you'll say, _bears the +highest price_." "Very probable; but when it has too much age, it has lost +that delicious flavour which pleases the palate, and, in my opinion, is +scarcely tolerable."--"_Would you choose, then, when you have a mind to +regale yourself, to apply to a fresh, unripened cask?_" "By no means; but +still there is a certain age, when good wine arrives at its utmost +perfection. In the same manner, I would recommend neither a raw, +unmellowed style, which, (if I may so express myself) has been newly drawn +off from the vat; nor the rough, and antiquated language of the grave and +manly Thucydides. For even _he_, if he had lived a few years later, would +have acquired a much softer and mellower turn of expression."--"_Let us, +then, imitate Demosthenes_."--"Good Gods! to what else do I direct all my +endeavours, and my wishes! But it is, perhaps, my misfortune not to +succeed. These _Atticisers_, however, acquire with ease the paltry +character they aim at; not once recollecting that it is not only recorded +in history, but must have been the natural consequence of his superior +fame, that when Demosthenes was to speak in public, all Greece flocked in +crowds to hear him. But when our _Attic_ gentry venture to speak, they are +presently deserted not only by the little throng around them who have no +interest in the dispute, (which alone is a mortifying proof of their +insignificance) but even by their associates and fellow-advocates. If to +speak, therefore, in a dry and lifeless manner, is the true criterion of +Atticism, they are heartily welcome to enjoy the credit of it: but if they +wish to put their abilities to the trial, let them attend the Comitia, or +a judicial process of real importance. The open Forum demands a fuller, +and more elevated tone: and _he_ is the Orator for me, who is so +universally admired that when he is to plead an interesting cause, all the +benches are filled beforehand, the tribunal crowded, the clerks and +notaries busy in adjusting their seats, the populace thronging about the +rostra, and the judge brisk, and vigilant;--_he_, who has such a +commanding air, that when he rises up to speak, the whole audience is +hushed into a profound silence, which is soon interrupted by their +repeated plaudits, and acclamations, or by those successive bursts of +laughter, or violent transports of passion, which he knows how to excite +at his pleasure; so that even a distant observer, though unacquainted with +the subject he is speaking upon, can easily discover that his hearers are +pleased with him, and that a _Roscius_ is performing his part on the +stage. Whoever has the happiness to be thus followed and applauded is, +beyond dispute, an _Attic_ speaker: for such was Pericles,--such was +Hyperides, and Aeschines,--and such, in the most eminent degree, was the +great Demosthenes! If indeed, these connoisseurs, who have so much dislike +to every thing bold and ornamental, only mean to say that an accurate, a +judicious, and a neat, and compact, but unembellished style, is really an +_Attic_ one, they are not mistaken. For in an art of such wonderful extent +and variety as that of speaking, even this subtile and confined character +may claim a place: so that the conclusion will be, that it is very +possible to speak in the _Attic_ taste, without deserving the name of an +Orator; but that all in general who are truly eloquent, are likewise +_Attic_ Speakers.--It is time, however, to return to Hortensius."--" +Indeed, I think so," cried Brutus: "though I must acknowledge that this +long digression of yours has entertained me very agreeably." + +"But I made some remarks," said Atticus, "which I had several times a mind +to mention; only I was loath to interrupt you. As your discourse, however, +seems to be drawing towards an end, I think I may venture to out with +them."--"By all means," replied I.--"I readily grant, then," said he, +"that there is something very humourous and elegant in that continued +_Irony_, which Socrates employs to so much advantage in the dialogues of +Plato, Xenophon, and Aeschines. For when a dispute commences on the nature +of wisdom, he professes, with a great deal of humour and ingenuity, to +have no pretensions to it himself; while, with a kind of concealed +raillery, he ascribes the highest degree of it to those who had the +arrogance to lay an open claim to it. Thus, in Plato, he extols +Protagoras, Hippias, Prodicus, Gorgias, and several others, to the skies: +but represents himself as a mere ignorant. This in _him_ was peculiarly +becoming; nor can I agree with Epicurus, who thinks it censurable. But in +a professed History, (for such, in fact, is the account you have been +giving us of the Roman Orators) I shall leave you to judge, whether an +application of the _Irony_ is not equally reprehensible, as it would be in +giving a judicial evidence."--"Pray, what are you driving at," said I,-- +"for I cannot comprehend you."--"I mean," replied he, "in the first place, +that the commendations which you have bestowed upon some of our Orators, +have a tendency to mislead the opinion of those who are unacquainted with +their true characters. There were likewise several parts of your account, +at which I could scarcely forbear laughing: as, for instance, when you +compared old Cato to Lysias. He was, indeed, a great, and a very +extraordinary man. Nobody, I believe, will say to the contrary. But shall +we call him an Orator? Shall we pronounce him the rival of Lysias, who was +the most finished character of the kind? If we mean to jest, this +comparison of your's would form a pretty _Irony_: but if we are talking in +real earnest, we should pay the same scrupulous regard to truth, as if we +were giving evidence upon oath. As a Citizen, a Senator, a General, and, +in short, a man who was distinguished by his prudence, his activity, and +every other virtue, your favourite Cato has my highest approbation. I can +likewise applaud his speeches, considering the time he lived in. They +exhibit the out-lines of a great genius; but such, however, as are +evidently rude and imperfect. In the same manner, when you represented his +_Antiquities_ as replete with all the graces of Oratory, and compared Cato +with Philistus and Thucydides, did you really imagine, that you could +persuade me and Brutus to believe you? or would you seriously degrade +those, whom none of the Greeks themselves have been able to equal, into a +comparison with a stiff country, gentleman, who scarcely suspected that +there was any such thing in being, as a copious and ornamental style? You +have likewise said much in commendation of Galba;--if as the best Speaker +of his age, I can so far agree with you, for such was the character he +bore:--but if you meant to recommend him as an _Orator_, produce his +Orations (for they are still extant) and then tell me honestly, whether +you would wish your friend Brutus here to speak as _he_? Lepidus too was +the author of several Speeches, which have received your approbation; in +which I can partly join with you, if you consider them only as specimens +of our ancient Eloquence. The same might be said of Africanus and Laelius, +than whose language (you tell us) nothing in the world can be sweeter: +nay, you have mentioned it with a kind of veneration, and endeavoured to +dazzle our judgment by the great character they bore, and the uncommon +elegance of their manners. Divest it of these adventitious Graces, and +this sweet language of theirs will appear so homely, as to be scarcely +worth noticing. Carbo too was mentioned as one of our capital Orators; and +for this only reason,--that in speaking, as in all other professions, +whatever is the best of its kind, for the time being, how deficient soever +in reality, is always admired and applauded. What I have said of Carbo, is +equally true of the Gracchi: though, in some particulars, the character +you have given them was no more than they deserved. But to say nothing of +the rest of your Orators, let us proceed to Antonius and Crassus, your two +paragons of Eloquence, whom I have heard myself, and who were certainly +very able Speakers. To the extraordinary commendation you have bestowed +upon them, I can readily give my assent; but not, however, in such an +unlimited manner as to persuade myself that you have received as much +improvement from the Speech in support of the Servilian Law, as Lysippus +said he had done by studying the famous [Footnote: _Doryphorus_. A Spear- +man.] statue of Polycletus. What you have said on _this_ occasion I +consider as an absolute _Irony:_ but I shall not inform you why I think +so, lest you should imagine I design to flatter you. I shall therefore +pass over the many fine encomiums you have bestowed upon _these_; and what +you have said of Cotta and Sulpicius, and but very lately of your pupil +Caelius. I acknowledge, however, that we may call them Orators: but as to +the nature and extent of their merit, let your own judgment decide. It is +scarcely worth observing, that you have had the additional good-nature to +crowd so many daubers into your list, that there are some, I believe, who +will be ready to wish they had died long ago, that you might have had an +opportunity to insert _their_ names among the rest."--"You have opened a +wide field of enquiry," said I, "and started a subject which deserves a +separate discussion; but we must defer it to a more convenient time. For, +to settle it, a great variety of authors must be examined, and especially +_Cato_: which could not fail to convince you, that nothing was wanting to +complete his pieces, but those rich and glowing colours which had not then +been invented. As to the above Oration of Crassus, he himself, perhaps, +could have written better, if he had been willing to take the trouble; but +nobody else, I believe, could have mended it. You have no reason, +therefore, to think I spoke _ironically_, when I mentioned it as the guide +and _tutoress_ of my Eloquence: for though you seem to have a higher +opinion of my capacity, in its present state, you must remember that, in +our youth, we could find nothing better to imitate among the Romans. And +as to my admitting so _many_ into my list of Orators, I only did it (as I +have already observed) to shew how few have succeeded in a profession, in +which all were desirous to excel. I therefore insist upon it that you do +not consider _me_ in the present case, as an _Ironist_; though we are +informed by C. Fannius, in his History, that _Africanus_ was a very +excellent one."--"As you please about _that_," cried Atticus: "though, by +the bye, I did not imagine it would have been any disgrace to you, to be +what Africanus and Socrates have been before you."--"We may settle _this_ +another time," interrupted Brutus: "but will you be so obliging," said he, +(addressing himself to _me_) "as to give us a critical analysis of some of +the old speeches you have mentioned?"--"Very willingly," replied I; "but +it must be at Cuma, or Tusculum, when opportunity offers: for we are near +neighbours, you know, in both places. At present, let us return to +_Hortensius_, from whom we have digressed a second time." + +"Hortensius, then, who began to speak in public when he was very young, +was soon employed even in causes of the greatest moment: and though he +first appeared in the time of Cotta and Sulpicius, (who were only ten +years older) and when Crassus and Antonius, and afterwards Philip and +Julius, were in the height of their reputation, he was thought worthy to +be compared with either of them in point of Eloquence. He had such an +excellent memory as I never knew in any person; so that what he had +composed in private, he was able to repeat, without notes, in the very +same words he had made use of at first. He employed this natural advantage +with so much readiness, that he not only recollected whatever he had +written or premeditated himself, but remembered every thing that had been +said by his opponents, without the help of a prompter. He was likewise +inflamed with such a passionate fondness for the profession, that I never +saw any one, who took more pains to improve himself; for he would not +suffer a day to elapse, without either speaking in the Forum, or composing +something at home; and very often he did both in the same day. He had, +besides, a turn of expression which was very far from being low and +unelevated; and possessed two other accomplishments, in which no one could +equal him,--an uncommon clearness and accuracy in stating the points he +was to speak to; and a neat and easy manner of collecting the substance of +what had been said by his antagonist, and by himself. He had likewise an +elegant choice of words, an agreeable flow in his periods, and a copious +Elocution, which he was partly indebted for to a fine natural capacity, +and partly acquired by the most laborious rhetorical exercises. In short, +he had a most retentive view of his subject, and always divided and +parcelled it out with the greatest exactness; and he very seldom +overlooked any thing which the case could suggest, that was proper either +to support his _own_ allegations, or to refute those of his opponent. +Lastly, he had a sweet and sonorous voice; and his gesture had rather more +art in it, and was more exactly managed, than is requisite to an Orator. + +"While _he_ was in the height of his glory, Crassus died, Cotta was +banished, our public trials were intermitted by the Marsic war, and I +myself made my first appearance in the Forum. Hortensius joined the army, +and served the first campaign as a volunteer, and the second as a military +Tribune: Sulpicius was made a lieutenant general; and Antonius was absent +on a similar account. The only trial we had, was that upon the Varian Law; +the rest, as I have just observed, having been intermitted by the war. We +had scarcely any body left at the bar but L. Memmius, and Q. Pompeius, who +spoke mostly on their own affairs; and, though far from being Orators of +the first distinction, were yet tolerable ones, (if we may credit +Philippus, who was himself a man of some Eloquence) and in supporting an +evidence, displayed all the poignancy of a prosecutor, with a moderate +freedom of Elocution. The rest, who were esteemed our capital Speakers, +were then in the magistracy, and I had the benefit of hearing their +harangues almost every day. C. Curio was chosen a Tribune of the people; +though he left off speaking after being once deserted by his whole +audience. To him I may add Q. Metellus Celer, who, though certainly no +Orator, was far from being destitute of utterance: but Q. Varius, C. +Carbo, and Cn. Pomponius, were men of real Elocution, and might almost be +said to have lived upon the Rostra. C. Julius too, who was then a Curule +Aedile, was daily employed in making Speeches to the people, which were +composed with great neatness and accuracy. But while I attended the Forum +with this eager curiosity, my first disappointment was the banishment of +Cotta: after which I continued to hear the rest with the same assiduity as +before; and though I daily spent the remainder of my time in reading, +writing, and private declamation, I cannot say that I much relished my +confinement to these preparatory exercises. The next year Q. Varius was +condemned, and banished, by his own law: and I, that I might acquire a +competent knowledge of the principles of jurisprudence, then attached +myself to Q. Scaevola, the son of Publius, who, though he did not choose +to undertake the charge of a pupil, yet by freely giving his advice to +those who consulted him, he answered every purpose of instruction to such +as took the trouble to apply to him. In the succeeding year, in which +Sylla and Pompey were Consuls, as Sulpicius, who was elected a Tribune of +the people, had occasion to speak in public almost every day, I had an +opportunity to acquaint myself thoroughly with his manner of speaking. At +this time Philo, a philosopher of the first name _in the Academy_, with +many of the principal Athenians, having deserted their native home, and +fled to Rome, from the fury of Mithridates, I immediately became his +scholar, and was exceedingly taken with his philosophy; and, besides the, +pleasure I received from the great variety and sublimity of his matter, I +was still more inclined to confine, my attention to that study; because +there was reason to apprehend that our laws and judicial proceedings would +be wholly overturned by the continuance of the public disorders. In the +same year Sulpicius lost his life; and Q. Catulus, M. Antonius, and C. +Julius, three Orators, who were partly cotemporary with each other, were +most inhumanly put to death. Then also I attended the lectures of Molo the +Rhodian, who was newly come to Rome, and was both an excellent Pleader, +and an able Teacher of the Art. I have mentioned these particulars, which, +perhaps, may appear foreign to our purpose, that _you_, my Brutus, (for +Atticus is already acquainted with them) may be able to mark my progress, +and observe how closely I trod upon the heels of Hortensius. + +"The three following years the city was free from the tumult of arms; but +either by the death, the voluntary retirement, or the flight of our ablest +Orators (for even M. Crassus, and the two Lentuli, who were then in the +bloom of youth, had all left us) Hortensius, of course, was the first +Speaker in the Forum. Antistius too was daily rising into reputation,-- +Piso pleaded pretty often,--Pomponius not so frequently,--Carbo very +seldom,--and Philippus only once or twice. In the mean while I pursued my +studies of every kind, day and night, with unremitting application. I +lodged and boarded at my own house [where he lately died] Diodotus the +Stoic; whom I employed as my preceptor in various other parts of learning, +but particularly in Logic, which may be considered as a close and +contracted species of Eloquence; and without which, you yourself have +declared it impossible to acquire that full and perfect Eloquence, which +they suppose to be an open and dilated kind of Logic. Yet with all my +attention to Diodotus, and the various arts he was master of, I never +suffered even a single day to escape me, without some exercise of the +oratorial kind. I constantly declaimed in private with M. Piso, Q. +Pompeius, or some other of my acquaintance; pretty often in Latin, but +much oftener in Greek; because the Greek furnishes a greater variety of +ornaments, and an opportunity of imitating and introducing them into the +Latin; and because the Greek masters, who were far the best, could not +correct and improve us, unless we declaimed in that language. This time +was distinguished by a violent struggle to restore the liberty of the +Republic:--the barbarous slaughter of the three Orators, Scaevola, Carbo, +and Antistius;--the return of Cotta, Curio, Crassus, Pompey, and the +Lentuli;--the re-establishment of the laws and courts of judicature;--and +the intire restoration of the Commonwealth: but we lost Pomponius, +Censorinus, and Murena, from the roll of Orators. + +"I now began, for the _first_ time, to undertake the management of causes, +both private and public; not, as most did, with a view to learn my +profession, but to make a trial of the abilities which I had taken so much +pains to acquire. I had then a second opportunity of attending the +instructions of Molo; who came to Rome, while Sylla was Dictator, to +sollicit the payment of what was due to his countrymen, for their services +in the Mithridatic war. My defence of Sext. Roscius, which was the first +cause I pleaded, met with such a favourable reception, that, from that +moment, I was looked upon as an advocate of the first class, and equal to +the greatest and most important causes: and after this I pleaded many +others, which I pre-composed with all the care and accuracy I was master +of. + +"But as you seem desirous not so much to be acquainted with any incidental +marks of my character, or the first sallies of my youth, as to know me +thoroughly, I shall mention some particulars, which otherwise might have +seemed unnecessary. At this time my body was exceedingly weak and +emaciated; my neck long, and slender; a shape and habit, which I thought +to be liable to great risk of life, if engaged in any violent fatigue, or +labour of the lungs. And it gave the greater alarm to those who had a +regard for me, that I used to speak without any remission or variation, +with the utmost stretch of my voice, and a total agitation of my body. +When my friends, therefore, and physicians, advised me to meddle no more +with forensic causes, I resolved to run any hazard, rather than quit the +hopes of glory, which I had proposed to myself from pleading: but when I +considered, that by managing my voice, and changing my way of speaking, I +might both avoid all future danger of that kind, and speak with greater +ease, I took a resolution of travelling into Asia, merely for an +opportunity to correct my manner of speaking. So that after I had been two +years at the Bar, and acquired some reputation in the Forum, I left Rome. +When I came to Athens, I spent six months with Antiochus, the principal +and most judicious Philosopher of _the old Academy_; and under this able +master, I renewed those philosophical studies which I had laboriously +cultivated and improved from my earliest youth. At the same time, however, +I continued my _rhetorical Exercises_ under Demetrius the Syrian, an +experienced and reputable master of the Art of Speaking. + +"After leaving Athens, I traversed every part of Asia, where I was +voluntarily attended by the principal Orators of the country with whom I +renewed my rhetorical Exercises. The chief of them was Menippus of +Stratonica, the most eloquent of all the Asiatics: and if to be neither +tedious nor impertinent is the characteristic of an Attic Orator, he may +be justly ranked in that class. Dionysius also of Magnesia, Aeschilus of +Cnidos, and Xenocles of Adramyttus, who were esteemed the first +Rhetoricians of Asia, were continually with me. Not contented with these, +I went to Rhodes, and applied myself again to Molo, whom I had heard +before at Rome; and who was both an experienced pleader, and a fine +writer, and particularly judicious in remarking the faults of his +scholars, as well as in his method of teaching and improving them. His +principal trouble with me, was to restrain the luxuriancy of a juvenile +imagination, always ready to overflow its banks, within its due and proper +channel. Thus, after an excursion of two years, I returned to Italy, not +only much improved, but almost changed into a new man. The vehemence of my +voice and action was considerably abated; the excessive ardour of my +language was corrected; my lungs were strengthened; and my whole +constitution confirmed and settled. + +"Two Orators then reigned in the Forum; (I mean Cotta and Hortensius) +whose glory fired my emulation. Cotta's way of speaking was calm and easy, +and distinguished by the flowing elegance and propriety of his language. +The other was splendid, warm, and animated; not such as you, my Brutus, +have seen him when he had shed the blossom of his eloquence, but far more +lively and pathetic both in his style and action. As Hortensius, +therefore, was nearer to me in age, and his manner more agreeable to the +natural ardour of my temper, I considered him as the proper object of my +competition. For I observed that when they were both engaged in the same +cause, (as for instance, when they defended M. Canuleius, and Cn. +Dolabella, a man of consular dignity) though Cotta was generally employed +to open the defence, the most important parts of it were left to the +management of Hortensius. For a crowded audience, and a clamorous Forum, +require an Orator who is lively, animated, full of action, and able to +exert his voice to the highest pitch. The first year, therefore, after my +return from Asia, I undertook several capital causes; and in the interim I +put up as a candidate for the Quaestorship, Cotta for the Consulate, and +Hortensius for the Aedileship. After I was chosen Quaestor, I passed a +year in Sicily, the province assigned to me by lot: Cotta went as Consul +into Gaul: and Hortensius, whose new office required his presence at Rome, +was left of course the undisputed sovereign of the Forum. In the +succeeding year, when I returned from Sicily, my oratorial talents, such +as they were, displayed themselves in their full perfection and maturity. + +"I have been saying too much, perhaps, concerning myself: but my design in +it was not to make a parade of my eloquence and ability, which I have no +temptation to do, but only to specify the pains and labour which I have +taken to improve it. After spending the five succeeding years in pleading +a variety of causes, and with the ablest Advocates of the time, I was +declared an Aedile, and undertook the patronage of the Sicilians against +Hortensius, who was then one of the Consuls elect. But as the subject of +our conversation not only requires an historical detail of Orators, but +such preceptive remarks as may be necessary to elucidate their characters; +it will not be improper to make some observations of this kind upon that +of Hortensius. After his appointment to the consulship (very probably, +because he saw none of consular dignity who were able to rival him, and +despised the competition of others of inferior rank) he began to remit +that intense application which he had hitherto persevered in from his +childhood; and having settled himself in very affluent circumstances, he +chose to live for the future what he thought an _easy_ life, but which, in +truth, was rather an indolent one. In the three succeeding years, the +beauty of his colouring was so much impaired, as to be very perceptible to +a skilful connoisseur, though not to a common observer. After that, he +grew every day more unlike himself than before, not only in other parts of +Eloquence, but by a gradual decay of the former celerity and elegant +texture of his language. I, at the same time, spared no pains to improve +and enlarge my talents, such as they were, by every exercise that was +proper for the purpose, but particularly by that of writing. Not to +mention several other advantages I derived from it, I shall only observe, +that about this time, and but a very few years after my Aedileship, I was +declared the first Praetor, by the unanimous suffrages of my fellow- +citizens. For, by my diligence and assiduity as a Pleader, and my accurate +way of speaking, which was rather superior to the ordinary style of the +Bar, the novelty of my Eloquence had engaged the attention, and secured +the good wishes of the public. But I will say nothing of myself: I will +confine my discourse to our other Speakers, among whom there is not one +who has gained more than a common acquaintance with those parts of +literature, which feed the springs of Eloquence:--not one who has been +thoroughly nurtured at the breast of Philosophy, which is the mother of +every excellence either in deed or speech:--not one who has acquired an +accurate knowledge of the Civil Law, which is so necessary for the +management even of private causes, and to direct the judgment of an +Orator:--not one who is a complete master of the Roman History, which +would enable us, on many occasions, to appeal to the venerable evidence of +the dead:--not one who can entangle his opponent in such a neat and +humourous manner, as to relax the severity of the Judges into a smile or +an open laugh:--not one who knows how to dilate and expand his subject, by +reducing it from the limited considerations of time, and person, to some +general and indefinite topic;--not one who knows how to enliven it by an +agreeable digression: not one who can rouse the indignation of the Judge, +or extort from him the tear of compassion;--or who can influence and bend +his soul (which is confessedly the capital perfection of an Orator) in +such a manner as shall best suit his purpose. + +"When Hortensius, therefore, the once eloquent and admired Hortensius, had +almost vanished from the Forum, my appointment to the Consulship, which +happened about six years after his own promotion to that office, revived +his dying emulation; for he was unwilling that after I had equalled him in +rank and dignity, I should become his superior in any other respect. But +in the twelve succeeding years, by a mutual deference to each other's +abilities, we united our efforts at the Bar in the most amicable manner: +and my Consulship, which at first had given a short alarm to his jealousy, +afterward cemented our friendship, by the generous candor with which he +applauded my conduct. But our emulous efforts were exerted in the most +conspicuous manner, just before the commencement of that unhappy period, +when Eloquence herself was confounded and terrified by the din of arms +into a sudden and a total silence: for after Pompey had proposed and +carried a law, which allowed even the party accused but three hours to +make his defence, I appeared, (though comparatively as a mere _noviciate_ +by this new regulation) in a number of causes which, in fact, were become +perfectly the same, or very nearly so; most of which, my Brutus, you was +present to hear, as having been my partner and fellow-advocate in many of +them, though you pleaded several by yourself; and Hortensius, though he +died a short time afterwards, bore his share in these limited efforts. He +began to plead about ten years before the time of your birth; and in his +sixty-fourth year, but a very few days before his death, he was engaged +with you in the defence of Appius, your father-in-law. As to our +respective talents, the Orations we have published will enable posterity +to form a proper judgment of them. But if we mean to inquire, why +Hortensius was more admired for his Eloquence in the younger part of his +life, than in his latter years, we shall find it owing to the following +causes. The first was, that an _Asiatic_ style is more allowable in a +young man than in an old one. Of this there are two different kinds. + +"The former is sententious and sprightly, and abounds in those turns of +sentiment which are not so much distinguished by their weight and solidity +as by their neatness and elegance; of this cast was Timaeus the Historian, +and the two Orators so much talked of in our younger days, Hierocles the +Alabandean, and his brother Menecles, but particularly the latter; both +whose Orations may be reckoned master-pieces of the kind. The other sort +is not so remarkable for the plenty and richness of its sentiments, as for +its rapid volubility of expression, which at present is the ruling taste +in Asia; but, besides it's uncommon fluency, it is recommended by a choice +of words which are peculiarly delicate and ornamental:--of this kind were +Aeschylus the Cnidian, and my cotemporary Aeschines the Milesian; for they +had an admirable command of language, with very little elegance of +sentiment. These showy kinds of eloquence are agreeable enough in young +people; but they are entirely destitute of that gravity and composure +which befits a riper age. As Hortensius therefore excelled in both, he was +heard with applause in the earlier part of his life. For he had all that +fertility and graceful variety of sentiment which distinguished the +character of Menecles: but, as in Menecles, so in him, there were many +turns of sentiment which were more delicate and entertaining than really +useful, or indeed sometimes convenient. His language also was brilliant +and rapid, and yet perfectly neat and accurate; but by no means agreeable +to men of riper years. I have often seen it received by Philippus with the +utmost derision, and, upon some occasions, with a contemptuous +indignation: but the younger part of the audience admired it, and the +populace were highly pleased with it. In his youth, therefore, he met the +warmest approbation of the public, and maintained his post with ease as +the first Orator in the Forum. For the style he chose to speak in, though +it has little weight, or authority, appeared very suitable to his age: and +as it discovered in him the most visible marks of genius and application, +and was recommended by the numerous cadence of his periods, he was heard +with universal applause. But when the honours he afterwards rose to, and +the dignity of his years required something more serious and composed, he +still continued to appear in the same character, though it no longer +became him: and as he had, for some considerable time, intermitted those +exercises, and relaxed that laborious attention which had once +distinguished him, though his former neatness of expression, and +luxuriancy of sentiment still remained, they were stripped of those +brilliant ornaments they had been used to wear. For this reason, perhaps, +my Brutus, he appeared less pleasing to you than he would have done, if +you had been old enough to hear him, when he was fired with emulation and +flourished in the full bloom of his Eloquence. + +"I am perfectly sensible," said Brutus, "of the justice of your remarks; +and yet I have always looked upon Hortensius as a great Orator, but +especially when he pleaded for Messala, in the time of your absence."--"I +have often heard of it," replied I, "and his Oration, which was afterwards +published, they say, in the very same words in which he delivered it, is +no way inferior to the character you give it. Upon the whole, then, his +reputation flourished from the time of Crassus and Scaevola (reckoning +from the Consulship of the former) to the Consulship of Paullus and +Marcellus: and I held out in the same career of glory from the +Dictatorship of Sylla, to the period I have last, mentioned. Thus the +Eloquence of Hortensius was extinguished by his _own_ death, and mine by +that of the Commonwealth."--"Ominate more favourably, I beg of you," +cried Brutus.--"As favourably as you please," said I, "and that not so +much upon my own account, as your's. But _his_ death was truly fortunate, +who did not live to behold the miseries, which he had long foreseen. For +we often lamented, between ourselves, the misfortunes which hung over the +State, when we discovered the seeds of a civil war in the insatiable +ambition of a few private Citizens, and saw every hope of an accommodation +excluded by the rashness and precipitancy of our public counsels. But the +felicity which always marked his life, seems to have exempted him, by a +seasonable death, from the calamities that followed. But, as after the +decease of Hortensius, we seem to have been left, my Brutus, as the sole +guardians of an _orphan_ Eloquence, let us cherish her, within our own +walls at least, with a generous fidelity: let us discourage the addresses +of her worthless, and impertinent suitors; let us preserve her pure and +unblemished in all her virgin charms, and secure her, to the utmost of our +ability, from the lawless violence of every armed ruffian. I must own, +however, though I am heartily grieved that I entered so late upon the road +of life, as to be overtaken by a gloomy night of public distress, before I +had finished my journey; that I am not a little relieved by the tender +consolation which you administered to me in your very agreeable letters;-- +in which you tell me I ought to recollect my courage, since my past +transactions are such as will speak for me when I am silent, and survive +my death,--and such as, if the Gods permit, will bear an ample testimony +to the prudence and integrity of my public counsels, by the final +restoration of the Republic:--or, if otherwise, by burying me in the +ruins of my country. But when I look upon _you_, my Brutus, it fills me +with anguish to reflect that, in the vigour of your youth, and when you +was making the most rapid progress in the road to fame, your career was +suddenly stopped by the fatal overthrow of the Commonwealth. This unhappy +circumstance has stung me to the heart; and not _me_ only; but my worthy +friend here, who has the same affection for you, and the same esteem for +your merit which I have. We have the warmest wishes for your happiness, +and heartily pray that you may reap the rewards of your excellent virtues, +and live to find a Republic in which you will be able, not only to revive, +but even to add to the fame of your illustrious ancestors. For the Forum +was your birth-right, your native theatre of action; and you was the only +person that entered it, who had not only formed his Elocution by a +rigorous course of private practice, but enriched his Oratory with the +furniture of philosophical Science, and thus united the highest virtue to +the most consummate Eloquence. Your situation, therefore, wounds us with +the double anxiety, that _you_ are deprived of the _Republic_, and the +Republic of _you_. But still continue, my Brutus, (notwithstanding the +career of your genius has been checked by the rude shock of our public +distresses) continue to pursue your favourite studies, and endeavour (what +you have almost, or rather intirely effected already) to distinguish +yourself from the promiscuous crowd of Pleaders with which I have loaded +the little history I have been giving you. For it would ill befit you, +(richly furnished as you are with those liberal Arts, which, unable to +acquire at home, you imported from that celebrated city which has always +been revered as the seat of learning) to pass after all as an ordinary +Pleader. For to what purposes have you studied under Pammenes, the most +eloquent man in Greece; or what advantage have you derived from the +discipline of _the old_ Academy, and it's hereditary master Aristus (my +guest, and very intimate acquaintance) if you still rank yourself in the +common class of Orators? Have we not seen that a whole age could scarcely +furnish two Speakers who really excelled in their profession? Among a +crowd of cotemporaries, Galba, for instance, was the only Orator of +distinction: for old Cato (we are informed) was obliged to yield to his +superior merit, as were likewise his two juniors Lepidus, and Carbo. But, +in a public Harangue, the style of his successors the Gracchi was far more +easy and lively: and yet, even in their time, the Roman Eloquence had not +reached its perfection. Afterwards came Antonius, and Crassus; and then +Cotta, Sulpicius, Hortensius, and--but I say no more: I can only add, that +if I had been so fortunate, &c, &c,"--[_Caetera defunt._] + + + + +THE ORATOR, +BY MARCUS TULLIUS CICERO; +ADDRESSED TO MARCUS BRUTUS; +And now first translated from the Original Latin. + + + "Song charms the Sense, but Eloquence the Soul." + MILTON. + + + + +THE ORATOR. + + +Which, my Brutus, would be the most difficult talk,--to decline answering +a request which you have so often repeated, or to gratify it to your +satisfaction,--I have long been at a loss to determine. I should be +extremely sorry to deny any thing to a friend for whom I have the warmest +esteem, and who, I am sensible, has an equal affection for me;-- +especially, as he has only desired me to undertake a subject which may +justly claim my attention. But to delineate a character, which it would be +very difficult, I will not say to _acquire_, but even to _comprehend_ in +its full extent, I thought was too bold an undertaking for him who reveres +the censure of the wife and learned. For considering the great diversity +of manner among the ablest Speakers, how exceedingly difficult must it be +to determine which is best, and give a finished model of Eloquence? This, +however, in compliance with your repeated solicitations, I shall now +attempt;--not so much from any hopes of succeeding, as from a strong +inclination to make the trial. For I had rather, by yielding to your +wishes, give you room to complain of my insufficiency; than, by a +peremptory denial, tempt you to question my friendship. + +You desire to know, then, (and you have often repeated your request) what +kind of Eloquence I most approve, and can look upon to be so highly +finished, as to require no farther improvement. But should I be able to +answer your expectations, and display, in his full perfection, the Orator +you enquire after; I am afraid I shall retard the industry of many, who, +enfeebled by despair, will no longer attempt what they think themselves +incapable of attaining. It is but reasonable, however, that all those who +covet what is excellent, and which cannot be acquired without the greatest +application, should exert their utmost. But if any one is deficient in +capacity, and destitute of that admirable force of genius which Nature +bestows upon her favourites, or has been denied the advantages of a +liberal education, _let him make the progress he is able_. For while we +are driving to overtake the foremost, it is no disgrace to be found among +the _second_ class, or even the _third_. Thus, for instance, among the +poets, we respect the merit not only of a _Homer_ (that I may confine +myself to the Greeks) or of _Archilochus, Sophocles_, or _Pindar_, but of +many others who occupied the second, or even a lower place. In Philosophy +also the diffusive majesty of Plato has not deterred _Aristotle_ from +entering the list; nor has _Aristotle_ himself, with all his wonderful +knowledge and fertility of thought, disheartened the endeavours of others. +Nay, men of an elevated genius have not only disdained to be intimidated +from the pursuit of literary fame;--but the very artists and mechanics +have never relinquished their profession, because they were unable to +equal the beauty of that _Iasylus_ which we have seen at Rhodes, or of the +celebrated _Venus_ in the island of _Coos_:--nor has the noble image of +Olympian _Jove_, or the famous statue of the Man at Arms, deterred others +from making trial of their abilities, and exerting their skill to the +utmost. Accordingly, such a large number of them has appeared, and each +has performed so well in his own way, that we cannot help being pleased +with their productions, notwithstanding our admiration at the nobler +efforts of the great masters of the chissel. + +But among the Orators, I mean those of Greece, it is astonishing how much +one of them has surpassed the rest:--and yet, though there was a +_Demosthenes_, there were even _then_ many other Orators of considerable +merit;--and such there were before he made his appearance, nor have they +been wanting since. There is, therefore, no reason why those who have +devoted themselves to the study of Eloquence, should suffer their hopes to +languish, or their industry to flag. For, in the first place, even that +which is most excellent is not to be despaired of;--and, in all worthy +attempts, that which is next to what is best is great and noble. + +But in sketching out the character of a compleat Orator, it is possible I +may exhibit such a one as hath never _yet_ existed. For I am not to point +out the _Speaker_, but to delineate the _Eloquence_ than which nothing can +be more perfect of the kind:--an Eloquence which hath blazed forth through +a whole Harangue but seldom, and, it may be, never; but only here and +there like a transient gleam, though in some Orators more frequently, and +in others, perhaps, more sparingly. + +My opinion, then, is,--that there is no human production of any kind, so +compleatly beautiful, than which there is not a _something_ still more +beautiful, from which the other is copied like a portrait from real life, +and which can be discerned neither by our eyes nor ears, nor any of our +bodily senses, but is visible only to thought and imagination. Though the +statues, therefore, of Phidias, and the other images above-mentioned, are +all so wonderfully charming, that nothing can be found which is more +excellent of the kind; we may still, however, _suppose_ a something which +is more exquisite, and more compleat. For it must not be thought that the +ingenious artist, when he was sketching out the form of a Jupiter, or a +Minerva, borrowed the likeness from any particular object;--but a certain +admirable semblance of beauty was present to his mind, which he viewed and +dwelt upon, and by which his skill and his hand were guided. As, +therefore, in mere bodily shape and figure there is a kind of perfection, +to whose ideal appearance every production which falls under the notice of +the eye is referred by imitation; so the semblance of what is perfect in +Oratory may become visible to the mind, and the ear may labour to catch a +likeness. These primary forms of thing are by Plato (the father of science +and good language) called _Ideas_; and he tells us they have neither +beginning nor end, but are co-eval with reason and intelligence; while +every thing besides has a derived, and a transitory existence, and passes +away and decays, so as to cease in a short time to be the thing it was. +Whatever, therefore, may be discussed by reason and method, should be +constantly reduced to the primary form or semblance of it's respective +genus. + +I am sensible that this introduction, as being derived not from the +principles of Eloquence, but from the deepest recesses of Philosophy, will +excite the censure, or at least the wonder of many, who will think it both +unfashionable and intricate. For they will either be at a loss to discover +it's connection with my subject, (though they will soon be convinced by +what follows, that, if it appears to be far-fetched, it is not so without +reason;)--or they will blame me, perhaps, for deserting the beaten track, +and striking out into a new one. But I am satisfied that I often appear to +advance novelties, when I offer sentiments which are, indeed, of a much +earlier date, but happen to be generally unknown: and I frankly +acknowledge that I came forth an Orator, (if indeed I am one, or whatever +else I may be deemed) not from the school of the Rhetoricians, but from +the spacious walks of the Academy. For these are the theatres of +diversified and extensive arguments which were first impressed with the +foot-steps of Plato; and his Dissertations, with those of other +Philosophers, will be found of the greatest utility to an Orator, both for +his exercise and improvement; because all the fertility, and, as it were, +the materials of Eloquence, are to be derived from thence;--but not, +however, sufficiently prepared for the business of the Forum, which, as +themselves have frequently boasted, they abandoned to the _rustic Muses_ +of the vulgar! Thus the Eloquence of the Forum, despised and rejected by +the Philosophers, was bereaved of her greatest advantages:--but, +nevertheless, being arrayed in all the brilliance of language and +sentiment, she made a figure among the populace, nor feared the censure of +the judicious few. By this means, the learned became destitute of a +popular Eloquence, and the Orators of polite learning. + +We may, therefore, consider it as a capital maxim, (the truth of which +will be more easily understood in the sequel) that the eloquent Speaker we +are enquiring after, cannot be formed without the assistance of +Philosophy. I do not mean that this alone is sufficient; but only (for it +is sometimes necessary to compare great things to small) that it will +contribute to improve him in the same manner as the _Palaestra_ [Footnote: +The _Palaestra_ was a place set apart for public exercises, such as +wrestling, running, fencing, &c. the frequent performance of which +contributed much to a graceful carriage of the body, which is a necessary +accomplishment in a good Actor.] does an Actor; because without +Philosophy, no man can speak fully and copiously upon a variety of +important subjects which come under the notice of an Orator. Accordingly, +in the _Phaedrus_ of Plato, it is observed by Socrates that the great +_Pericles_ excelled all the Speakers of his time, because he had been a +hearer of _Anaxagoras_ the Naturalist, from whom he supposes that he not +only borrowed many excellent and sublime ideas, but a certain richness and +fertility of language, and (what in Eloquence is of the utmost +consequence) the various arts either of soothing or alarming each +particular passion. The same might be said of _Demosthenes_, whose letters +will satisfy us, how assiduously he attended the Lectures of Plato. For +without the instruction of Philosophy, we can neither discover what is the +_Genus_ or the _Species_ to which any thing belongs, nor explain the +nature of it by a just definition, or an accurate analysis of its parts;-- +nor can we distinguish between what is true and false, or foresee the +consequences, point out the inconsistencies, and dissolve the ambiguities +which may lie in the case before us. But as to Natural Philosophy (the +knowledge of which will supply us with the richest treasures of +Elocution;)--and as to life, and it's various duties, and the great +principles of morality,--what is it possible either to express or +understand aright, without a large acquaintance with these? To such +various and important accomplishments we must add the innumerable +ornaments of language, which, at the time above mentioned, were the only +weapons which the Masters of Rhetoric could furnish. This is the reason +why that genuine, and perfect Eloquence we are speaking of, has been yet +attained by no one; because the Art of _Reasoning_ has been supposed to be +one thing, and that of _Speaking_ another; and we have had recourse to +different Instructors for the knowledge of things and words. + +Antonius, [Footnote: A celebrated Orator, and grandfather to M. Antonius +The Triumvir.] therefore, to whom our ancestors adjudged the palm of +Eloquence, and who had much natural penetration and sagacity, has observed +in the only book he published, "_that he had seen many good Speakers, but +not a single Orator_." The full and perfect semblance of Eloquence had so +thoroughly possessed his mind, and was so completely visible there, though +no where exemplified in practice, that this consummate Genius, (for such, +indeed, he was) observing many defects in both himself and others, could +discover no one who merited the name of _eloquent_. But if he considered +neither himself, nor Lucius Crassus, as a genuine Orator, he must have +formed in his mind a sublime idea of Eloquence, under which, because there +was nothing wanting to compleat it, he could not comprehend those Speakers +who were any ways deficient. Let us then, my Brutus, (if we are able) +trace out the Orator whom Antonius never saw, and who, it may be, has +never yet existed; for though we have not the skill to copy his likeness +in real practice, (a talk which, in the opinion of the person above- +mentioned, would be almost too arduous for one of the Gods,) we may be +able, perhaps, to give some account of what he _ought_ to be. + +Good Speaking, then, may be divided into three characters, in each of +which there are some who have made an eminent figure: but to be equally +excellent in all (which is what we require) has been the happiness of few. + +The _lofty_ and _majestic_ Speaker, who distinguishes himself by the +energy of his sentiments, and the dignity of his expression, is +impetuous,--diversified,--copious,--and weighty,--and abundantly qualified +to alarm and sway the passions;--which some effect by a harsh, and a +rough, gloomy way of speaking, without any harmony or measure; and others, +by a smooth, a regular, and a well-proportioned style. + +On the other hand, the _simple_ and _easy_ Speaker is remarkably dexterous +and keen, and aiming at nothing but our information, makes every thing he +discourses upon, rather clear and open than great and striking, and +polishes it with the utmost neatness and accuracy. But some of this kind +of Speakers, who are distinguished by their peculiar artificie, are +designedly unpolished, and appear rude and unskilful, that they may have +the better opportunity of deceiving us:--while others, with the same +poverty of style, are far more elegant and agreeable,--that is, they are +pleasant and facetious, and sometimes even florid, with here and there an +easy ornament. + +But there is likewise a _middle_ kind of Oratory, between the two above- +mentioned, which neither has the keenness of the latter, nor hurls the +thunder of the former; but is a mixture of both, without excelling in +either, though at the same time it has something of each, or (perhaps, +more properly) is equally destitute of the true merit of both. This +species of Eloquence flows along in a uniform course, having nothing to +recommend it, but it's peculiar smoothness and equability; though at the +same time, it intermingles a number of decorations, like the tufts of +flowers in a garland, and embellishes a discourse from beginning to end +with the moderate and less striking ornaments of language and sentiment. + +Those who have attained to any degree of perfection in either of the above +characters, have been distinguished as eminent Orators: but the question +is whether any of them have compassed what we are seeking after, and +succeeded equally in all. For there have been several who could speak +nervously and pompously, and yet, upon occasion, could express themselves +with the greates address, and simplicity. I wish I could refer to such an +Orator, or at least to one who nearly resembles him, among the Romans; for +it would certainly have been more to our credit to be able to refer to +proper examples of our own, and not be necessitated to have recourse to +the Greeks. But though in another treatis of mine, which bears the name of +_Brutus_, [Footnote: A very excellent Treatise in the form of a Dialogue. +It contains a critical and very instructive account of all the noted +Orators of _Greece_ and _Rome_ and might be called, with great propriety, +_the History of Eloquence_. Though it is perhaps the most entertaining of +all Cicero's performances, the Public have never been obliged before with +a translation of it into English; which, I hope, will sufficiently plead +my excuse for preforming to undertake it.] I have said much in favour of +the Romans, partly to excite their emulation, and, in some measure, from a +partial fondness for my country; yet I must always remember to give the +preference to _Demosthenes_, who alone has adapted his genius to that +perfect species of Eloquence of which I can readily form an idea, but +which I have never yet seen exemplified in practice. Than _him_, there has +never hitherto existed a more nervous, and at the same time, a more subtle +Speaker, or one more cool and temperate. I must, therefore, caution those +whose ignorant discourse is become so common, and who wish to pass for +_Attic_ Speakers, or at least to express themselves in the _Attic_ taste, +--I must caution them to take _him_ for their pattern, than whom it is +impossible that Athens herself should be more completely Attic: and, as to +genuine Atticism, that them learn what it means, and measure the force of +Eloquence, not by their own weakness and incapacity, but by his wonderful +energy and strength. For, at present, a person bestows his commendation +upon just so much as he thinks himself capable of imitating. I therefore +flatter myself that it will not be foreign to my purpose, to instruct +those who have a laudable emulation, but are not thoroughly settled in +their judgment, wherein the merit of an Attic Orator consists. + +The taste of the Audience, then, has always governed and directed the +Eloquence of the Speaker: for all who wish to be applauded, consult the +character, and the inclinations of those who hear them, and carefully form +and accommodate themselves to their particular humours and dispositions. +Thus in Caria, Phrygia, and Mysia, because the inhabitants have no relish +for true elegance and politeness, the Orators have adopted (as most +agreeable to the ears of their audience) a luxuriant, and, if I may so +express myself, a corpulent style; which their neighbours the Rhodians, +who are only parted from them by a narrow straight, have never approved, +and much less the Greeks; but the Athenians have entirely banished it; for +their taste has always been so just and accurate that they could not +listen to any thing but what was perfectly correct and elegant. An Orator, +therefore, to compliment their delicacy, was forced to be always upon his +guard against a faulty or a distasteful expression. + +Accordingly, _he_, whom we have just mentioned as surpassing the rest, has +been careful in his Oration for Ctesiphon, (which is the best he ever +composed) to set out very cooly and modestly: when he proceeds to argue +the point of law, he grows more poignant and pressing; and as he advances +in his defence, he takes still greater liberties; till, at last, having +warmed the passions of his Judges, he exults at his pleasure through the +reamining part of his discourse. But even in _him_, thus carefully +weighing and poising his every word _Aeschines_ [Footnote: _Aeschines_ was +a cotemporary, and a professed rival of Demosthenes. He carried his +animosity so far as to commence a litigious suit against him, at a time +when the reputation of the latter was at the lowest ebb. But being +overpowered by the Eloquence of Demosthenes, he was condemned to perpetual +banishment.] could find several expressions to turn into ridicule:--for +giving a loose to his raillery, he calls them harsh, and detestable, and +too shocking to be endured; and styling the author of them a very +_monster_, he tauntingly asks him whether such expressions could be +considered as _words_ or not rather as absolute _frights_ and _prodigies_. +So that to AEschines not even _Demosthenes_ himself was perfectly _Attic_; +for it is an easy matter to catch a _glowing_ expression, (if I may be +allowed to call it so) and expose it to ridicule when the fire of +attention is extinguished. Demosthenes, therefore, when he endeavours to +excuse himself, condescends to jest, and denies that the fortune of Greece +was in the least affected by the singularity of a particular expression, +or by his moving his hand either this way or that. + +With what patience, then, would a Mysian or a Phrygian have been heard at +Athens, when even Demosthenes himself was reproached as a nuisance? But +should the former have begun his whining sing-song, after the manner of +the Asiatics, who would have endured it? or rather, who would not have +ordered him to be instantly torn from the Rostrum? Those, therefore, who +can accommodate themselves to the nice and critical ears of an Athenian +audience, are the only persons who should pretend to Atticism. + +But though Atticism may be divided into several kinds, these mimic +Athenians suspect but one. They imagine that to discourse plainly, and +without any ornament, provided it be done correctly, and clearly, is the +only genuine Atticism. In confining it to this alone, they are certainly +mistaken; though when they tell us that this is really Attic, they are so +far in the right. For if the only true Atticism is what they suppose to +be, not even _Pericles_ was an Attic Speaker, though he was universally +allowed to bear away the palm of Eloquence; nor, if he had wholly attached +himself to this plain and simple kind of language, would he ever have been +said by the Poet Aristophanes _to thunder and lighten, and throw all +Greece into a ferment_. + +Be it allowed, then, that Lysias, that graceful and most polite of +Speakers, was truly Attic: for who can deny it? But let it also be +remembered that Lysias claims the merit of Atticism, not so much for his +simplicity and want of ornament, as because he has nothing which is either +faulty or impertinent. But to speak floridly, nervously, and copiously, +this also is true Atticism:--otherwise, neither Aeschines nor even +Demosthenes himself were Attic Speakers. + +There are others who affect to be called _Thucydideans_,--a strange and +novel race of Triflers! For those who attach themselves to Lysias, have a +real Pleader for their pattern;--not indeed a stately, and striking +Pleader, but yet a dextrous and very elegant one, who might appear in the +Forum with reputation. + +Thucydides, on the contrary, is a mere Historian, who ('tis true) +describes wars, and battles with great dignity and precision; but he can +supply us with nothing which is proper for the Forum. For his very +speeches have so many obscure and intricate periods, that they are +scarcely intelligible; which in a public discourse is the greatest fault +of which an Orator can be guilty. But who, when the use of corn has been +discovered, would be so mad as to feed upon acorns? Or could the Athenians +improve their diet, and bodily food, and be incapable of cultivating their +language? Or, lastly, which of the Greek Orators has copied the style of +Thucydides? [Footnote: Demosthenes indeed took the pains to transcribe the +History of Thucydides several times. But he did this, no so much to copy +the _form_ as the energy of his language.] "True," they reply, "but +Thucydides was universally admired." And so, indeed, he was; but only as a +sensible, an exact, and a grave Historian;--not for his address in public +debates, but for his excellence in describing wars and battles. +Accordingly, he was never mentioned as an Orator; nor would his name have +been known to posterity, if he had not composed his History, +notwithstanding the dignity of his birth, and the honourable share he held +in the Government. But none of these Pretenders have copied his energy; +and yet when they have uttered a few mutilated and broken periods (which +they might easily have done without a master to imitate) we must rever +them, truly, as so many genuine _Thucydideses_. I have likewise met with a +few who were professed imitators of Xenophon; whose language, indeed, is +sweeter than honey, but totally unqualified to withstand the clamours of +the Forum. + +Let us return then to the Orator we are seeking after, and furnish him +with those powers of Elocution, which Antonius could not discover in any +one: an arduous task, my Brutus, and full of difficulty:--yet nothing, I +believe, is impossible to him whose breast is fired with the generous +flame of friendship! But I affectionately admire (and have always admired) +your genius, your inclinations, and your manners. Nay, I am daily more +inflamed and ravished, not only with a desire (which, I assure you, is a +violent one) to renew our friendly intercourses, our social repasts, and +your improving conversation, but by the wonderful fame of your incredible +virtues, which, though different in kind, are readily united by your +superior wisdom and good-sense. For what is so remote from severity of +manners as gentleness and affability? and yet who more venerable than +yourself, or who more agreeable? What can be more difficult than to decide +a number of suits, so as to be equally esteemed and beloved by the parties +on both sides? You, however, possess the admirable talent of sending away +perfectly easy and contented even those against whom your are forced to +give judgment: thus bringing it to bear that, while you do nothing from a +partial favour to any man, whatever you do is favourably received. Hence +it happens, that the only country upon earth, which is not involved in the +present confusion, is the province of Gaul; where you are now enjoying +yourself in a happy tranquillity, while you are universally respected at +home, and live in the hearts of the flower and strength of your fellow- +citizens. It is equally amazing, though you are always engaged in the most +important offices of Government, that your studies are never intermitted; +and that you are constantly either composing something of your own, or +finding employment for me! Accordingly I began this Essay, at your +request, as soon as I had finished my _Cato_; which last also I should +never have attempted (especially at a time when the enemies of virtue were +so numerous) if I had not considered it as a crime to disobey my friend, +when he only urged me to revive the memory of a man whom I always loved +and honoured in his life-time. But I have now ventured upon a task which +you have frequently pressed upon me, and I as often refused: for, if +possible, I would share the fault between us, that if I should prove +unequal to the subject, you may have the blame of loading me with a burden +which is beyond my strength, and I the censure of presuming to undertake +it:--though after all, the single merit of gratifying such a friend as +Brutus, will sufficiently atone for any defects I may fall into. + +But in every accomplishment which may become the object of pursuit, it is +excessively difficult to delineate the form (or, as the Greeks call it, +the _character_ [Footnote: [Greek: charachtaer].]) of what is _best_; +because some suppose it to consist in one thing, and some in another. +Thus, for instance, "I am for _Ennius_," says one; "because he confines +himself to the style of conversation:"--"and I," says another, "give the +preference to _Pacuvius_, because his verses are embellished and well- +wrought; whereas Ennius is rather too "negligent." In the same manner we +may suppose a third to be an admirer of Attius; for, as among the Greeks, +so it happens with us, "_different men have different opinions_;"--nor is +it easy to determine which is best. Thus also in painting, some are +pleased with a rough, a wild, and a dark and cloudy style; while others +prefer that which is clear, and lively, and well covered with light. How +then shall we strike out a general _rule_ or _model_, when there are +several manners, and each of them has a certain perfection of its own? But +this difficulty has not deterred me from the undertaking; nor have I +altered my opinion that in all things there is a _something_ which +comprehends the highest excellence of the kind, and which, though not +generally discernible, is sufficiently conspicuous to him, who is skilled +in the subject. + +"But as there are several kinds of Eloquence which differ considerably +from each other, and therefore cannot be reduced to one common form;--for +this reason, as to mere laudatory Orations, Essays, Histories, and such +suasory performances as the Panegyric of Isocrates, and the speeches of +many others who were called _Sophists_;--and, in short, as to every thing +which is unconnected with the Forum, and the whole of that species of +discourse which the Greeks call the _demonstrative_ [Footnote: The +_demonstrative_ species of Eloquence is that which was solely employed +either in _praising_ or _dispraising_. Besides this, there are two +others, viz. the _deliberative_, and the _judicial_; the former was +employed in political debates, where it's whole business was either +to _persuade_ or _dissuade_; and the latter, in judicial suits and +controversies, where the Speaker was either to _accuse_ or _defend_. +But, on many occasions, they were all three intermingled in the same +discourse.];--the form, or leading character of these I shall pass over; +though I am far from considering it as a mere trifle, or a subject of +no consequence; on the contrary, we may regard it as the nurse and +tutoress of the Orator we are now delineating. For _here_, a fluency +of expression is confessedly nourished and cultivated; and the easy +construction, and harmonious cadence of our language is more openly +attended to. _Here_, likewise, we both allow and recommend a studious +elegance of diction, and a continued flow of melodious and well-turned +periods;--and _here_, we may labour visibly, and without concealing +our art, to contrast word to word, and to compare similar, and oppose +contrary circumstances, and make several sentences (or parts of a +sentence) conclude alike, and terminate with the same cadence; +--ornaments, which in real pleadings, are to be used more sparingly, and +with less appearance of art. Isocrates, therefore, confesses in his +_Panathenaicus_, that these were beauties which he industriously pursued; +for he composed it not for victory in a suit at law (where such a +confession must have greatly injured his cause) but merely to gratify the +ear. + +"It is recorded that the first persons who practised this species of +composition [Footnote: The _composition_ here mentioned consisted of three +parts, The _first_ regarded the structure; that is, the _connection_ of +our words, and required that the last syllable of every preceding, and the +first of every succeeding word should be so aptly united as to produce an +agreeable sound; which was effected by avoiding a collision of vowels or +of inamicable consonants. It likewise required that those words should be +constantly made choice of, whose separate sounds were most harmonious and +most agreeable to the sense. The _second_ part consisted in the use of +particular forms of expression, such as contrasts and antithesises, which +have an appearance of order and regularity in their very texture. The +_third_ and last regarded that species of harmony which results not so +much from the sound, as from the time and quantity of the several +syllables in a sentence. This was called _number_, and sometimes _rhyme_; +and was in fact a kind of _prosaic metre_, which was carefully attended to +by the ancients in every part of a sentence, but more particularly at the +beginning and end of it. In this part they usually included the _period_, +or the rules for determining the length of their sentences. I thought it +necessary to give this short account of their composition, because our +author very frequently alludes to it, before he proceeds to explain it at +large.] were _Thrasymachus_ the Chalcedonian, and _Gorgias_ the Leontine; +and that these were followed by _Theodorus_ the Byzantine, and a number of +others, whom Socrates, in the Phaedrus of Plato, calls [Greek: +logodaidalos] _Speech-wrights_; many of whole discourses are sufficiently +neat and entertaining; but, being the first attempts of the kind, were too +minute and puerile, and had too poetical an air, and too much colouring. +On this account, the merit of _Herodotus_, and _Thucydides_ is the more +conspicuous: for though they lived at the time we are speaking of, they +carefully avoided those studied decorations, or rather futilities. The +former rolls along like a deep, still river without any rocks or shoals to +interrupt it's course; and the other describes wars and battles, as if he +was founding a charge on the trumpet; so that history (to use the words +of _Theophrastus_) caught the first alarm from these, and began to express +herself with greater dignity and spirit. + +"After these came _Socrates_, whom I have always recommended as the most +accomplished writer we have in the way I am speaking of; though sometimes, +my Brutus, you have objected to it with a great deal of pleasantry and +erudition. But when you are better informed for what it is I recommend +him, you will then think of him perhaps as favourably as I do. +Thrasymachus and Gorgias (who are said to have been the first who +cultivated the art of prosaic harmony) appeared to him to be too minutely +exact; and Thucydides, he thought, was as much too loose and rugged, and +not sufficiently smooth, and full-mouthed; and from hence he took the hint +to give a scope to his sentences by a more copious and unconfined flow of +language, and to fill up their breaks and intervals with the softer and +more agreeable numbers. By teaching this to the most celebrated Speakers, +and Composers of the age, his house came at last to be honoured as the +_School of Eloquence_. Wherefore as I bore the censure of others with +indifference, when I had the good fortune to be applauded by Cato; thus +Isocrates, with the approbation of Plato, may slight the judgment of +inferior critics. For in the last page of the Phaedrus, we find _Socrates_ +thus expressing himself;--'Now, indeed, my dear Phaedrus,' said he, +'Isocrates is but a youth: but I will discover to you what I think of +him.'--'And what is that?' replied the other.--'He appears to me,' said +the Philosopher, 'to have too elevated a genius to be placed on a level +with the arid speeches of Lysias. Besides, he has a stronger turn for +virtue; so that I shall not wonder, as he advances in years, if in the +species of Eloquence to which he now applies himself, he should exceed +all, who have hitherto pursued it, like so many infants. Or, if this +should not content him, I shall not be astonished to behold him with a +godlike ardour pursuing higher and more important studies; for I plainly +see that he has a natural bent to Philosophy!'" + +Thus Socrates presaged of him when he was but a youth. But Plato recorded +this eulogium when he was older; and he recorded it, though he was one of +his equals and cotemporaries, and a professed enemy to the whole tribe of +Rhetoricians! _Him_ he admires, and _him_ alone! So that such who despise +Isocrates, must suffer me to err with Socrates and Plato. + +The manner of speaking, then, which is observed in the _demonstrative_ or +ornamental species of Eloquence, and which I have before remarked, was +peculiar to the Sophists, is sweet, harmonious, and flowing, full of +pointed sentiments, and arrayed in all the brilliance of language. But it +is much fitter for the parade than the field; and being, therefore, +consigned to the Palaestra, and the schools, has been long banished from +the Forum. As Eloquence, however, after she had been fed and nourished +with this, acquires a fresher complexion, and a firmer constitution; it +would not be amiss, I thought, to trace our Orator from his very _cradle_. + +But these things are only for shew and amusement: whereas it is our +business to take the field in earnest, and prepare for action. As there +are three particulars, then, to be attended to by an Orator,--viz. _what_ +he is to say, in _what order_, and _how_; we shall consider what is most +excellent in each; but after a different manner from what is followed in +delivering a system of the Art. For we are not to furnish a set of +precepts (this not being the province we have undertaken) but to exhibit a +portrait of Eloquence in her full perfection: neither is it our business +to explain the methods by which we may acquire it, but only to shew what +opinion we ought to form of it. + +The two first articles are to be lightly touched over; for they have not +so much a remarkable as a necessary share in forming the character of a +compleat Orator, and are likewise common to _his_ with many other +professions;--and though, to invent, and judge with accuracy, what is +proper to be said, are important accomplishments, and the same as the soul +is to the body, yet they rather belong to _prudence_ than to Eloquence. In +what cause, however, can _prudence_ be idle? Our Orator, therefore, who is +to be all perfection, should be thoroughly acquainted with the sources of +argument and proof. For as every thing which can become the subject of +debate, must rest upon one or another of these particulars, viz.--whether +a fact has been really committed, or what name it ought to bear in law, or +whether it is agreeable or contrary to justice; and as the reality of a +fact must be determined by force of evidence, the true name of it by it's +definition, and the quality of it by the received notions of right and +wrong;--an Orator (not an ordinary one, but the finished Speaker we are +describing) will always turn off the controversy, as much as possible, +from particular persons and times, (for we may argue more at liberty +concerning general topics than about circumstances) in such a manner that +what is proved to be true _universally_, may necessarily appear to be so +in all _subordinate_ cases. The point in debate being thus abstracted from +particular persons and times, and brought to rest upon general principles, +is called a _thesis_. In _this_ the famous Aristotle carefully practised +his scholars;--not to argue with the formal precision of Philosophers, but +to canvass a point handsomely and readily on both sides, and with all the +copiousness so much admired in the Rhetoricians: and for this purpose he +delivered a set of _common places_ (for so he calls them) which were to +serve as so many marks or characters for the discovery of arguments, and +from which a discourse might be aptly framed on either side of a question. + +Our Orator then, (for I am not speaking of a mere school-declaimer, or a +noisy ranter in the Forum, but of a well-accomplished and a finished +Speaker)--our Orator, as there is such a copious variety of common-places, +will examine them all, and employ those which suit his purpose in as +general and indefinite a manner as his cause will permit, and carefully +trace and investigate them to their inmost sources. But he will use the +plenty before him with discretion, and weighing every thing with the +utmost accuracy, select what is best: for the stress of an argument does +not always, and in every cause, depend upon similar topics. He will, +therefore, exercise his judgment; and not only discover what _may_ be +said, but thoroughly examine the _force_ of it. For nothing is more +fertile than the powers of genius, and especially those which have been +blessed with the cultivation of science. But as a rich and fruitful soil +not only produces corn in abundance, but also weeds to choak and smother +it; so from the common-places we are speaking of, many arguments will +arise, which are either trivial, or foreign to our purpose, or entirely +useless. An Orator, therefore, should carefully examine each, that he may +be able to select with propriety. Otherwise, how can he enlarge upon those +which are most pertinent, and dwell upon such as more particularly affect +his cause? Or how can he soften a harsh circumstance, or conceal, and (if +possible) entirely suppress what would be deemed unanswerable, or steal +off the attention of the hearer to a different topic? Or how alledge +another argument in reply, which shall be still more plausible than that +of his antagonist? + +But after he has thus _invented_ what is proper to be said, with what +accuracy must he _methodize_ it? For this is the second of the three +articles above-mentioned. Accordingly, he will give the portal of his +Harangue a graceful appearance, and make the entrance to his cause as neat +and splendid as the importance of it will permit. When he has thus made +himself master of the hearer's good wishes at the first onset, he will +endeavour to invalidate what makes against him; and having, by this means, +cleared his way, his strongest arguments will appear some of them in the +front, and others at the close of his discourse; and as to those of more +trifling consequence, he will occasionally introduce [Footnote: In the +Original it is _inculcabit_, he will _tread them in_, (like the sand or +loose dust in a new pavement) to support and strengthen the whole.] them +here and there, where he judges them likely to be most serviceable. Thus, +then, we have given a cursory view of what he ought to be, in the two +first departments of Oratory. But, as we before observed, these, though +very important in their consequences, require less art and application. + +After he has thus invented what is proper to be said, and in what order, +the greatest difficulty is still behind;--namely to consider _how_ he is +to say it, and _in what manner_. For the observation of our favourite +_Carneades_ is well-known,--"That _Clitomachus_ had a perpetual sameness +of sentiment, and Charmidas a tiresome uniformity of expression." But if +it is a circumstance of so much moment in Philosophy, _in what manner_ we +express ourselves, where the matter, and not the language, is principally +regarded; what must we think of public debates, which are wholly ruled and +swayed by the powers of Elocution? Accordingly, my Brutus, I am sensible +from your letters, that you mean to inquire what are my notions of a +finished Speaker, not so much with respect to his Invention and +Disposition, as to his talents of _Elocution_:--a severe task! and the +most difficult you could have fixed upon! For as language is ever soft and +yielding, and so amazingly pliable that you may bend and form it at your +pleasure; so different natures and dispositions have given rise to +different kinds of Elocution. Some, for instance, who place the chief +merit of it in it's rapidity, are mightily pleased with a torrent of +words, and a volubility of expression. Others again are better pleased +with regular, and measured intervals, and frequent stops, and pauses. What +can be more opposite? and yet both have their proper excellence. Some also +confine their attention to the smoothness and equability of their periods, +and aim at a style which is perfectly neat and clear: while others affect +a harshness, and severity of diction, and to give a gloomy cast to their +language:--and as we have already observed that some endeavour to be +nervous and majestic, others neat and simple, and some to be smooth and +florid, it necessarily follows that there must be as many different kinds +of Orators, as there are of Eloquence. But as I have already enlarged the +talk you have imposed upon me;--(for though your enquiries related only to +Elocution, I have ventured a few hints on the arts of Invention and +Disposition;)--I shall now treat not only of _Elocution_, but of _action_. +By this means, every part of Oratory will be attended to: for as to +_memory_, which is common to this with many other arts, it is entirely out +of the question. + +The Art of Speaking then, so far as it regards only the _manner_ in which +our thoughts should be expressed, consists in _action_ and _Elocution_; +for action is the Eloquence of the body, and implies the proper management +of our _voice_ and _gesture_. As to the inflexions of the voice, they are +as numerous as the various passions it is capable of exciting. The +finished Orator, therefore, who is the subject of this Essay, in whatever +manner he would appear to be affected himself, and touch the heart of his +hearer, will employ a suitable and corresponding tone of voice:--a topic +which I could willingly enlarge upon, if delivering precepts was any part +of my present design, or of your request. I should likewise have treated +concerning _gesture_, of which the management of the countenance is a +material part: for it is scarcely credible of what great importance it is +to an Orator to recommend himself by these external accomplishments. For +even those who were far from being masters of good language, have many +times, by the sole dignity of their action, reaped the fruits of +Eloquence; while others who had the finest powers of Elocution, have too +often, by the mere awkwardness of their delivery, led people to imagine +that they were scarcely able to express themselves:--so that Demosthenes, +with sufficient reason, assigned the first place, and likewise the second +and third to _pronunciation_. For if Eloquence without this is nothing, +but this, even without Eloquence, has such a wonderful efficacy, it must +be allowed to bear the principal sway in the practice of Speaking. + +If an Orator, then, who is ambitious to win the palm of Eloquence, has any +thing to deliver which is warm and cutting, let his voice be strong and +quick;--if what is calm and gentle, let it be mild and easy;--if what is +grave and sedate, let it be cool and settled;--and if what is mournful and +affecting, let his accents be plaintive and flexible. For the voice may be +raised or depressed, and extended or contracted to an astonishing degree; +thus in Music (for instance) it's three tones, the _mean_, the _acute_, +and the _grave_, may be so managed by art, as to produce a pleasing and an +infinite variety of sounds. Nay, even in Speaking, there may be a +concealed kind of music:--not like the whining epilogue of a Phrygian or a +Carian declaimer, but such as was intended by _Aeschines_, and +_Demosthenes_, when the one upbraids and reproaches the other with the +artificial modulations of his voice. _Demosthenes_, however, says most +upon this head, and often speaks of his accuser as having a sweet and +clear pronunciation. There is another circumstance, which may farther +enforce our attention to the agreeable management of the voice; for Nature +herself, as if she meant to harmonize the speech of man, has placed an +accent on every word, and one accent only, which never lies farther than +the third syllable from the last. Why, therefore, should we hesitate to +follow her example, and to do our best to gratify the ear? A good voice, +indeed, though a desirable accomplishment, is not in our power to +acquire:--but to exercise, and improve it, is certainly in the power of +every person. + +The Orator, then, who means to be the prince of his profession, will +change and vary his voice with the most delicate propriety; and by +sometimes raising, and sometimes depressing it, pursue it gradually +through all it's different tones, and modulations. He will likewise +regulate his _gesture_, so as to avoid even a single motion which is +either superfluous or impertinent. His posture will be erect and manly:-- +he will move from his ground but seldom, and not even then too +precipitately; and his advances will be few and moderate. He will practise +no languishing, no effeminate airs of the head, no finical playing of the +fingers, no measured movement of the joints. The chief part of his gesture +will consist in the firm and graceful sway of his body, and in extending +his arm when his arguments are pressing, and drawing it again when his +vehemence abates. But as to the _countenance_, which next to the voice has +the greatest efficacy, what dignity and gracefulness is it not capable of +supporting! and when you have been careful that it may neither be +unmeaning, nor ostentatious, there is still much to be left to the +expression of the _eyes_. For if the countenance is the _image_ of the +mind, the eyes are it's _interpreters_, whose degree of pleasantry or +sadness must be proportioned to the importance of our subject. + +But we are to exhibit the portrait of a finished Orator, whose chief +excellence must be supposed, from his very name, to consist in his +_Elocution_; while his other qualifications (though equally complete) are +less conspicuous. For a mere inventor, a mere digester, or a mere actor, +are titles never made use of to comprize the whole character; but an +Orator derives his name, both in Greek and Latin, from the single talent +of Elocution. As to his other qualifications, every man of sense may claim +a share of them: but the full powers of language are exerted by himself +alone. Some of the philosophers, indeed, have expressed themselves in a +very handsome manner: for _Theophrastus_ derived his name from the +divinity of his style; _Aristotle_ rivalled the glory of _Isocrates_; and +the Muses themselves are said to have spoken from the lips of _Xenophon_; +and, to say no more, the great _Plato_ is acknowledged in majesty and +sweetness to have far exceeded all who ever wrote or spoke. But their +language has neither the nerves nor the sting which is required in the +Orator's, when he harangues the crowded Forum. They speak only to the +learned, whose passions they rather choose to compose than disturb; and +they discourse about matters of calm and untumultuous speculation, merely +as teachers, and not like eager antagonists: though even _here_, when they +endeavour to amuse and delight us, they are thought by some to exceed the +limits of their province. It will be easy, therefore, to distinguish this +species of Elocution from the Eloquence we are attempting to delineate. +For the language of philosophy is gentle and composed, and entirely +calculated for the shady walks of the Academy;--not armed with those +forcible sentiments, and rapid turns of expression, which are suited to +move the populace, nor measured by exact numbers and regular periods, but +easy, free, and unconfined. It has nothing resentful belonging to it, +nothing invidious, nothing fierce and flaming, nothing exaggerated, +nothing marvellous, nothing artful and designing; but resembles a chaste, +a bashful, and an unpolluted virgin. We may, therefore, consider it as a +kind of polite conversation, rather than a species of Oratory. + +As to the _Sophists_, whom I have already mentioned, the resemblance ought +to be more accurately distinguished: for they industriously pursue the +same flowers which are used by an Orator in the Forum. But they differ in +this,--that, as their principal aim is not to disturb the passions, but +rather to allay them, and not so much to persuade as to please,--they +attempt the latter more openly, and more frequently than we do. They seek +for agreeable sentiments, rather than probable ones; they use more +frequent digressions, intermingle tales and fables, employ more shewy +metaphors, and work them into their discourses with as much fancy and +variety as a painter does his colours; and they abound in contrasts and +antitheses, and in similar and corresponding cadences. + +Nearly allied to these is _History_, which conducts her narratives with +elegance and ease, and now and then sketches out a country, or a battle. +She likewise diversifies her story with short speeches, and florid +harangues: but in these, only neatness and fluency is to be expected, and +not the vehemence and poignant severity of an Orator [Footnote: In the +Original it is,--_sed in his tracta quaedam et fluens expetitur, nan haec +contorta, et acris Oratorio_; upon which Dr. Ward has made the following +remark:--"Sentences, with respect to their form or composition, are +distinguished into two sorts, called by Cicero _tracta_, strait or direct, +and _contorta_, bent or winding. By the former are meant such, whose +members follow each other in a direct order, without any inflexion; and by +the latter, those which strictly speaking are called periods."]. + +There is much the same difference between Eloquence and _Poetry_; for the +Poets likewise have started the question, What it is which distinguishes +them from the Orators? It was formerly supposed to be their _number_ and +_metre_: but numbers are now as familiar to the Orator, as to the Poet; +for whatever falls under the regulation of the ear, though it bears no +resemblance to verse (which in Oratory would be a capital fault) is called +_number_, and by the Greeks _rhyme_. [Footnote: [Greek: Ruthmos]] In the +opinion of some, therefore, the style of _Plato_ and _Democritus_, on +account of it's majestic flow, and the splendor of it's ornaments, though +it is far from being verse, has a nearer resemblance to poetry than the +style of the Comedians, who, excepting their metre, have nothing different +from the style of conversation. Metre, however, is far from being the +principal merit of the Poets; though it is certainly no small +recommendation, that, while they pursue all the beauties of Eloquence, the +harmony of their numbers is far more regular and exact. But, though the +language of Poetry is equally grand and ornamental with that of an Orator, +she undoubtedly takes greater liberties both in making and compounding +word; and frequently administers to the pleasure of her hearers, more by +the pomp and lustre of her expressions, than by the weight and dignity of +her sentiments. Though judgment, therefore, and a proper choice of words, +is alike common to both, yet their difference in other respects is +sufficiently discernible: but if it affords any matter of doubt (as to +some, perhaps, it may) the discussion of it is no way necessary to our +present purpose. + +We are, therefore, to delineate the Orator who differs equally from the +Eloquence of the Philosopher, the Sophist, the Historian, and the Poet. +He, then, is truly eloquent, (for after _him_ we must search, by the +direction of Antonius) who in the Forum, and in public debates, can so +speak, as to _prove_, _delight_, and _force the passions_. To _prove_, is +a matter of necessity:--to _delight_, is indispensably requisite to engage +the attention:--and to _force the passions_, is the surest means of +victory; for this contributes more effectually than both the others to get +a cause decided to our wishes. But as the duties of an Orator, so the +kinds of Elocution are three. The neat and accurate is used in _proving;_ +the moderately florid in _delighting_ apd the vehement and impetuous in +_forcing_ _the passions,_ in which alone all the power of Eloquence +consists. Great, therefore, must be the judgment, and wonderful the +talents of the man, who can properly conduct, and, as it were, temper this +threefold variety: for he will at once determine what is suitable to every +case; and be always able to express himself as the nature of his subject +may require. + +Discretion, therefore, is the basis of Eloquence, as well as of every +other accomplishment. For, as in the conduct of life, so in the practice +of Speaking, nothing is more difficult than to maintain a propriety of +character. This is called by the Greeks [Greek: to prepon], _the +becoming,_ but we shall call it _decorum;_--a subject which has been +excellently and very copiously canvassed, and richly merits our attention. +An unacquaintance with this has been the source of innumerable errors, not +only in the business of life, but in Poetry and Eloquence. An Orator, +therefore, should examine what is becoming, as well in the turn of his +language, as in that of his sentiments. For not every condition, not every +rank, not every character, nor every age, or place, or time, nor every +hearer is to be treated with the same invariable train either of sentiment +or expression:--but we should always consider in every part of a public +Oration, as well as of life, what will be most becoming,--a circumstance +which naturally depends on the nature of the subject, and the respective +characters of the Speaker and Hearer. Philosophers, therefore, have +carefully discussed this extensive and important topic in the doctrine of +Ethics, (though not, indeed, when they treat of right and wrong, because +those are invariably the fame:)--nor is it less attended to by the Critics +in their poetical Essays, or by men of Eloquence in every species and +every part of their public debates. For what would be more out of +character, than to use a lofty style, and ransack every topic of argument, +when we are speaking only of a petty trespass in some inferior court? Or, +on the other hand, to descend to any puerile subtilties, and speak with +the indifference and simplicity of a frivolous narrative, when we are +lashing treason and rebellion? + +_Here_, the indecorum would arise from the very nature and quality of the +subject: but others are equally guilty of it, by not adapting their +discourse either to their own characters, or to that of their hearers, +and, in some cafes, to that of their antagonists; and they extend the +fault not only to their sentiments, but to the turn of their expression. +It is true, indeed, that the force of language is a mere nothing, when it +is not supported by a proper solidity of sentiment: but it is also equally +true that the same thing will be either approved or rejected, according as +it is this or that way expressed. In all cases, therefore, we cannot be +too careful in examining the _how far_? for though every thing has it's +proper mean, yet an _excess_ is always more offensive and disgusting than +a proportionable _defect_. _Apelles_, therefore, justly censures some of +his cotemporary artists, because they never knew when they had performed +enough. + +This, my Brutus, as your long acquaintance with it must necessarily inform +you, is a copious subject, and would require an extensive volume to +discuss. But it is sufficient to our present purpose to observe, that in +all our words and actions, as well the smallest as the greatest, there is +a something which will appear either becoming or unbecoming, and that +almost every one is sensible of it's confluence. But what is becoming, and +what _ought to be_, are very different considerations, and belong to a +different topic:--for the _ought to be_ points out the perfection of duty, +which should be attended to upon all occasions, and by all persons: but +the _becoming_ denotes that which is merely _proper_, and suited to time +and character, which is of great importance not only in our actions and +language, but in our very looks, our gesture, and our walk; and that which +is contrary to it will always be _unbecoming_, and disagreeable. If the +Poet, therefore, carefully guards against any impropriety of the kind, and +is always condemned as guilty of a fault, when he puts the language of a +worthy man into the mouth of a ruffian, or that of a wife man into the +mouth of a fool:--if, moreover, the artist who painted the sacrifice of +_Iphigenia_, [Footnote: Agamemnon, one of the Grecian chiefs, having by +accident slain a deer belonging to Diana, the Goddess was so enraged at +this profanation of her honours, that she kept him wind-bound at Aulis +with the whole fleet. Under this heavy disaster, having recourse to the +Oracle, (their usual refuge in such cases) they were informed that the +only atonement which the angry Goddess would accept, was the sacrifice of +one of the offender's children. Ulysses having, by a stratagem, withdrawn +_Iphigenia_ from her mother for that purpose, the unhappy Virgin was +brought to the altar. But, as the story goes, the Goddess relenting at her +hard fate, substituted a deer in her stead, and conveyed her away to serve +her as a Priestess. It must be farther remarked that _Menelaus_ was the +Virgin's uncle, and Calchas the Priest who was to officiate at this horrid +sacrifice.] could see that _Chalcas_ should appear greatly concerned, +_Ulysses_ still more so, and _Menelaus_ bathed in tears, but that the head +of Agamemnon (the virgin's father) should be covered with his robe, to +intimate a degree of anguish which no pencil could express: lastly, if a +mere actor on the stage is ever cautious to keep up the character he +appears in, what must be done by the Orator? But as this is a matter of +such importance, let him consider at his leisure, what is proper to be +done in particular causes, and in their several parts and divisions:--for +it is sufficiently evident, not only that the different parts of an +Oration, but that entire causes ought to be managed, some in one manner, +and some in another. + +We must now proceed to delineate the form and character of each of the +three species of Eloquence above-mentioned; a great and an arduous talk, +as I have already observed more than once; But we should have considered +the difficulty of the voyage before we embarked: for now we have ventured +to set sail, we must run boldly before the wind, whether we reach our port +or not. + +The first character, then, to be described, is the Orator who, according +to some, is the only one that has any just pretensions to _Atticism_. He +is distinguished by his modest simplicity; and as he imitates the language +of conversation, he differs from those who are strangers to Eloquence, +rather in reality than in appearance. For this reason, those who hear him, +though totally unskilled in the art of Speaking, are apt to persuade +themselves that they can readily discourse in the same manner [Footnote: +There is a pretty remark to the same purpose in the fifteenth number of +_The Guardian_, which, as it may serve to illustrate the observation of +Cicero, I shall beg leave to insert. + +"From what I have advanced, it appears how difficult it is to write +_easily_. But when easy writings fall into the hands of an ordinary +reader, they appear to him so natural and unlaboured, that he immediately +resolves to write, and fancies that all he has to do is to take no pains. +Thus he thinks indeed simply, but the thoughts not being chosen with +judgment, are not beautiful. He, it is true, expresses himself plainly, +but flatly withal. Again, if a man of vivacity takes it into his head to +write this way, what self-denial must he undergo, when bright points of +wit occur to his fancy? How difficult will he find it to reject florid +phrases, and pretty embellishments of style? So true it is, that +simplicity of all things is the hardest to be copied, and case to be +acquired with the greatest labour."];--and the unaffected simplicity of +his language appears very imitable to an ignorant observer; though nothing +will be found less so by him who makes the trial. For, if I may so express +myself, though his veins are not over-stocked with blood, his juices must +be found and good; and though he is not possessed of any extraordinary +strength, he must have a healthy constitution. For this purpose, we must +first release him from the shackles of _number_; for there is (you know) a +kind of _number_ to be observed by an Orator, which we shall treat of in +the sequel:--but this is to be used in a different species of Eloquence, +and to be relinquished in the present. His language, therefore, must be +free and unconfined, but not loose and irregular, that he may appear to +walk at ease, without reeling or tottering. He will not be at the pains to +cement word to word with a scrupulous exactness: for those breaks which +are made by a collision of vowels, have now and then an agreeable effect, +and betray the not unpleasing negligence of a man who is more felicitous +about things than words. But though he is not to labour at a measured +flow, and a masterly arrangement of his words, he must be careful in other +respects. For even these limited and unaspiring talents are not to be +employed carelessly, but with a kind of industrious negligence: for as +some females are most becoming in a dishabille, so this artless kind of +Eloquence has her charms, though she appears in an undress. There is +something in both which renders them agreeable, without striking the eye. +Here, therefore, all the glitter of ornament, like that of jewels and +diamonds, must be laid aside; nor must we apply even the crisping-iron to +adjust the hair. There must be no colouring, no artful washes to heighten +the complexion: but elegance and neatness must be our only aim. Our style +muft be pure, and correct;--we must speak with clearness and perspicuity; +--and be always attentive to appear in character. There is one thing, +however, which must never be omitted, and which is reckoned by +Theophrastus to be one of the chief beauties of composition;--I mean that +sweet and flowing ornament, a plentiful intermixture of lively sentiments, +which seem to result from a natural fund of good sense, and are peculiarly +graceful in the Orator we are now describing. But he will be very moderate +in using the _furniture_ of Eloquence: for (if I may be allowed such an +expression) there is a species of furniture belonging to us, which +consists in the various ornaments of sentiment and language. The ornaments +of language are two-fold; the one sort relates to words as they stand +singly, and the other as they are connected together. A _single_ word (I +speak of those which are _proper_, and in common use) is then said to be +well chosen, when it founds agreeably, and is the best which could have +been taken to express our meaning. Among borrowed and _translatitious_ +[Footnote: Words which are transferred from their primitive meaning to a +metaphorical one.] words, (or those which are not used in their proper +sense) we may reckon the metaphor, the metonymy, and the rest of the +tropes; as also compounded and new-made words, and such as are obsolete +and out of date; but obsolete words should rather be considered as proper +ones, with this only difference, that we seldom make use of them. As to +words in connection, these also may be considered as ornamental, when they +have a certain gracefulness which would be destroyed by changing their +order, though the meaning would still remain the same. For as to the +ornaments of sentiment, which lose nothing of their beauty, by varying the +position of the words,--these, indeed, are very numerous, though only a +few of them are remarkably striking. + +The Orator, then, who is distinguished by the simplicity of his manner, +provided he is correct and elegant, will be sparing in the use of new +words; easy and modest in his metaphors; and very cautious in the use of +words which are antiquated;--and as to the other ornaments of language and +sentiment, here also he will be equally plain and reserved. But in the use +of metaphors, he will, perhaps, take greater liberties; because these are +frequently introduced in conversation, not only by Gentlemen, but even by +rustics, and peasants: for we often hear them say that the vine _shoots +out_ it's buds, that the fields are _thirsty_, the corn _lively_, and the +grain _rich_ and flourishing. Such expressions, indeed, are rather bold: +but the resemblance between the metaphor and the object is either +remarkably obvious; or else, when the latter has no proper name to express +it, the metaphor is so far from appearing to be laboured, that we seem to +use it merely to explain our meaning. This, therefore, is an ornament in +which our artless Orator may indulge himself more freely; but not so +openly as in the more diffusive and lofty species of Eloquence. For that +_indecorum_, which is best understood by comparing it with its opposite +quality, will even here be viable when a metaphor is too conspicuous;--or +when this simple and dispassionate sort of language is interrupted by a +bold ornament, which would have been proper enough in a different kind of +Elocution. + +As to that sort of ornament which regards the position of words, and +embellishes it with those studied graces, which are considered by the +Greeks as so many _attitudes_ of language, and are therefore called +_figures_, (a name which is likewise extended to the flowers of +sentiment;)--the Orator before us, who may justly be regarded as an +_Attic_ Speaker, provided the title is not confined to him, will make use +even of _this_, though with great caution and moderation. He will conduct +himself as if he was setting out an entertainment, and while he carefully +avoids a splendid magnificence, he will not only be plain and frugal, but +neat and elegant, and make his choice accordingly. For there is a kind of +genteel parsimony, by which his character is distinguished from that of +others. He will, therefore, avoid the more conspicuous ornaments above- +mentioned, such as the contracting word to word,--the concluding the +several members of a sentence with the same cadence, or confining them to +the same measure,--and all the studied prettiness which are formed by the +change of a letter, or an artful play of found;--that, if possible, there +may not be the slightest appearance, or even suspicion, of a design to +please. As to those repetitions which require an earnest and forcible +exertion of the voice, these also would be equally out of character in +this lower species of Eloquence; but he may use the other ornaments of +Elocution at his pleasure, provided he checks and interrupts the flow of +his language, and softens it off by using familiar expressions, and such +metaphors as are plain and obvious. Nay, even as to the figures of +sentiment, he may sometimes indulge himself in those which are not +remarkably bold and striking. Thus, for instance, we must not allow him to +introduce the Republic as speaking, nor to fetch up the dead from their +graves, nor to crowd a multitude of ideas into the same period. These +efforts demand a firmer constitution, and should be neither required nor +expected from the simple Orator before us; for as in his voice, so +likewise in his language, he should be ever easy and composed. But there +are many of the nobler ornaments which may be admitted even here, though +always in a plainer and more artless habit than in any other species of +Eloquence; for such is the character we have assigned him. His gesture +also will be neither pompous, nor theatrical, but consist in a moderate +and easy sway of the body, and derive much of it's efficacy from the +countenance,--not a stiff and affected countenance, but such a one as +handsomely corresponds with his sentiments. + +This kind of Oratory will likewise be frequently enlivened by those turns +of wit and pleasantry, which in Speaking have a much greater effect than +is imagined. There are two sorts of them; the one consisting in smart +sayings and quick repartees, and the other in what is called _humour_. Our +Orator will make use of both;--of the latter in his narratives, to make +them lively and entertaining;--and of the other, either in giving or +retorting a stroke of ridicule, of which there are several kinds; but at +present it is not our business to specify them. It will not be amiss, +however, to observe by way of caution, that the powers of _ridicule_ are +not to be employed too often, lest we sink into scurrility;--nor in loose +and indecent language, lest we degenerate into wantonness and buffoonery; +--nor with the least degree of petulance and abuse, lest we appear +audacious and ill-bred;--nor levelled against the unfortunate, lest we +incur the censure of inhumanity;--nor against atrocious crimes, lest we +raise a laugh where we ought to excite abhorrence;--nor, in the last +place, should they be used unseasonably, or when the characters either of +the Speaker, or the Hearer, and the circumstances of time and place forbid +it;--otherwise we should grossly fail in that decorum of which we have +already said so much. We should likewise avoid all affected witticisms, +which appear not to be thrown out occasionally, but to be dragged from the +closet; for such are generally cold and insipid. It is also improper to +jest upon our friends, or upon persons of quality, or to give any strokes +of wit which may appear ill-natured, or malicious. We should aim only at +our enemies; and even at these, not upon every occasion, or without any +distinction of character, or with the same invariable turn of ridicule. +Under these restrictions our artless Orator will play off his wit and +humour, as I have never seen it done by any of the modern pretenders to +Atticism, though they cannot deny that this is entirely in the Attic +taste. + +Such, then, is the idea which I have formed of a _simple and an easy +Speaker_, who is likewise a very masterly one, and a genuine Athenian; for +whatever is smart and pertinent is unquestionably _Attic_, though some of +the Attic Speakers were not remarkable for their wit. _Lysias_, indeed, +and _Hyperides_ were sufficiently so; and _Demades_, it is said, was more +so than all the others. Demosthenes, however, is thought by many to have +but little merit of the kind; but to me nothing can be more genteel than +he is; though, perhaps, he was rather smart than humourous. The one +requires a quicker genius, but the other more art and address. + +But there is a second character, which is more diffusive, and somewhat +stronger than the simple and artless, one we have been describing,--though +considerably inferior to that copious and all-commanding Eloquence we +shall notice in the sequel. In this, though there is but a moderate +exertion of the nerves and sinews of Oratory, there is abundance of melody +and sweetness. It is much fuller and richer than the close and accurate +style above-mentioned; but less elevated than the pompous and diffusive. +In _this_ all the ornaments of language may be employed without reserve; +and _here_ the flow of our numbers is ever soft and harmonious. Many of +the Greeks have pursued it with success: but, in my opinion, they must all +yield the palm to _Demetrius Phalereus_, whose Eloquence is ever mild and +placid, and bespangled with a most elegant variety of metaphors and other +tropes, like so many _stars_. By _metaphors_, as I have frequently +observed, I mean expressions which, either for the sake of ornament, or +through the natural poverty of our language, are removed and as it were +_transplanted_ from their proper objects to others, by way of similitude. +As to _tropes_ in general, they are particular forms of expression, in +which the proper name of a thing is supplied by another, which conveys the +same meaning, but is borrowed from its adjuncts or effects: for, though, +in this case, there is a kind of metaphor, (because the word is shifted +from its primary object) yet the remove is performed by _Ennius_ in a +different manner, when he says metaphorically,--"_You bereave the citadel +and the city of their offspring_,"--from what it would have been, if he +had put the citadel alone for the whole state: and thus again, when he +tells us that,--"_rugged Africa was shaken by a dreadful tumult_,"--he +puts Africa for the inhabitants. The Rhetoricians call this an +_Hypallage_, because one word is substituted for another: but the +Grammarians call it a _Metonymy_, because the words are shifted and +interchanged. Aristotle, however, subjoins it to the metaphor, as he +likewise does the _Abuse_ or _Catachresis_; by which, for instance, we say +a _narrow, contracted soul_, instead of a _mean_ one, and thus steal an +expression which has a kindred meaning with the proper one, either for the +sake of ornament or decency. When several metaphors are connected together +in a regular chain, the form of speaking is varied. The Greeks call this +an _Allegory_, which indeed is proper enough if we only attend to the +etymology; but if we mean to refer it to its particular _genus_ or kind, +he has done better who comprehends the whole under the general name of +metaphors. These, however, are frequently used by _Phalereus_, and have a +soft and pleasing effect: but though he abounds in the metaphor, he also +makes use of the other tropes with as much freedom as any writer whatever. + +This species of Eloquence (I mean the _middling_, or temperate) is +likewise embellished with all the brilliant figures of language, and many +of the figures of sentiment. By this, moreover, the most extensive and +refined topics of science are handsomely unfolded, and all the weapons of +argument are employed without violence. But what need have I to say more? +Such Speakers are the common offspring of Philosophy; and were the +nervous, and more striking Orator to keep out of sight, these alone would +fully answer our wishes. For they are masters of a brilliant, a florid, a +picturesque, and a well-wrought Elocution, which is interwoven with all +the beautiful embroidery both of language and sentiment. This character +first streamed from the limpid fountains of the _Sophists_ into the Forum; +but being afterwards despised by the more simple and refined kind of +Speakers, and disdainfully rejected by the nervous and weighty; it was +compelled to subside into the peaceful and unaspiring mediocrity we are +speaking of. + +The _third character_ is the extensive,--the copious,--the nervous,--the +majestic Orator, who possesses the powers of Elocution in their full +extent. _This_ is the man whose enchanting and diffusive language is so +much admired by listening nations, that they have tamely suffered +Eloquence to rule the world;--but an Eloquence whose course is rapid and +sonorous!--an Eloquence which every one gazes at, and admires, and +despairs to equal! This is the Eloquence that bends and sways the +passions!--_this_ the Eloquence that alarms or sooths them at her +pleasure! This is the Eloquence that sometimes tears up all before it like +a whirlwind; and, at other times, steals imperceptibly upon the senses, +and probes to the bottom of the heart!--the Eloquence which ingrafts +opinions that are new, and eradicates the old; but yet is widely different +from the two characters of Speaking before-mentioned. + +He who exerts himself in the simple and accurate character, and speaks +neatly and smartly without aiming any higher!--_he_, by this alone, if +carried to perfection, becomes a great, if not the greatest of Orators; +nor does he walk upon slippery ground, so that if he has but learned to +tread firm, he is in no danger of falling. Also the middle kind of Orator, +who is distinguished by his equability, provided he only draws up his +forces to advantage, fears not the perilous and doubtful hazards of a +public Harangue; and, though sometimes he may not succeed to his wishes, +yet he is never exposed to an absolute defeat; for as he never soars, his +fall must be inconsiderable. But the Orator, whom we regard as the prince +of his profession,--the nervous,--the fierce,--the flaming Orator, if he +is born for this alone, and only practices and applies himself to this, +without tempering his copiousness with the two inferior characters of +Eloquence, is of all others the most contemptible. For the plain and +simple Orator, as speaking acutely and expertly, has an appearance of +wisdom and good-sense; and the middle kind of Orator is sufficiently +recommended by his sweetness:--but the copious and diffusive Speaker, if +he has no other qualification, will scarcely appear to be in his senses. +For he who can say nothing calmly,--nothing gently--nothing methodically, +--nothing clearly, distinctly, or humourously, (though a number of causes +should be so managed throughout, and others in one or more of their +parts:)--he, moreover, who proceeds to amplify and exaggerate without +preparing the attention of his audience, will appear to rave before men of +understanding, and to vapour like a person intoxicated before the sober +and sedate. + +Thus then, my Brutus, we have at last discovered the finished Orator we +are seeking for: but we have caught him in imagination only;--for if I +could have seized him with my hands, not all his Eloquence should persuade +me to release him. We have at length, however, discovered the eloquent +Speaker, whom Antonius never saw.--But who, then, is he?--I will comprize +his character in a few words, and afterwards unfold it more at large.--He, +then, is an Orator indeed! who can speak upon trivial subjects with +simplicity and art, upon weighty ones with energy and pathos, and upon +those of middling import with calmness and moderation. You will tell me, +perhaps, that such a Speaker has never existed. Be it so:--for I am now +discoursing not upon what I _have_ seen, but upon what I could _wish_ to +see; and must therefore recur to that primary semblance or ideal form of +Plato which I have mentioned before, and which, though it cannot be seen +with our bodily eyes, may be comprehended by the powers of imagination. +For I am not seeking after a living Orator, or after any thing which is +mortal and perishing, but after that which confers a right to the title of +_eloquent_; in other words, I am seeking after Eloquence herself, who can +be discerned only by the eye of the mind. + +He then is truly an _Orator_, (I again repeat it,) who can speak upon +trivial subjects with simplicity, upon indifferent ones with moderation, +and upon weighty subjects with energy and pathos. [Footnote: Our Author is +now going to indulge himself in the _Egotism_,--a figure, which, upon many +occasions, he uses as freely as any of the figures of Rhetoric. How the +Reader will relish it, I know not; but it is evident from what follows, +and from another passage of the same kind further on, that Cicero had as +great a veneration for his own talents as any man living. His merit, +however, was so uncommon both as a Statesman, a Philosopher, and an +Orator, and he has obliged posterity with so many useful and amazing +productions of genius, that we ought in gratitude to forgive the vanity of +the _man_. Although he has ornamented the socket in which he has _set_ his +character, with an extravagant (and I had almost said ridiculous) +profusion of self-applause, it must be remembered that the diamond it +contains is a gem of inestimable value.] The cause I pleaded for Caecina +related entirely to the bare letter of the Interdict: here, therefore, I +explained what was intricate by a definition,--spoke in praise of the +Civil Law,--and dissolved the ambiguities which embarrassed the meaning of +the Statute.--In recommending the Manilian Law, I was to blazon the +character of _Pompey_, and therefore indulged myself in all that variety +of ornament which is peculiar to the second species of Eloquence. In the +cause of Rabirius, as the honour of the Republic was at stake, I blazed +forth in every species of amplification. But these characters are +sometimes to be intermingled and diversified. Which of them, therefore, is +not to be met with in my seven Invectives against _Verres_? or in the +cause of _Habitus_? or in that of _Cornelius_? or indeed in most of my +Defences? I would have specified the particular examples, did I not +believe them to be sufficiently known; or, at least, very easy to be +discovered by those who will take the trouble to seek for them. For there +is nothing which can recommend an Orator in the different characters of +speaking, but what has been exemplified in my Orations,--if not to +perfection, yet at least it has been attempted, and faintly delineated. I +have not, indeed, the vanity to think I have arrived at the summit; but I +can easily discern what Eloquence ought to be. For I am not to speak of +myself, but to attend to my subject; and so far am I from admiring my own +productions, that, on the contrary, I am so nice and difficult, as not to +be entirely satisfied with Demosthenes himself, who, though he rises with +superior eminence in every species of Eloquence, does not always fill my +ear;--so eager is it, and so insatiable, as to be ever coveting what is +boundless and immense. But as, by the assistance of _Pammenes_, who is +very fond of that Orator, you made yourself thoroughly acquainted with him +when you was at _Athens_, and to this day scarcely ever part with him from +your hands, and yet frequently condescend to peruse what has been written +by _me_; you must certainly have taken notice that he hath _done_ much, +and that I have _attempted_ much,--that he has been _happy_ enough, and I +_willing_ enough to speak, upon every occasion, as the nature of the +subject required. But he, beyond dispute, was a consummate Orator; for he +not only succeeded several eminent Speakers, but had many such for his +cotemporaries:--and I also, if I could have reached the perfection I aimed +at, should have made no despicable figure in a city, where (according to +Antonius) the voice of genuine Eloquence was never heard. + +But if to Antonius neither Crassus, nor even himself, appeared to be +_eloquent_, we may presume that neither Cotta, Sulpicius, nor Hortensius +would have succeeded any better. For _Cotta_ had no expansion, _Sulpicius_ +no temper, and _Hortensius_ too little dignity. But the two former (I mean +Crassus and Antonius) had a capacity which was better adapted to every +species of Oratory. I had, therefore, to address myself to the ears of a +city which had never been filled by that multifarious and extensive +Eloquence we are discoursing of; and I first allured them (let me have +been what you please, or what ever were my talents) to an incredible +desire of hearing the finished Speaker who is the subject of the present +Essay. For with what acclamations did I deliver that passage in my youth +concerning the punishment of parricides [Footnote: Those unnatural and +infamous wretches, among the Romans, were sown into a leathern sack, and +thus thrown into the sea; to intimate that they were unworthy of having +the lead communication with the common elements of water, earth, and +air.], though I was afterwards sensible it was too warm and extravagant? +--"What is so common, said I, as air to the living, earth to the dead, the +sea to floating corpses, and the shore to those who are caft upon it by +the waves! But these wretches, as long as life remains, so live as not to +breathe the air of heaven;--they so perish, that their limbs are not +suffered to touch the earth;--they are so tossed to and fro' by the waves, +as never to be warned by them;--and when they are cast on the shore, their +dead, carcases cannot rest upon the surface of the rocks!" All this, as +coming from a youth, was much applauded, not for it's ripeness and +solidity, but for the hopes it gave the Public of my future improvement. +From the same capacity came those riper expressions,--"She was the spouse +of her son-in-law, the step-mother of her own offspring? and the mistress +of her daughter's husband [Footnote: This passage occurs in the peroration +of his Defence of Cluentius]." + +But I did not always indulge myself in this excessive ardour of +expression, or speak every thing in the same manner: for even that +youthful redundance which was so visible in the defence of _Roscius_, had +many passages which were plain and simple, and some which were, tolerably +humourous. But the Orations in defence of _Habitus_, and _Cornelius_, and +indeed many others; (for no single Orator, even among the peaceful and +speculative Athenians, has composed such a number as I have;)--these, I +say, have all that variety which I so much approve. For have _Homer_ and +_Ennius_, and the rest of the Poets, but especially the tragic writers, +not expressed themselves at all times with the same elevation, but +frequently varied their manner, and sometimes lowered it to the style of +conversation; and shall I oblige myself never to descend from that highest +energy of language? Bit why do I mention the Poets whose talents are +divine! The very actors on the stage, who have most excelled in their +profession, have not only succeeded in very different characters, though +still in the same province; but a comedian has often acted tragedies, and +a tragedian comedies so as to give us universal satisfaction. Wherefore, +then, should not _I_ also exert my efforts? But when I say _myself_, my +worthy Brutus I mean _you_: for as to _me_, I have already done all, I was +capable of doing. Would _you_, then, plead every cause in the same manner? +Or is there any sort of causes which your genius would decline? Or even in +the same cause, would you always express yourself in the same strain, and +without any variety? Your favourite _Demosthenes_, whose brazen statue I +lately beheld among your own, and your family images, when I had the +pleasure to visit you at Tusculanum,--Demosthenes, I say, was nothing +inferior to _Lysias_ in simplicity; to _Hyperides_ in smartness and +poignancy, or to _Aeschines_ in the smoothness and splendor of his +language. There are many of his Orations which are entirely of the close +and simple character, as that against _Lepsines_; many which are all +nervous, and striking, as those against _Philip_; and many which are of a +mixed character, as that against _Aeschines_, concerning the false +embassy, and another against the same person in defence of _Ctesiphon_. At +other times he strikes into the _mean_ at his pleasure, and quitting the +nervous character, descends to this with all the ease imaginable. But he +raises the acclamations of his audience, and his Oratory is then most +weighty and powerful, when he applies himself to the _nervous_. + +But as our enquiries relate to the art, and not to the artist, let us +leave _him_ for the present, and consider the nature and the properties of +the object before us,--that is, of _Eloquence_. We must keep in mind, +however, what I have already hinted,--that we are not required to deliver +a system of precepts, but to write as judges and critics, rather than +teachers. But I have expatiated so largely upon the subject, because I +foresee that you (who are, indeed, much better versed in it, than I who +pretend to inform you) will not be my only reader; but that my little +essay, though not much perhaps to my credit, will be made public, and with +your name prefixed to it. + +I am of opinion, therefore, that a finished Orator should not only possess +the talent (which, indeed, is peculiar, to himself) of speaking copiously +and diffusively: but that he should also borrow the assistance of it's +nearest neighbour, the art of Logic. For though public speaking is one +thing, and disputing another; and though there is a visible difference +between a private controversy, and a public Harangue; yet both the one and +the other come under the notion of reasoning. But mere discourse and +argument belongs to the Logician, and the art of Speaking gracefully and +ornamentally is the prerogative of the Orator. _Zeno_, the father of the +_Stoics_, used to illustrate the difference between the two by holding up +his hand;--for when he clenched his fingers, and presented a close fist,-- +"_that_," he said, "was an emblem of Logic:"--but when he spread them out +again, and displayed his open hand,--"this," said he, "resembles +Eloquence." But Aristotle observed before him, in the introduction to his +Rhetoric, that it is an art which has a near resemblance to that of +Logic;--and that the only difference between them is, that the method of +reasoning in the former is more diffusive, and in the latter more close +and contracted. + +I, therefore, advise that our finished Orator make himself master of every +thing in the art of Logic, which is applicable to his profession:--an art +(as your thorough knowledge of it has already informed you) which is +taught after two methods. For Aristotle himself has delivered a variety of +precepts concerning the art of Reasoning:--and besides these, the +_Dialecticians_ (as they are called) have produced many intricate and +thorny speculations of their own. I am, therefore, of opinion, that he who +is ambitious to be applauded for his Eloquence, should not be wholly +unacquainted with this branch of Erudition; but that he ought (at least) +to be properly instructed either in the old method, or in that of +_Chrysippus_. In the first place, he should understand the force, the +extension, and the different species of words as they stand singly, or +connected into sentences. He should likewise be acquainted with the +various modes and forms in which any conception of the mind may be +expressed--the methods of distinguishing a true proposition from a false +one;--the different conclusions which result from different premises;--the +true consequences and opposites to any given proposition;--and, if an +argument is embarrassed by ambiguities, how to unravel each of them by an +accurate distinction. These particulars, I say, should be well understood +by an Orator, because they are such as frequently occur: but as they are +naturally rugged and unpleasing, they should be relieved in practice by an +easy brilliance of expression. + +But as in every topic which is discussed by reason and method, we should +first settle what it is we are to discourse upon,--(for unless the parties +in a dispute are agreed about the subject of it, they can neither reason +with propriety, nor bring the argument to an issue;)--it will frequently +be necessary to explain our notions of it, and, when the matter is +intricate, to lay it open by a _definition_;--for a _definition_ is only a +sentence, or explanation, which specifies, in as few words as possible, +the nature of the object we propose to consider. After the _genus_, or +kind, has been sufficiently determined, we must then proceed (you know) to +examine into it's different species, or subordinate parts, that our whole +discourse may be properly distributed among them. Our Orator, then, should +be qualified to make a just definition;--though not in such a close and +contracted form, as in the critical debates of the Academy, but more +explicitly and copiously, and as will be best adapted to the common way of +thinking, and the capacity of the vulgar. He is likewise, as often as +occasion requires, to divide the genus into it's proper species, so as to +be neither defective, nor redundant. But _how_ and _when_ this should be +done, is not our present business to consider: because, as I observed +before, I am not to assume the part of a teacher, but only of a critic and +a judge. + +But he ought to acquaint himself not only with the art of Logic, but with +all the common and most useful branches of Morality. For without a +competent knowledge of these, nothing can be advanced and unfolded with +any spirit and energy, or with becoming dignity and freedom, either +concerning religion,--death,--filial piety,--the love of our country,-- +things good or evil,--the several virtues and vices,--the nature of moral +obligation,--grief or pleasure, and the other emotions of the mind,--or +the various errors and frailties of humanity,--and a variety of important +topics which are often closely connected with forensic causes; though +_here_(it is true) they must be touched upon more slightly and +superficially. I am now speaking of the _materials_ of Eloquence, and not +of the _art_ itself:--for an Orator should always be furnished with a +plentiful stock of sentiments,--(I mean such as may claim the attention of +the learned, as well as of the vulgar)--before he concerns himself about +the language and the manner in which he ought to express himself. + +That he may make a still more respectable and elevated figure (as we have +already observed of _Pericles_) he should not be unacquainted with the +principles of Natural Philosophy. For when he descends, as it were, from +the starry heavens, to the little concerns of humanity, he will both think +and speak with greater dignity and splendor. But after acquainting himself +with those divine and nobler objects of contemplation, I would have him +attend to human concerns. In particular, let him make himself master of +the _Civil Law_, which is of daily, and indeed necessary use in every kind +of causes. For what can be more scandalous, than to undertake the +management of judicial suits and controversies, without a proper knowledge +of the laws, and of the principles of Equity and Jurisprudence? He +should also be well versed in History and the venerable records of +Antiquity, but particularly those of his own country: not neglecting, +however, to peruse the annals of other powerful nations, and illustrious +monarchs;--a toil which has been considerably shortened by our friend +_Atticus_, who (though he has carefully specified the time of every +event, and omitted no transaction of consequence) has comprized the +history of seven hundred years in a single volume. To be unacquainted with +what has passed in the world, before we came into it ourselves, is to be +always children. For what is the age of a single mortal, unless it is +connected, by the aid of History, with the times of our ancestors? +Besides, the relation of past occurrences, and the producing pertinent and +striking examples, is not only very entertaining, but adds a great deal of +dignity and weight to what we say. + +Thus furnished and equipped our Orator may undertake the management of +causes. But, in the first place, he should be well acquainted with their +different kinds. He should know, for instance, that every judicial +controversy must turn either upon a matter of _fact_, or upon the meaning +of some particular expression. As to the former, this must always relate +either to the _reality_ of a fast, the _equity_ of it, or the _name_ it +bears in law. As to forms of expression, these may become the subject of +controversy, when they are either _ambiguous_, or _contradictory_. For +when the _spirit_ of a law appears to be at variance with the _letter_ of +it, this must cause an ambiguity which commonly arises from some of the +preceding terms; so that in this case (for such is the nature of an +ambiguity) the law will appear to have a double meaning. + +As the kinds of causes are so few, the rules for the invention of +arguments must be few also. The topics, or common places from which those +arguments are derived, are twofold,--the one _inherent_ in the subject, +and the other _assumptive_. A skilful management of the former contributes +most to, give weight to a discourse, and strike the attention of the +hearer: because they are easy, and familiar to the understanding. + +What farther remains (within the province of the Art) but that we should +begin our discourses so as to conciliate the hearer's good-will, or raise +his expectation, or prepare him to receive what follows?--to state the +case before us so concisely, and yet so plausibly and clearly, as that the +substance of it may be easily comprehended?--to support our own proofs, +and refute those of our antagonist, not in a confused and disorderly +manner, but so that every inference may be fairly deducible from the +premises?--and, in the last place, to conclude the whole with a peroration +either to inflame or allay the passions of the audience? How each of these +parts should be conducted is a subject too intricate and extensive for our +present consideration: for they are not always to be managed in the same +manner. + +But as I am not seeking a pupil to instruct, but an Orator who is to be +the model of his profession, _he_ must have the preference who can always +discern what is proper and becoming. For Eloquence should, above all, +things, have that kind of discretion which makes her a _perfect mistress +of time and character_: because we are not to speak upon every occasion, +or before every audience, or against every opponent, or in defence of +every client, and to every Judge, in the same invariable manner. He, +therefore, is the man of genuine Eloquence, who can adapt his language to +what is most suitable to each. By doing this, he will be sure to say every +thing as it ought to be said. He will neither speak drily upon copious +subjects, nor without dignity and spirit upon things of importance; but +his language will always be proportioned, and equal to his subject. His +introduction will be modest,--not flaming with all the glare of +expression, but composed of quick and lively turns of sentiment, either to +wound the cause of his antagonist, or recommend his own. His narratives +will be clear and plausible,--not delivered with the grave formality of an +Historian, but in the style of polite conversation. If his cause be +slight, the thread of his argument, both in proving and refuting, will be +so likewise, and he will so conduct it in every part, that his language +may rise and expand itself, as the dignity of his subject encreases. But +when his cause will admit a full exertion of the powers of Eloquence, he +will then display himself more openly;--he will then rule, and bend the +passions, and direct them, at his pleasure,--that is, as the nature of his +cause and the circumstances of the time shall require. + +But his powers of ornament will be chiefly exerted upon two occasions; I +mean that striking kind of ornament, from which Eloquence derives her +greatest glory. For though every part of an Oration should have so much +merit, as not to contain a single word but what is either weighty or +elegant; there are two very interesting parts which are susceptible of the +greatest variety of ornament. The one is the discussion of an indefinite +question, or general truth, which by the Greeks (as I have before +observed) is called a _thesis_: and the other is employed in amplifying +and exaggerating, which they call an _auxesis_. Though the latter, indeed, +should diffuse itself more or less through the whole body of a discourse, +it's powers will be more conspicuous in the use and improvement of the +_common places_:--which are so called, as being alike _common_ to a number +of causes, though (in the application of them) they are constantly +appropriated to a single one. But as to the other part, which regards +universal truths, or indefinite questions, this frequently extends through +a whole cause:--for the leading point in debate, or that which the +controversy hinges upon, is always most conveniently discussed when it can +be reduced to a general question, and considered as an universal +proposition:--unless, indeed, when the mere truth of a matter of fact: is +the object: of disquisition: for then the case must be wholly conjectural. +We are not, however, to argue like the _Peripatetics_ (who have a neat +method of controversy which they derive from _Aristotle_) but more +nervously and pressingly; and general sentiments must be so applied to +particular cases, as to leave us room to say many extenuating things in +behalf of the Defendant, and many severe ones against the Plaintiff. But +in heightening or softening a circumstance, the powers of language are +unlimited, and may be properly exerted, even in the middle of an argument, +as often as any thing presents itself which may be either exaggerated, or +extenuated; but, in, controul. + +There are two parts, however, which must not be omitted;--for when these +are judiciously conducted, the sorce of Eloquence will be amazing. The one +is a certain _propriety of manner_ (called the _ethic_ by the Greeks) +which readily adapts itself to different dispositions and humours, and to +every station of life:--and the other is the pathetic, which rouses and +alarms the passions, and may be considered as the _scepter_ of Eloquence. +The former is mild and insinuating, and entirely calculated to conciliate +the good-will of the hearer: but the latter is all energy and fire, and +snatches a cause by open violence;--and when it's course is rapid and +unrestrained, the shock is irresistible. I [footnote: Here follows the +second passage above-referred to, in which there is a long string of +_Egotisms_. But as they furnish some very instructive hints, the Reader +will peruse them with more pleasure than pain] myself have possessed a +tolerable share of this, or, it may be, a trifling one:--but as I always +spoke with uncommon warmth and impetuosity, I have frequently forced my +antagonist to relinquish the field. _Hortensius_, an eminent Speaker, once +declined to answer me, though in defence of an intimate friend. +_Cataline_, a most audacious traitor, being publicly accused by me in the +Senate-house, was struck dumb with shame: and _Curio_, the father, when he +attempted to reply to me in a weighty and important cause which concerned +the honour of his family, sat suddenly down, and complained that I had +_bewitched_ him out of his memory. As to moving the pity of my audience, +it will be unnecessary to mention this. I have frequently attempted it +with good success, and when several of us have pleaded on the same side, +this part of the defence was always resigned to me; in which my supposed +excellence was not owing to the superiority of my genius, but to the real +concern I felt for the distresses of my client. But what in this respect +have been my talents (for I have had no reason to complain of them) may be +easily discovered in my Orations:--though a book, indeed, must lose much +of the spirit which makes a speech delivered in public appear to greater +advantage than when it is perused in the closet. + +But we are to raise not only the pity of our judges, (which I have +endeavoured so passionately, that I once took up an infant in my arms +while I was speaking;--and, at another time, calling up the nobleman in +whose defence I spoke, and holding up a little child of his before the +whole assembly, I filled the Forum with my cries and lamentations:)--but +it is also necessary to rouse the judge's indignation, to appease it, to +excite his jealousy, his benevolence, his contempt, his wonder, his +abhorrence, his love, his desire, his aversion, his hope, his fear, his +joy, and his grief:--in all which variety, you may find examples, in many +accusatory speeches, of rousing the harsher passions; and my Defences will +furnish instances enough of the methods of working upon the gentler. For +there is no method either of alarming or soothing the passions, but what +has been attempted by _me_. I would say I have carried it to perfection, +if I either thought so, or was not afraid that (in this case) even truth +itself might incur the charge of arrogance. But (as I have before +observed) I have been so much transported, not by the force of my genius, +but by the real fervor of my heart, that I was unable to restrain myself: +--and, indeed, no language will inflame the mind of the hearer, unless the +Speaker himself first catches the ardor, and glows with the importance of +his subject. I would refer to examples of my own, unless you had seen them +already; and to those of other Speakers among the Romans, if I could +produce any, or among the Greeks, if I judged it proper. But _Crassus_ +will only furnish us with a few, and those not of the forensic kind:-- +_Antonius, Cotta_, and _Sulpicius_ with none:--and as to _Hortensius_, he +spoke much better than he wrote. We may, therefore, easily judge how +amazing must be the force of a talent, of which we have so few examples:-- +but if we are resolved to seek for them, we must have recourse to +_Demosthenes_, in whom we find almost a continued succession of them, in +that part of his Oration for _Ctesiphon_, where he enlarges on his own +actions, his measures, and his good services to the State, For that +Oration, I must own, approaches so near to the primary form or semblance +of Eloquence which exists in my mind, that a more complete and exalted +pattern is scarcely desirable. But still, there will remain a general +model or character, the true nature and excellence of which may be easily +collected from the hints I have already offered. + +We have slightly touched upon the ornaments +of language, both in single words, and in words as they stand connected +with each other;--in which our Orator will so indulge himself, that not a +single expression may escape him, but what is either elegant or weighty. +But he will most abound in the _metaphor_; which, by an aptness of +similitude, conveys and transports the mind from object to object, and +hurries it backwards and forwards through a pleasing variety of images;--a +motion which, in its own nature, (as being full of life and action) can +never fail to be highly delightful. As to the other ornaments of language +which regard words as they are connected with each other, an Oration will +derive much of its lustre from these. They are like the decorations in the +Theatre, or the Forum, which not only embellish, but surprize. [Footnote: +In the following Abstract of the Figures of _Language_ and _Sentiment_, I +have often paraphrased upon my author, to make him intelligible to the +English reader;--a liberty which I have likewise taken in several other +places, where I judged it necessary.] For such also is the effect of the +various _figures_ or decorations of language;--such as the doubling or +repetition of the same word;--the repeating it with a slight variation; +--the beginning or concluding several sentences in the same manner, or +both at once;--the making a word, which concludes a preceding sentence, to +begin the following;--the concluding a sentence with the same expression +which began it;--the repeating the same word with a different meaning; +--the using several corresponding words in the same case, or with the same +termination;--the contrasting opposite expressions;--the using words whose +meaning rises in gradation;--the leaving out the conjunctive particles to +shew our earnestness;--the passing by, or suddenly dropping a circumstance +we were going to mention, and assigning a reason for so doing; +--[Footnote: We have an instance of this, considered as a figure of +language, in the following line of Virgil; + Quos ego--, sed praestat motos componere fluctus. + Aeneid. I. + Whom I--, but let me still the raging waves. +This may likewise serve as an example of the figure which is next +mentioned.] the pretending to correct or reprove ourselves, that we may +seem to speak without artifice or partiality;--the breaking out into a +sudden exclamation, to express our wonder, our abhorrence, or our grief;-- +and the using the same noun in different cases. + +But the figures of _sentiment_ are more weighty and powerful; and there +are some who place the highest merit of _Demosthenes_ in the frequent use +he makes of them. For be his subject what it will, almost all his +sentences have a figurative air: and, indeed, a plentiful intermixture of +this sort of figures is the very life and soul of a popular Eloquence. But +as you are thoroughly acquainted with these, my Brutus, what occasion is +there to explain and exemplify them? The bare mention of them will be +sufficient.--Our Orator, then, will sometimes exhibit an idea in different +points of view, and when he has started a good argument, he will dwell +upon it with an honest exultation;--he will extenuate what is +unfavourable, and have frequent recourse to raillery;--he will sometimes +deviate from his plan, and seem to alter his first purpose:--he will +inform his audience beforehand, what are the principal points upon which +he intends to rest his cause;--he will collect and point out the force of +the arguments he has already discussed; he will check an ardent +expression, or boldly reiterate what he has said;--he will close a lively +paragraph with some weighty and convincing sentiment;--he will press upon +his adversary by repeated interrogations;--he will reason with himself, +and answer questions of his own proposing;--he will throw out expressions +which he designs to be otherwise understood than they seem to mean;--he +will pretend to doubt what is most proper to be said, and in what order;-- +he will divide an action, &c. into its several parts and circumstances, to +render it more striking;--he will pretend to pass over and relinquish a +circumstance which might have been urged to advantage;--he will secure +himself against the known prejudices of his audience;--he will turn the +very circumstance which is alledged against him to the prejudice of his +antagonist;--he will frequently appeal to his hearers, and sometimes to +his opponent;--he will represent the very language and manners of the +persons he is speaking of;--he will introduce irrational and even +inanimate beings, as addressing themselves to his audience;--he will (to +serve some necessary purpose) steal off their attention from the point in +debate;--he will frequently move them to mirth and laughter;--he will +answer every thing which he foresees will be objected;--he will compare +similar incidents,--refer to past examples,--and by way of amplification +assign their distinguishing qualities to opposite characters and +circumstances;--he will check an impertinent plea which may interrupt his +argument;--he will pretend not to mention what he might have urged to good +purpose;--he will caution his hearers against the various artifices and +subterfuges which may be employed to deceive them;--he will sometimes +appear to speak with an honest, but unguarded freedom;--he will avow his +resentment;--he will entreat;--he will earnestly supplicate;--he will +apologize;--he will seem for a moment to forget himself;--he will express +his hearty good wishes for the deserving, and vent his execrations against +notorious villainy;--and now and then he will descend imperceptibly to the +most tender and insinuating familiarities. There are likewise Other +beauties of composition which he will not fail to pursue;--such as brevity +where the subject requires it;--a lively and pathetic description of +important occurrences;--a passionate exaggeration of remarkable +circumstances;--an earnestness of expression which implies more than is +said;--a well-timed variety of humour;--and a happy imitation of different +characters and dispositions. Assisted and adorned by such figures as +these, which are very numerous, the force of Eloquence will appear in its +brightest lustre. But even these, unless they are properly formed and +regulated, by a skilful disposition of their constituent words, will never +attain the merit we require;--a subject which I shall be obliged to treat +of in the sequel, though I am restrained partly by the circumstances +already mentioned, but much more so by the following. For I am sensible +not only that there are some invidious people, to whom every improvement +appears vain and superfluous; but that even those, who are well-wishers to +my reputation, may think it beneath the dignity of a man whose public +services have been so honourably distinguished by the Senate, and the +whole body of the Roman people, to employ my pen so largely upon the art +of Speaking. [Footnote: The long apology which our author is now going to +make for bestowing his time in composing a treatise of Oratory, is in fact +a very artful as well as an elegant digression; to relieve the dryness and +intricacy of the abstract he has just given us of the figures of rhetoric, +and of the subsequent account of the rules of prosaic harmony. He has also +enlivened that account (which is a very long one) in the same manner, by +interspersing it, at convenient distances, with fine examples, agreeable +companions, and short historical digressions to elucidate the subject.] + +If, however, I was to return no other answer to the latter, but that I was +unwilling to deny any thing to the request of Brutus, the apology must be +unexceptionable; because I am only aiming at the satisfaction of an +intimate friend, and a worthy man, who desires nothing of me but what is +just and honourable. + +But was I even to profess (what I wish I was capable of) that I mean to +give the necessary precepts, and point out the road to Eloquence to those +who are desirous to qualify themselves for the Forum, what man of sense +could blame me for it? For who ever doubted that in the decision of +political matters, and in time of peace, Eloquence has always borne the +sway in the Roman state, while Jurisprudence has possessed only the second +post of honour? For whereas the former is a constant source of authority +and reputation, and enables us to defend ourselves and our friends in the +most effectual manner;--the other only furnishes us with formal rules for +indictments, pleas, protests, &c. in conducting which she is frequently +obliged to sue for the assistance of Eloquence;--but if the latter +condescends to oppose her, she is scarcely able to maintain her ground, +and defend her own territories. If therefore to teach the Civil Law has +always been reckoned a very honourable employment, and the houses of the +most eminent men of that profession, have been crowded with disciples; who +can be reasonably censured for exciting our youth to the study of +Eloquence, and furnishing them with all the assistance in his power? If it +is a fault to speak gracefully, let Eloquence be for ever banished from +the state. But if, on the contrary, it reflects an honour, not only upon +the man who possesses it, but upon the country which gave him birth, how +can it be a disgrace to _learn_, what it is so glorious to _know_? Or why +should it not be a credit to _teach_ what it is the highest honour to +have _learned_? + +But, in one case, they will tell me, the practice has been sanctified by +custom, and in the other it has not. This I grant: but We may easily +account for both. As to the gentlemen of the law, it was sufficient to +hear them, when they decided upon such cases as were laid before them in +the course of business;--so that when they taught, they did not set apart +any particular time for that purpose, but the same answers satisfied their +clients and their pupils. On the other hand, as our Speakers of eminence +spent their time, while at home, in examining and digesting their causes, +and while in the Forum in pleading them, and the remainder of it in a +seasonable relaxation, what opportunity had they for teaching and +instructing others? I might venture to add that most of our Orators have +been more distinguishied by their _genius_, than by their _learning_; and +for that reason were much better qualified to be _Speakers_ than +_Teachers_; which it is possible may be the reverse of my case.--"True," +say they; "but teaching is an employment which is far from being +recommended by its dignity." And so indeed it is, if we teach like mere +pedagogues. But if we only direct, encourage, examine, and inform our +pupils; and sometimes accompany them in reading or hearing the +performances of the most eminent Speakers;--if by these means we are able +to contribute to their improvement, what should hinder us from +communicating a few instructions, as opportunity offers? Shall we deem it +an honourable employment, as indeed with us it is, to teach the form of a +legal process, or an excommunication from the rites and privileges of our +religion; and shall it not be equally honourable to teach the methods by +which those privileges may be defended and secured?--"Perhaps it may," +they will reply; "but even those who know scarcely any thing of the law +are ambitious to be thought masters of it; whereas those who are well +furnished with the powers of Eloquence pretend to be wholly unacquainted +with them; because they are sensible that useful knowledge is a valuable +recommendation, whereas an artful tongue is suspected by every one." But +is it possible, then, to exert the powers of Eloquence without discovering +them? Or is an Orator really thought to be no Orator, because he disclaims +the title? Or is it likely that, in a great and noble art, the world will +judge it a scandal to _teach_ what it is the greatest honour to _learn_? +Others, indeed, may have been more reserved; but, for my part, I have +always owned my profession. For how could I do otherwise, when, in my +youth, I left my native land, and crossed the sea, with no other view but +to improve myself in this kind of knowledge; and, when afterwards my house +was crowded with the ablest professors, and my very style betrayed some +traces of a liberal education? Nay, when my own writings were in every +body's hands, with what face could I pretend that I had not studied? Or +what excuse could I have for submitting my abilities to the judgment of +the public, if I had been apprehensive that they would think I had studied +to no purpose? [Footnote: This sentence in the original runs thus;--_Quid +erat cur probarem_ (i.e. scripta nostra), _nisi quod parum fortasse +profeceram_?--"Wherefore did I approve of them," (that is, of my writings, +so far as to make them public) "but because I had," (in my own opinion) +"made a progress, though perhaps a small one, in useful literature?" This, +at least, is the only meaning I am able to affix to it; and I flatter +myself, that the translation I have given of it, will be found to +correspond with the general sense of my author.] But the points we have +already discussed are susceptible of greater dignity and elevation, than +those which remain to be considered. For we are next to treat of the +arrangement of our words; and, indeed, I might have said, of the art of +numbering and measuring our very syllables; which, though it may, in +reality, be a matter of as much consequence as I judge it to be, cannot +however be supposed to have such a striking appearance in precept as in +practice. This, indeed, might be said of every other branch of useful +knowledge; but it is more remarkably true with respect to this. For the +actual growth and improving height of all the sublimer arts, like that of +trees, affords a pleasing prospect; whereas the roots and stems are +scarcely beheld with indifference: and yet the former cannot subsist +without the latter. But whether I am restrained from dissembling the +pleasure I take in the subject, by the honest advice of the Poet, who +says, + + "Blush not to own the art you love to practise." + +or whether this treatise has been extorted from me by the importunity of +my friend, it was proper to obviate the censures to which it will probably +expose me. And yet, even supposing that I am mistaken in my sentiments, +who would shew himself so much of a savage, as to refuse me his indulgence +(now all my forensic employments and public business are at an end) for +not resigning myself to that stupid inactivity which is contrary to my +nature, or to that unavailing sorrow which I do my best to overcome, +rather than devote myself to my favourite studies? These first conducted +me into the Forum and the Senate-House, and they are now the chief +comforts of my retirement. I have, however, applied myself not only to +such speculations as form the subject of the present Essay, but to others +more sublime and interesting; and if I am able to discuss them in a proper +manner, my private studies will be no disparagement to my forensic +employments. + +But it is time to return to our subject.--Our words, then, should be so +disposed that every following one may be aptly connected with the +preceding, so as to make an agreeable sound;--or that the mere form and +_concinnity_ of our language may give our sentences their proper measure +and dimensions;--or, lastly, that our periods may have a numerous and +measured cadence. + +The first thing, then, to be attended to, is the _structure_ of our +language, or the agreeable connection of one word with another; which, +though it certainly requires care, ought not to be practised with a +laborious nicety. For this would be an endless and puerile attempt, and is +justly ridiculed by _Lucilius_, when he introduces _Scaevola_ thus +reflecting upon _Albucius_: + + "As in the checquer'd pavement ev'ry square + Is nicely fitted by the mason's care: + So all thy words are plac'd with curious art, + And ev'ry syllable performs its part." + +But though we are not to be minutely exact in the _structure_ of our +language, a moderate share of practice will habituate us to every thing of +this nature which is necessary. For as the eye in _reading_, so the mind +in _speaking_, will readily discern what ought to follow,--that, in +connecting our words, there may neither be a chasm, nor a disagreeable +harshness. The most lively and interesting sentiments, if they are harshly +expressed, will offend the ear, that delicate and fastidious judge of +rhetorical harmony. This circumstance, therefore, is so carefully attended +to in the Roman language, that there is scarcely a rustic among us who is +not averse to a collision of vowels,--a defect which, in the opinion of +some, was too scrupulously avoided by _Theopompus_, though his master +_Isocrates_ was equally cautious. But _Thucydides_ was not so exact; nor +was Plato, (though a much better writer)--not only in his _Dialogues_, in +which it was necessary to maintain an easy negligence, to resemble the +style of conversation, but in the famous _Panegyric_, in which (according +to the custom of the Athenians) he celebrated the praises of those who +fell in battle, and which was so greatly esteemed, that it is publicly +repeated every year. In that Oration a collision of vowels occurs very +frequently; though _Demosthenes_ generally avoids it as a fault. + +But let the Greeks determine for themselves: we Romans are not allowed to +interrupt the connection of our words. Even the rude and unpolished +Orations of _Cato_ are a proof of this; as are likewise all our poets, +except in particular instances, in which they were obliged to admit a few +breaks, to preserve their metre. Thus we find in _Naevius_, + + "_Vos_ QUI ACCOLITIS _histrum_ FLUVIUM ATQUE ALGIDUM." + +And in another place, + + "_Quam nunquam vobis_ GRAII ATQUE _Barbari_." + +But _Ennius_ admits it only once, when he says, + + "_Scipio invicte_;" + +and likewise I myself in + + "_Hoc motu radiantis_ ETESIAE IN _Vada Ponti_." + +This, however, would seldom be suffered among us, though the Greeks often +commend it as a beauty. + +But why do I speak of a collision of vowels? for, omitting this, we have +frequently _contracted_ our words for the sake of brevity; as in _multi' +modis, vas' argenteis, palm' et crinibus, tecti' fractis_, &c. We have +sometimes also contracted our proper _names_, to give them a smoother +sound: for as we have changed _Duellum_ into _Bellum_, and _duis_ into +_bis_, so _Duellius_, who defeated the Carthagenians at sea, was called +_Bellius_, though all his ancestors were named _Duellii_. We likewise +abbreviate our words, not only for convenience, but to please and gratify +the ear. For how otherwise came _axilla_ to be changed into _ala_, but by +the omission of an unweildy consonant, which the elegant pronunciation of +our language has likewise banished from the words _maxillae, taxillae, +vexillum_, and _paxillum_? + +Upon the same principle, two or more words have been contracted into one, +as _sodes_ for _si audes_, _sis_ for _si vis_, _capsis_ for _cape si vis_, +_ain'_ for _aisne_, _nequire_ for _non quire_, _malle_ for _magis velle_, +and _nolle_ for _non velle_; and we often say _dein'_ and _exin'_ for +_deinde_ and _exinde_. It is equally evident why we never say _cum nobis_, +but _nobiscum_; though we do not scruple to say _cum illis_;--_viz._ +because, in the former case, the union of the consonants _m_ and _n_ would +produce a jarring sound: and we also say _mecum_ and _tecum_, and not _cum +me_ and _cum te_, to correspond with _nobiscum_ and _vobiscum_. But some, +who would correct antiquity rather too late, object to these contractions: +for, instead of _prob_ DEŪM _atque hominum fidem_, they say _Deorum_. They +are not aware, I suppose, that custom has sanctified the licence. The same +Poet, therefore, who, almost without a precedent, has said _patris mei +MEŪM FACTŪM pudet_, instead of _meorum factorum_,--and _textitur exitiūm +examen rapit_ for _exitiorum_, does not choose to say _liberum_, as we +generally do in the expressions _cupidos liberūm_, and _in liberūm loco_, +but, as the literary virtuosos above-mentioned would have it, + + _neque tuum unquam in gremium extollas_ + LIBERORUM _ex te genus_, + +and, + + _namque Aesculapī_ LIBERORUM. + +But the author before quoted says in his Chryses, not only + + _Cives, antiqui amici majorum_ MEŪM, + +which was common enough--, but more harshly still, + + CONSILIŪM, AUGURIŪM, _atque_ EXTŪM _interpretes_; + +and in another place, + + _Postquam_ PRODIGIŪM HORRIFERŪM PORTENTŪM _pavos_. + +a licence which is not customary in all neuters indifferently: for I +should not be so willing to say armūm _judicium_, as _armorum_; though in +the same writer we meet with _nihilne ad te de judicio_ armūm _accidit_? +And yet (as we find it in the public registers) I would venture to say +_fabrūm_, and _procūm_, and not _fabrorum_ and _procorum_. But I would +never say duorum virorum _judicium_, or _trium_ virorum _capitalium_, or +_decem_ virorum _litibus judicandis_. In Accius, however, we meet with + + _Video sepulchra duo_ duorum _corporum_; + +though in another place he says, + + _Mulier una_ duum virum. + +I know, indeed, which is most conformable to the rules of grammar: but yet +I sometimes express myself as the freedom of our language allows me, as +when I say at pleasure, either _prob deum_, or _prob deorum_;--and, at +other times, as I am obliged by custom, as when I say _trium_ virum for +_virorum_, or sestertium nummum for _nummorum_: because in the latter case +the mode of expression is invariable. + +But what shall we say when these humourists forbid us to say _nosse_ and +_judicasse_ for _novisse_ and _judicavisse_; as if we did not know, as +well as themselves, that, in these instances, the verb at full length is +most agreeable to the laws of grammar, though custom has given the +preference to the contracted verb? Terence, therefore, has made use of +both, as when he says, _eho tu cognatum tuum non norās_? and afterwards, + + _Stilphonem, inquam, noveras_? + +Thus also, _fiet_ is a perfect verb, and _fit_ a contracted one; and +accordingly we find in the same Comedian, + + _Quam cara_ SINTQUE _post carendo intelligunt_, + +and + + _Quamque attinendi magni dominatus_ SIENT. + +In the same manner I have no objection to _scripsere alii rem_, though I +am sensible that _scripserunt_ is more grammatical; because I submit with +pleasure to the indulgent laws of custom which delights to gratify the +ear. _Idem campus habet_, says Ennius; and in another place, _in templis +īsdem_; _eisdem_, indeed, would have been more grammatical, but not +sufficiently harmonious; and _iisdem_ would have sounded still worse. + +But we are allowed by custom even to dispense with the rules of etymology +to improve the sweetness of our language; and I would therefore rather +say, _pomeridianas Quadrigas_, than _postmeridianas_; and _mehercule_, +than _mehercules_. For the same reason _non scire_ would now be deemed a +barbarism, becaule _nescire_ has a smoother sound; and we have likewise +substituted _meridiem_ for _medidiem_, because the latter was offensive to +the ear. Even the preposition _ab_, which so frequently occurs in our +compound verbs is preserved entire only in the formality of a Journal, +and, indeed, not always there: in every other sort of language it is +frequently altered. Thus we say _amovit_, _abegit_, and _abstulit_; so +that you can scarcely determine whether the primitive preposition should +be _ab_ or _abs_. We have likewise rejected even _abfugit_, and _abfer_, +and introduced _aufugit_ and _aufer_ in their stead;--thus forming a new +preposition, which is to be found in no other verb but these. _Noti_, +_navi_, and _nari_, have all been words in common use: but when they were +afterwards to be compounded with the preposition _in_, it was thought more +harmonious to say _ignoti_, _ignavi_, and _ignari_, than to adhere +strictly to the rules of etymology. We likewise say _ex usu_, and _e +Republicā_; because, in the former case, the preposition is followed by a +vowel, and, in the latter, it would have sounded harshly without omitting +the consonant; as may also be observed in _exegit, edixit, refecit, +retulit_, and _reddidit_. + +Sometimes the preposition alters or otherwise affects the first letter of +the verb with which it happens to be compounded; as in _subegit, +summutavit_, and _sustutit_. At other times it changes one of the +subsequent letters; as when we say _insipientem_ for _insapientem_, +_iniquum_ for inaequum_, _tricipitem_ for _tricapitem_, and _concisum_ for +_concaesum_: and from hence some have ventured to say _pertisum_ for +_pertaesum_, which custom has never warranted. + +But what can be more delicate than our changing even the natural quantity +of our syllables to humour the ear? Thus in the adjectives _inclytus_, and +_inhumanus_, the first syllable after the preposition is short, whereas +_insanus_ and _infelix_ have it long; and, in general, those words whose +first letters are the same as in _sapiens_ and _felix_, have their first +syllable long in composition, but all others have the same syllable short, +as _composuit, consuevit, concrepuit, confecit_. Examine these liberties +by the strict rules of etymology, and they must certainly be condemned; +but refer them to the decision of the ear, and they will be instantly +approved.--What is the reason? Your ear will inform you they have an +easier sound; and every language must submit to gratify the ear. I myself, +because our ancestors never admitted the aspirate, unless where a syllable +began with a vowel, used to say _pulcros, Cetegos, triumpos_, and +_Cartaginem_: but some time afterwards, though not very soon, when this +grammatical accuracy was wrested from me by the censure of the ear, I +resigned the mode of language to the vulgar, and reserved the theory to +myself. But we still say, without any hesitation, _Orcivios, Matones, +Otones, coepiones, sepulcra, coronas_, and _lacrymas_, because the ear +allows it. _Ennius_ always uses _Burrum_, and never _Pyrrhum_; and the +ancient copies of the same author have + + _Vi patefecerunt BRUGES_, + +not _Phryges_; because the Greek vowel had not then been adopted, though +we now admit both that and the aspirate:--and, in fact, when we had +afterwards occasion to say _Phrygum_ and _Phrygibus_, it was rather absurd +to adopt the Greek letter without adopting their cases, [Footnote: This +passage, as it stands in the original, appears to me unintelligible: I +have therefore taken the liberty to give it a slight alteration.] or at +least not to confine it to the nominative; and yet (in the accusative) we +say _Phryges_, and _Pyrrhum_, to please the ear. Formerly it was esteemed +an elegancy, though it would now be considered as a rusticism, to omit the +_s_ in all words which terminate in _us_, except when they were followed +by a vowel; and the same elision which is so carefully avoided by the +modern Poets, was very far from being reckoned a fault among the ancient: +for they made no scruple to say, + + _Qui est OMNIBU' princeps_, + +not, as we do, OMNIBUS princeps; and, + + _Vitā illā DIGNU' locoque_, + +not _dignus_. + +But if untaught custom has been so ingenious in the formation of agreeable +sounds, what may we not expect from the improvements of art and erudition? +I have, however, been much shorter upon this subject, than I should have +been if I had written upon it professedly: for a comparison of the natural +and customary laws of language would have opened a wide field for +speculation: but I have already enlarged upon it sufficiently, and more, +perhaps, than the nature of my design required. + +To proceed then;--as the choice of proper matter, and of suitable words to +express it, depends upon the judgment of the Speaker, but that of +agreeable sounds, and harmonious numbers, upon the decision of the ear; +and because the former is intended for information, and the latter for +pleasure; it is evident that reason must determine the rules of art in one +case, and mere sensation in the other. For we must either neglect the +gratification of those by whom we wish to be approved, or apply ourselves +to invent the most likely methods to promote it. + +There are two things which contribute to gratify the ear,--agreeable +_sounds_, and harmonious _numbers_. We shall treat of numbers in the +sequel, and at present confine ourselves to _sound_.--Those words, then, +as we have already observed, are to have the preference which sound +agreeably;--not such as are exquisitely melodious, like those of the +Poets, but such as can be found to our purpose in common language.--_Quą +Pontus Helles_ is rather beyond the mark:--but in + + _Auratos aries Colchorum_, + +the verse glitters with a moderate harmony of expression; whereas the +next, as ending with a letter which is remarkably flat, is unmusical, + + _Frugifera et ferta arva Alfiae tenet_, + +Let us, therefore, rather content ourselves with the agreeable mediocrity +of our own language, than emulate the splendor of the Greeks; unless we +are so bigotted to the latter as to hesitate to say with the poet, + + _Quą tempestate Paris Helenam, &c_. + +we might even imitate what follows, and avoid, as far as possible, the +smallest asperity of sound, + + _habeo istam ego PERTERRICREPAM_; + +or say, with the same author, in another passage, + + _versutiloquas MALITIAS_. + +But our words must have a proper _compass_, as well as be connected +together in an agreeable manner; for this, we have observed, is another +circumstance which falls under the notice of the ear. They are confined to +a proper compass, either by certain rules of composition, as by a kind of +natural pause, or by the use of particular forms of expression, which have +a peculiar _concinnity_ in their very texture; such as a succession of +several words which have the same termination, or the comparing similar, +and contrasting opposite circumstances, which will always terminate in a +measured cadence, though no immediate pains should be taken for that +purpose. Gorgias, it is said, was the first Orator who practised this +species of _concinnity_. The following passage in my Defence of _Milo_ is +an example. + +"Est enim, Judices, haec non _scripta_, fed _nata_ Lex; quam non +_didicimus, accepimus, legimus_, verum ex Naturā ipsā _arripuimus, +hausimus, expressimus_; ad quam non _docti_, sed _facti_; non +_instituti_, sed _imbuti_ simus." + +"For this, my Lords, is a law not written upon tables, but impressed upon +our hearts;--a law which we have not learned, or heard, or read, but +eagerly caught and imbibed from the hand of Nature;--a law to which we +have not been train'd, but originally form'd; and with the principles of +which we have not been furnished by education, but tinctured and +impregnated from the moment of our birth." + +In these forms of expression every circumstance is so aptly referred to +some other circumstance, that the regular turn of them does not appear to +have been studied, but to result entirely from the sense. The same effect +is produced by contrasting opposite circumstances; as in the following +lines, where it not only forms a measured sentence, but a verse: + + _Eam, quam nihil accusas, damnas,_ + +Her, whom you ne'er accus'd, you now condemn; + +(in prose we should say _condemnas_) and again, + + _Bene quam meritam esse autumas, dicis male mereri_, + +Her merit, once confess'd, you now deny; and, + + _Id quod scis, prodest nihil; id quod nescis, obest_, + +From what you've learnt no real good accrues, +But ev'ry ill your ignorance pursues. + +Here you see the mere opposition of the terms produces a verse; but in +prosaic composition, the proper form of the last line would be, _quod scis +nihil prodest; quod nescis multum obest_. This contrasting of opposite +circumstances, which the Greeks call an Antithesis, will necessarily +produce what is styled _rhetorical metre_, even without our intending it. +The ancient Orators, a considerable time before it was practised and +recommended by _Isocrates_, were fond of using it; and particularly +_Gorgias_, whose measured cadences are generally owing to the mere +_concinnity_ of his language. I have frequently practised it myself; as, +for instance, in the following passage of my fourth Invective against +_Verres_: + +"Conferte _hanc Pacem_ cum _illo Bello_;--_hujus_ Praetoris _Adventum_, +cum _illius_ Imperatoris _Victoriā_;--hujas _Cohortem impuram_, cum illius +_Exercitu invicto_;--hujus _Libidines_, cum illius _Continentiā_;--ab illo +qui cepit _conditas_; ab hoc, qui constitutas accepit, _captas_ dicetis +Syracusas." + +"Compare this detestable _peace_ with that glorious _war_,--the _arrival_ +of this governor with the _victory_ of that commander,--his _ruffian +guards_, with the _invincible forces_ of the other;--the brutal luxury of +the former, with the modest temperance of the latter;--and you will say, +that Syracuse was really _founded_ by him who _stormed_ it, and _stormed_ +by him who received it already _founded_ to his hands."--So much, then, +for that kind of measure which results from particular forms of +expression, and which ought to be known by every Orator. + +We must now proceed to the third thing proposed,--that _numerous_ and +well-adjusted style; of the beauty of which, if any are so insensible as +not to feel it, I cannot imagine what kind of ears they have, or what +resemblance of a human Being! For my part, my ears are always fond of a +complete and full-measured flow of words, and perceive in an instant what +is either defective or redundant. But wherefore do I say _mine_? I have +frequently seen a whole assembly burst into raptures of applause at a +happy period: for the ear naturally expects that our sentences should be +properly tuned and measured. This, however, is an accomplishment which is +not to be met with among the ancients. But to compensate the want of it, +they had almost every other perfection: for they had a happy choice of +words, and abounded in pithy and agreeable sentiments, though they had not +the art of harmonizing and completing their periods. This, say some, is +the very thing we admire. But what if they should take it into their heads +to prefer the ancient _peinture_, with all its poverty of colouring, to +the rich and finished style of the moderns? The former, I suppose, must be +again adopted, to compliment their delicacy, and the latter rejected. But +these pretended connoisseurs regard nothing but the mere _name_ of +antiquity. It must, indeed, be owned that antiquity has an equal claim to +authority in matters of imitation, as grey hairs in the precedence of age. +I myself have as great a veneration for it as any man: nor do I so much +upbraid antiquity with her defects, as admire the beauties she was +mistress of:--especially as I judge the latter to be of far greater +consequence than the former. For there is certainly more real merit in a +masterly choice of words and sentiments, in which the ancients are allowed +to excell, than in those measured periods with which they were totally +unacquainted. This species of composition was not known among the Romans +till lately: but the ancients, I believe, would readily have adopted it, +if it had then been discovered: and we accordingly find, that it is now +made use of by all Orators of reputation. "But when _number_, or (as the +Greeks call it) prosaic _metre_, is professedly introduced into judicial +and forensic discourses, the very name, say they, has a suspicious sound: +for people will conclude that there is too much artifice employed to sooth +and captivate their ears, when the Speaker is so over-exact as to attend +to the harmony of his periods." Relying upon the force of this objection, +these pretenders are perpetually grating our ears with their broken and +mutilated sentences; and censure those, without mercy, who have the +presumption to utter an agreeable and a well-turned period. If, indeed, it +was our design to spread a varnish over empty words and trifling +sentiments, the censure would be just: but when the matter is good, and +the words are proper and expressive, what reason can be assigned why we +should prefer a limping and imperfect period to one which terminates and +keeps pace with the sense? For this invidious and persecuted _metre_ aims +at nothing more than to adapt the compass of our words to that of our +thoughts; which is sometimes done even by the ancients,--though generally, +I believe, by mere accident, and often by the natural delicacy of the ear; +and the very passages which are now most admired in them, commonly derive +their merit from the agreeable and measured flow of the language. + +This is an art which was in common use among the Greek Orators, about four +hundred years ago, though it has been but lately introduced among the +Romans. Ennius, therefore, when he ridicules the inharmonious numbers of +his predecessors, might be allowed to say, + + "_Such verses as the rustic Bards and Satyrs sung_:" + +But I must not take the same liberty; especially as I cannot say with him, + + _Before this bold adventurer_, &c. + +(meaning himself:) nor, as he afterwards exults to the same purpose, + + _I first have dar'd t'unfold_, &c. + +for I have both read and heard several who were almost complete masters of +the numerous and measured style I am speaking of: But many, who are still +absolute strangers to it, are not content to be exempted from the ridicule +they deserve, but claim a right to our warmest applause. I must own, +indeed, that I admire the venerable patterns, of which those persons +pretend to be the faithful imitators, notwithstanding the defects I +observe in them: but I can by no means commend the folly of those who copy +nothing but their blemishes, and have no pretensions even to the most +distant resemblance in what is truly excellent. + +But if their own ears are so indelicate and devoid of taste, will they pay +no deference to the judgment of others, who are universally celebrated for +their learning? I will not mention _Isocrates_, and his two scholars, +_Ephorus_ and _Naucrates_; though they may claim the honour of giving the +richest precepts of composition, and were themselves very eminent Orators. +But who was possessed of a more ample fund of erudition?--who more subtle +and acute?--or who furnished with quicker powers of invention, and a +greater strength of understanding, than _Aristotle_? I may add, who made a +warmer opposition to the rising fame of _Isocrates_? And yet _he_, though +he forbids us to versify in prose, recommends the use of _numbers_. His +hearer _Theodectes_ (whom he often mentions as a polished writer, and an +excellent artist) both approves and advises the same thing: and +_Theophrastus_ is still more copious and explicit. Who, then, can have +patience with those dull and conceited humourists, who dare to oppose +themselves to such venerable names as these? The only excuse that can be +made for them is, that they have never perused their writings, and are +therefore ignorant that they actually recommend the prosaic _metre_ we are +speaking of. If this is the case with them (and I cannot think otherwise) +will they reject the evidence of their own sensations? Is there nothing +which their ears will inform them is defective?--nothing which is harsh +and unpolished?--nothing imperfect?--nothing lame and mutilated?--nothing +redundant? In dramatic performances, a whole theatre will exclaim against +a verse which has only a syllable either too short or too long: and yet +the bulk of an audience are unacquainted with _feet_ and _numbers_, and +are totally ignorant what the fault is, and where it lies: but Nature +herself has taught the ear to measure the quantity of sound, and determine +the propriety of its various accents, whether grave, or acute. + +Do you desire, then, my Brutus, that we should discuss the subject more +fully than those writers who have already elucidated this, and the other +parts of rhetoric? Or shall we content ourselves with the instructions +which _they_ have provided for us? But wherefore do I offer such a +question, when your elegant letters have informed me, that this is the +chief object of your request? We shall proceed, therefore, to give an +account of the commencement, the origin, and the nature and use of +_prosaic numbers_. + +The admirers of Isocrates place the first invention of numbers among those +other improvements which do honour to his memory. For observing, say they, +that the Orators were heard with a kind of sullen attention, while the +Poets were listened to with pleasure, he applied himself to introduce a +species of metre into prose, which might have a pleasing effect upon the +ear, and prevent that satiety which will always arise from a continued +uniformity of sound. This, however, is partly true, and partly otherwise; +for though it must be owned that no person was better skilled in the +subject than _Isocrates_; yet the first honour of the invention belongs to +_Thrasymachus_, whose style (in all his writings which are extant) is +_numerous_ even to a fault. But _Gorgias_, as I have already remarked, was +the original inventor of those measured forms of expression which have a +kind of spontaneous harmony,--such as a regular succession of words with +the same termination, and the comparing similar, or contracting opposite +circumstances: though it is also notoriously true that he used them to +excess. This, however, is one of the three branches of composition above- +mentioned. But each of these authors was prior to _Isocrates_: so that the +preference can be due to _him_ only for his _moderate use_, and not for +the _invention_ of the art: for as he is certainly much easier in the turn +of his metaphors, and the choice of his words, so his numbers are more +composed and sedate. But _Gorgias_, he observed, was too eager, and +indulged himself in this measured play of words to a ridiculous excess. +He, therefore, endeavoured to moderate and correct it; but not till he had +first studied in his youth under the same _Gorgias_, who was then in +Thessaly, and in the last decline of life. Nay, as he advanced in years +(for he lived almost a hundred) he corrected _himself_, and gradually +relaxed the over-strict regularity of his numbers; as he particularly +informs us in the treatise which he dedicated to Philip of Macedon, in the +latter part of his life; for he there says, that he had thrown off that +servile attention to his numbers, to which he was before accustomed:--so +that he discovered and corrected his _own_ faults, as well as those of his +predecessors. + +Having thus specified the several authors and inventors, and the first +commencement of prosaic harmony, we must next enquire what was the natural +source and origin of it. But this lies so open to observation, that I am +astonished the ancients did not notice it: especially as they often, by +mere accident, threw out harmonious and measured sentences, which, when +they had struck the ears and the passions with so much force, as to make +it obvious that there was something particularly agreeable in what chance +alone had uttered, one would imagine that such a singular species of +ornament would have been immediately attended to, and that they would have +taken the pains to imitate what they found so pleasing in themselves. For +the ear, or at least the mind by the intervention of the ear, has a +natural capacity to measure the harmony of language: and we accordingly +feel that it instantly determines what is either too short or too long, +and always expects to be gratified with that which is complete and well- +proportioned. Some expressions it perceives to be imperfect, and +mutilated; and at these it is immediately offended, as if it was defrauded +of it's natural due. In others it discovers an immoderate length, and a +tedious superfluity of words; and with these it is still more disgusted +than with the former; for in this, as in most other cases, an excess is +always more offensive than a proportional defect. As versification, +therefore, and poetic competition was invented by the regulation of the +ear, and the successive observations of men of taste and judgment; so in +prose (though indeed long afterwards, but still, however, by the guidance +of nature) it was discovered that the career and compass of our language +should be adjusted and circumscribed within proper limits. + +So much for the source, or natural origin of prosaic harmony. We must next +proceed (for that was the third thing proposed) to enquire into the nature +of it, and determine it's essential principles;--a subject which exceeds +the limits of the present essay, and would be more properly discussed in a +professed and accurate system of the art. For we might here inquire what +is meant by prosaic _number_, wherein it consists, and from whence it +arises; as likewise whether it is simple and uniform, or admits of any +variety, and in what manner it is formed, for what purpose, and when and +where it should be employed, and how it contributes to gratify the ear. +But as in other subjects, so in this, there are two methods of +disquisition;--the one more copious and diffusive, and the other more +concise, and, I might also add, more easy and comprehensible. In the +former, the first question which would occur is, whether there is any such +thing as _prosaic number_: some are of opinion there is not; because no +fixed and certain rules have been yet assigned for it, as there long have +been for poetic numbers; and because the very persons, who contend for +it's existence, have hitherto been unable to determine it. Granting, +however, that prose is susceptible of numbers, it will next be enquired of +what kind they are;--whether they are to be selected from those of the +poets, or from a different species;--and, if from the former, which of +them may claim the preference; for some authors admit only one or two, and +some more, while others object to none. We might then proceed to enquire +(be the number of them to be admitted, more or less) whether they are +equally common to every kind of style; for the narrative, the persuasive, +and the didactic have each a manner peculiar to itself; or whether the +different species of Oratory should be accommodated with their different +numbers. If the same numbers are equally common to all subjects, we must +next enquire what those numbers are; and if they are to be differently +applied, we must examine wherein they differ, and for what reason they are +not to be used so openly in prose as in verse. It might likewise be a +matter of enquiry, whether a _numerous_ style is formed entirely by the +use of numbers, or not also in some measure by the harmonious juncture of +our words, and the application of certain figurative forms of expression; +--and, in the next place, whether each of these has not its peculiar +province, so that number may regard the time or _quantity_, composition +the _sound_, and figurative expression the _form_ and _polish_ of our +language,--and yet, in fact, composition be the source and fountain of all +the rest, and give rise both to the varieties of _number_, and to those +figurative and luminous dashes of expression, which by the Greeks, as I +have before observed, are called ([Greek: _schaemaia_],) _attitudes_ or +_figures_. But to me there appears to be a real distinction between what +is agreeable in _sound_, exact in _measure_, and ornamental in the mode of +_expression_; though the latter, it must be owned, is very closely +connected with _number_, as being for the most part sufficiently numerous +without any labour to make it so: but composition is apparently different +from both, as attending entirely either to the _majestic_ or _agreeable_ +sound of our words. Such then are the enquiries which relate to the +_nature_ of prosaic harmony. + +From what has been said it is easy to infer that prose is susceptible of +_number_. Our sensations tell us so: and it would be excessively unfair to +reject their evidence, because we cannot account for the fact. Even poetic +metre was not discovered by any effort of reason, but by mere natural +taste and sensation, which reason afterwards correcting, improved and +methodized what had been noticed by accident; and thus an attention to +nature, and an accurate observation of her various feelings and sensations +gave birth to art. But in verse the use of _number_ is more obvious; +though some particular species of it, without the assistance of music, +have the air of harmonious prose, and especially the lyric poetry, and +that even the best of the kind, which, if divested of the aid of music, +would be almost as plain and naked as common language. We have several +specimens of this nature in our own poets [Footnote: It must here be +remarked, that the Romans had no lyric poet before _Horace_, who did not +flourish till after the times of _Cicero_.]; such as the following line in +the tragedy of _Thyestes_, + + "_Quemnam te esse dicam? qui in tardā senectute_; + +"Whom shall I call thee? who in tardy age," &c.; + +which, unless when accompanied by the lyre, might easily be mistaken for +prose. But the iambic verses of the comic poets, to maintain a resemblance +to the style of conversation, are often so low and simple that you can +scarcely discover in them either number or metre; from whence it is +evident that it is more difficult to adapt numbers to prose than to verse. + +There are two things, however, which give a relish to our language,--well- +chosen words, and harmonious _numbers_. Words may be considered as the +_materials_ of language, and it is the business of _number_ to smooth and +polish them. But as in other cases, what was invented to serve our +necessities was always prior to that which was invented for pleasure; so, +in the present, a rude and simple style which was merely adapted to +express our thoughts, was discovered many centuries before the invention +of _numbers_, which are designed to please the ear. Accordingly +_Herodotus_, and both his and the preceding age had not the least idea of +prosaic _number_, nor produced any thing of the kind, unless at random, +and by mere accident:--and even the ancient masters of rhetoric (I mean +those of the earliest date) have not so much as mentioned it, though they +have left us a multitude of precepts upon the conduct and management of +our style. For what is easiest, and most necessary to be known, is, for +that reason, always first discovered. Metaphors, therefore, and new-made +and compounded words, were easily invented, because they were borrowed +from custom and conversation: but _number_ was not selected from our +domestic treasures, nor had the least intimacy or connection with common +language; and, of consequence, not being noticed and understood till every +other improvement had been made, it gave the finishing grace, and the last +touches to the style of Eloquence. + +As it may be remarked that one sort of language is interrupted by frequent +breaks and intermissions, while another is flowing and diffusive; it is +evident that the difference cannot result from the natural sounds of +different letters, but from the various combinations of long and short +syllables, with which our language, being differently blended and +intermingled, will be either dull and motionless, or lively and fluent; so +that every circumstance of this nature must be regulated by _number_. For +by the assistance of _numbers_, the _period_, which I have so often +mentioned before, pursues it's course with greater strength and freedom +till it comes to a natural pause. It is therefore plain that the style of +an Orator should be measured and harmonized by _numbers_, though entirely +free from verse; but whether these numbers should be the same as those of +the poets, or of a different species, is the next thing to be considered. +In my opinion there can be no sort of numbers but those of the poets; +because they have already specified all their different kinds with the +utmost precision; for every number may be comprized in the three following +varieties:--_viz_. a _foot_ (which is the measure we apply to numbers) +must be so divided, that one part of it will be either equal to the other, +or twice as long, or equal to three halves of it. Thus, in a _dactyl_ +(breve-macron-macron) (long-short-short) the first syllable, which is the +former part of the foot, is equal to the two others, in the _iambic_ +(macron-breve)(short-long) the last is double the first, and in the +_paeon_ (macron-macron-macron-breve, or breve-macron-macron-macron)(short- +short-short-long, or long-short-short-short) one of its parts, which is +the long syllable, is equal to two-thirds of the other. These are feet +which are unavoidably incident to language; and a proper arrangement of +them will produce a _numerous_ style. + +But it will here be enquired, What numbers should have the preference? To +which I answer, They must all occur promiscuously; as is evident from our +sometimes speaking verse without knowing it, which in prose is reckoned a +capital fault; but in the hurry of discourse we cannot always watch and +criticise ourselves. As to _senarian_ and _hipponactic_ [Footnote: Verses +chiefly composed of iambics] verses, it is scarcely possible to avoid +them; for a considerable part, even of our common language, is composed of +_iambics_. To these, however, the hearer is easily reconciled; because +custom has made them familiar to his ear. But through inattention we are +often betrayed into verses which are not so familiar;--a fault which may +easily be avoided by a course of habitual circumspection. _Hieronymus_, an +eminent Peripatetic, has collected out of the numerous writings of +Isocrates about thirty verses, most of them senarian, and some of them +anapest, which in prose have a more disagreeable effect than any others. +But he quotes them with a malicious partiality: for he cuts off the first +syllable of the first word in a sentence, and annexes to the last word the +first syllable of the following sentence; and thus he forms what is called +an _Aristophanean_ anapest, which it is neither possible nor necessary to +avoid entirely. But, this redoubtable critic, as I discovered upon a +closer inspection, has himself been betrayed into a senarian or iambic +verse in the very paragraph in which he censures the composition of +_Isocrates_. + +Upon the whole, it is sufficiently plain that prose is susceptible of +_numbers_, and that the numbers of an Orator must be the same as those of +a Poet. The next thing to be considered is, what are the numbers which are +most suitable to his character, and, for that reason, should occur more +frequently than the rest? Some prefer the _Iambic_ (macron-breve)(short- +long) as approaching the nearest to common language; for which reason, +they say, it is generally made use of in fables and comedies, on account +of it's resemblance to conversation; and because the dactyl, which is the +favourite number of hexameters, is more adapted to a pompous style. +_Ephorus_, on the other hand, declares for the paeon and the dactyl; and +rejects the spondee and the trochee (long short). For as the paeon +has three short syllables, and the dactyl two, he thinks their shortness +and celerity give a brisk and lively flow to our language; and that a +different effect would be produced by the trochee and the spondee, the one +consisting of short syllables, and the other of long ones;--so that by +using the former, the current of our words would become too rapid, and too +heavy by employing the latter, losing, in either case, that easy +moderation which best satisfies the ear. But both parties seem to be +equally mistaken: for those who exclude the paeon, are not aware that they +reject the sweetest and fullest number we have. Aristotle was far from +thinking as they do: he was of opinion that heroic numbers are too +sonorous for prose; and that, on the other hand, the iambic has too much +the resemblance of vulgar talk:--and, accordingly, he recommends the style +which is neither too low and common, nor too lofty and extravagant, but +retains such a just proportion of dignity, as to win the attention, and +excite the admiration of the hearer. He, therefore, calls the _trochee_ +(which has precisely the same quantity as the _choree_) _the rhetorical +jigg_ [Footnote: _Cordacem appellat_. The _cordax_ was a lascivious dance +very full of agitation.]; because the shortness and rapidity of it's +syllables are incompatible with the majesty of Eloquence. For this reason +he recommends the _paeon_, and says that every person makes use of it, +even without being sensible when he does so. He likewise observes that it +is a proper medium between the different feet above-mentioned:--the +proportion between the long and short syllables, in every foot, being +either sesquiplicate, duple, or equal. + +The authors, therefore, whom I mentioned before attended merely to the +easy flow of our language, without any regard to it's dignity. For the +iambic and the dactyl are chiefly used in poetry; so that to avoid +versifying in prose, we must shun, as much as possible, a continued +repetition of either; because the language of prose is of a different +cast, and absolutely incompatible with verse. As the paeon, therefore, is +of all other feet the most improper for poetry, it may, for that reason be +more readily admitted into prose. But as to _Ephorus_, he did not reflect +that even the _spondee_, which he rejects, is equal in time to his +favourite dactyl; because he supposed that feet were to be measured not by +the quantity, but the number of their syllables;--a mistake of which he is +equally guilty when he excludes the _trochee_, which, in time and +quantity, is precisely equal to the iambic; though it is undoubtedly +faulty at the end of a period, which always terminates more agreeably in a +long syllable than a short one. As to what Aristotle has said of the +_paeon_, the same has likewise been said by _Theophrastus_ and +_Theodectes_. + +But, for my part, I am rather of opinion that our language should be +intermingled and diversified with all the varieties of number; for should +we confine ourselves to any particular feet, it would be impossible to +escape the censure of the hearer; because our style should neither be so +exactly measured as that of the poets, nor entirely destitute of number, +like that of the common people. The former, as being too regular and +uniform, betrays an appearance of art; and the other, which is as much too +loose and undetermined, has the air of ordinary talk; so that we receive +no pleasure from the one, and are absolutely disgusted with the other. Our +style, therefore, as I have just observed, should be so blended and +diversified with different numbers, as to be neither too vague and +unrestrained, nor too openly numerous, but abound most in the paeon (so +much recommended by the excellent author above-mentioned) though still in +conjunction with many other feet which he entirely omits. + +But we must now consider what number like so many dashes of purple, should +tincture and enrich the rest, and to what species of style they are each +of them best adapted. The iambic, then, should be the leading number in +those subjects which require a plain and simple style;--the paeon in such +as require more compass and elevation; and the dactyl is equally +applicable to both. So that in a discourse of any length and variety, it +will be occasionally necessary to blend and intermingle them all. By this +means, our endeavours to modulate our periods, and captivate the ear, will +be most effectually concealed; especially, if we maintain a suitable +dignity both of language and sentiment. For the hearer will naturally +attend to these (I mean our words and sentiments) and to them alone +attribute the pleasure he receives; so that while he listens to these with +admiration, the harmony of our numbers will escape his notice: though it +must indeed be acknowledged that the former would have their charms +without the assistance of the latter. But the flow of our numbers is not +to be so exact (I mean in prose, for in poetry the case is different) as +that nothing may exceed the bounds of regularity; for this would be to +compose a poem. On the contrary, if our language neither limps nor +fluctuates, but keeps an even and a steady pace, it is sufficiently +_numerous_; and it accordingly derives the title, not from its consisting +entirely of numbers, but from its near approach to a numerous form. This +is the reason why it is more difficult to make elegant prose, than to make +verses; because there are fixed and invariable rules for the latter; +whereas nothing is determined in the former, but that the current of our +language should be neither immoderate nor defective, nor loose and +unconfined. It cannot be supposed, therefore, to admit of regular beats +and divisions, like a piece of music; but it is only necessary that the +general compass and arrangement of our words should be properly restrained +and limited,--a circumstance which must be left entirely to the decision +of the ear. + +Another question which occurs before us, is--whether an attention to our +numbers should be extended to every part of a sentence, or only to the +beginning and the end. Most authors are of opinion that it is only +necessary that our periods should end well, and have a numerous cadence. +It is true, indeed, that this ought to be principally attended to, but not +solely: for the whole compass of our periods ought likewise to be +regulated, and not totally neglected. As the ear, therefore, always +directs it's view to the close of a sentence, and there fixes it's +attention, it is by no means proper that this should be destitute of +_number_: but it must also be observed that a period, from it's first +commencement, should run freely on, so as to correspond to the conclusion; +and the whole advance from the beginning with such an easy flow, as to +make a natural, and a kind of voluntary pause. To those who have been +we'll practised in the art, and who have both written much; and often +attempted to discourse _extempore_ with the same accuracy which they +observe in their writings, this will be far less difficult than is +imagined. For every sentence is previously formed and circumscribed in the +mind of the Speaker, and is then immediately attended by the proper words +to express it, which the same mental faculty (than which there is nothing +more lively and expeditious) instantly dismisses, and sends off each to +its proper post: but, in different sentences, their particular order and +arrangement will be differently terminated; though, in every sentence, the +words both in the beginning and the middle of it, should have a constant +reference to the end. Our language, for instance, must sometimes advance +with rapidity, and at other times it's pace must be moderate and easy; so +that it will be necessary at the very beginning of a sentence, to resolve +upon the manner in which you would have it terminate; but we must avoid +the least appearance of poetry, both in our numbers, and in the other +ornaments of language; though it is true, indeed, that the labours of the +Orator must be conducted on the same principles as those of the Poet. For +in each we have the same materials to work upon, and a similar art of +managing them; the materials being words, and the art of managing them +relating, in both cases, to the manner in which they ought to be disposed. +The words also in each may be divided into three classes,--the +__metaphorical_,--the new-coined,--and the antique;--for at present we +have no concern with words _proper_:--and three parts may also be +distinguished in the art of disposing them; which, I have already +observed, are _juncture_, _concinnity_, and _number_. The poets make use +both of one and the other more frequently, and with greater liberty than +we do; for they employ the _tropes_ not only much oftener, but more boldly +and openly; and they introduce _antique_ words with a higher taste, and +new ones with less reserve. The same may be said in their numbers, in the +use of which they are subjected to invariable rules, which they are +scarcely ever allowed to transgress. The two arts, therefore, are to be +considered neither as wholly distinct, nor perfectly conjoined. This is +the reason why our numbers are not to be so conspicuous in prose as in +verse; and that in prose, what is called a _numerous_ style, does not +always become so by the use of numbers, but sometimes either by the +concinnity of our language, or the smooth juncture of our words. + +To conclude this head; If it should be enquired, "What are the numbers to +be used in prose?" I answer, "_All_; though some are certainly better, and +more adapted to it's character than others."--If "_Where_ is their proper +seat?"--"In the different quantity of our syllables:"--If "From whence +their _origin_?"--"From the sole pleasure of the ear:"--If "What the +method of blending and intermingling them?"--"This shall be explained in +the sequel, because it properly relates to the manner of using them, which +was the fourth and last article in my division of the subject." If it be +farther enquired, "For what purpose they are employed?" I answer,--"To +gratify the ear:"--If "_When_?" I reply, "At all times:"--If "In what part +of a sentence?" "Through the whole length of it:"--and if "What is the +circumstance which gives them a pleasing effect?" "The same as in poetical +compositions, whose metre is regulated by art, though the ear alone, +without the assistance of art, can determine it's limits by the natural +powers of sensation." Enough, therefore, has been said concerning the +nature and properties of _number_. The next article to be considered is +the manner in which our numbers should be employed,--a circumstance which +requires to be accurately discussed. + +Here it is usual to enquire, whether it is necessary to attend to our +numbers through the whole compass of a period, [Footnote: Our author here +informs us, that what the Greeks called [Greek: periodos], a _period_, was +distinguished among the Romans by the words _ambitus, circuitus, +comprehensio, continuatio_, and _circumscriptio_. As I thought this remark +would appear much better in the form of a note, than in the body of the +work, I have introduced it accordingly.] or only at the beginning or end +of it, or equally in both. In the next place, as _exact number_ seems to +be one thing, and that which is merely _numerous_ another, it might be +enquired wherein lies the difference. We might likewise consider whether +the members of a sentence should all indifferently be of the same length, +whatever be the numbers they are composed of;--or whether, on this +account, they should not be sometimes longer, and sometimes shorter;--and +when, and for what reasons, they should be made so, and of what numbers +they should be composed;--whether of several sorts, or only of one; and +whether of equal or unequal numbers;--and upon what occasions either the +one or the other of these are to be used;-and what numbers accord best +together, and in what order; or whether, in this respect, there is no +difference between them;--and (which has still a more immediate reference +to our subject) by what means our style may be rendered _numerous_. It +will likewise be necessary to specify the rise and origin of a +_periodical_ form of language, and what degree of compass should be +allowed to it. After this, we may consider the members or divisions of a +period, and enquire of how many kinds, and of what different lengths they +are; and, if they vary in these respects, _where_ and _when_ each +particular sort is to be employed: and, in the last place, the _use_ and +application of the whole is to be fully explained;--a very extensive +subject, and which is capable of being accommodated not only to one, but +to many different occasions. But without adverting to particulars, we may +discuss the subject at large in such a manner as to furnish a satisfactory +answer in all subordinate cases. + +Omitting, therefore, every other species of composition, we shall attend +to that which is peculiar to forensic causes. For in those performances +which are of a different kind, such as history, panegyric, and all +discourses which are merely ornamental, every sentence should be +constructed after the exact manner of _Isocrates_ and _Theopompus_; and +with that regular compass, and measured flow of language, that our words +may constantly run within the limits prescribed by art, and pursue a +uniform course, till the period is completed. We may, therefore, observe +that after the invention of this, _periodical_ form, no writer of any +account has made a discourse which was intended as a mere display of +ornament, and not for the service of the Forum, without _squaring_ his +language, (if I may so express myself) and confining every sentence of it +to the strictest laws of _number_. For as, in this case, the hearer has no +motive to alarm his suspicions against the artifice of the speaker, he +will rather think himself obliged to him than otherwise, for the pains he +takes to amuse and gratify his ear. But, in forensic causes, this accurate +species of composition is neither to be wholly adopted, nor entirely +rejected. For if we pursue it too closely, it will create a satiety, and +our attention to it will be discovered by the most illiterate observer. We +may add, it will check the pathos and force of action, restrain the +sensibility of the Speaker, and destroy all appearance of truth and open +dealing. But as it will sometimes be necessary to adopt it, we must +consider _when_, and _how long_, this ought to be done, and how many ways +it may be changed and varied. + +A _numerous_ style, then, may be properly employed, either when any thing +is to be commended in a free and ornamental manner, (as in my second +Invective against _Verres_, where I spoke in praise of _Sicily_, and in my +Speech before the Senate, in which I vindicated the honour of my +consulship;)--or; in the next place, when a narrative is to be delivered +which requires more dignity than pathos, (as in my fourth Invective, where +I described the Ceres of the Ennensians, the Diana of the Segestani, and +the situation of Syracuse.) It is likewise often allowable to speak in a +numerous and flowing style, when a material circumstance is to be +amplified. If I myself have not succeeded in this so well as might be +wished, I have at least attempted it very frequently; and it is still +visible in many of my Perorations, that I have exerted all the talents I +was master of for that purpose. But this will always have most efficacy, +when the Speaker has previously possessed himself of the hearer's +attention, and got the better of his judgment. For then he is no longer +apprehensive of any artifice to mislead him; but hears every thing with a +favourable ear, wishes the Orator to proceed, and, admiring the force of +his Eloquence, has no inclination to censure it. + +But this measured and numerous flow of language is never to be continued +too long, I will not say in the peroration, (of which the hearer himself +will always be a capable judge) but in any other part of a discourse: for, +except in the cases above-mentioned, in which I have shewn it is +allowable, our style must be wholly confined to those clauses or divisions +which we erroneously call _incisa_ and _membra_; but the Greeks, with more +propriety, the _comma_ and _colon_ [Footnote: The ancients apply these +terms to the sense, and not to any points of distinction. A very short +member, whether simple or compound, with them is a _comma_; and a longer, +a _colon_; for they have no such term as a _semicolon_. Besides, they call +a very short sentence, whether simple or compound, a _comma_; and one of +somewhat a greater length, a _colon_. And therefore, if a person expressed +himself either of these ways, in any considerable number of sentences +together, he was said to speak by _commas_, or _colons_. But a sentence +containing more words than will consist with either of these terms, they +call a simple _period_; the least compound period with them requiring the +length of two colons. + +Ward's Rhetoric, volume 1st, page 344.]. For it is impossible that the +names of things should be rightly applied, when the things themselves are +not sufficiently understood: and as we often make use of metaphorical +terms, either for the sake of ornament, or to supply the place of proper +ones, so in other arts, when we have occasion to mention any thing which +(through our unacquaintance with it) has not yet received a name, we are +obliged either to invent a new one, or to borrow it from something +similar. We shall soon consider what it is to speak in _commas_ and +_colons_, and the proper method of doing it: but we must first attend to +the various numbers by which the cadence of our periods should be +diversified. + +Our numbers will advance more rapidly by the use of short feet, and more +coolly and sedately by the use of long ones. The former are best adapted +to a warm and spirited style, and the latter to sober narratives and +explanations. But there are several numbers for concluding a period, one +of which (called the _dichoree_, or double _choree_, and consisting of a +long and a short syllable repeated alternately) is much in vogue with the +Asiatics; though among different people the same feet are distinguished by +different names. The _dichoree_, indeed, is not essentially bad for the +close of a sentence: but in prosaic numbers nothing can be more faulty +than a continued or frequent repetition of the same cadence: as the +_dichoree_, therefore, is a very sonorous number, we should be the more +sparing in the use of it, to prevent a satiety. _C. Carbo_, the son of +_Caius_, and a Tribune of the people, once said in a public trial in which +I was personally engaged,--"_O Marce Druse, Patrem appello_;" where you +may observe two _commas_, each consisting of two feet. He then made use of +the two following _colons_, each consisting of three feet,--"_Tu dicere +solebas, sacram esse Rempublicam:"--and afterwards of the period,-- +"_Quicunque eam violavissent, ab omnibus esse ei poenas persolutas_" which +ends with a _dichoree_; for it is immaterial whether the last syllable is +long or short. He added, "_Patris dictum sapiens, temeritas filii +comprobavit_" concluding here also with a _dichoree_; which was received +with such a general burst of applause, as perfectly astonished me. But was +not this the effect of _number_?--Only change the order of the words, and +say,--"_Comprobavit filii temeritas_" and the spirit of them will be lost, +though the word _temeritas_ consists of three short syllables and a long +one, which is the favourite number of Aristotle, from whom, however, I +here beg leave to dissent. The words and sentiments are indeed the fame in +both cases; and yet, in the latter, though the understanding is satisfied, +the ear is not. But these harmonious cadences are not to be repeated too +often: for, in the first place, our _numbers_ will be soon discovered,--in +the next, they will excite the hearer's disgust,--and, at last, be +heartily despised on account of the apparent facility with which they are +formed. + +But there are several other cadences which will have a numerous and +pleasing effect: for even the _cretic_, which consists of a long, a short, +and a long syllable, and it's companion the _paeon_, which is equal to it +in quantity, though it exceeds it in the number of syllables, is reckoned +a proper and a very useful ingredient in harmonious prose: especially as +the latter admits of two varieties, as consisting either of one long and +three short syllables, which will be lively enough at the beginning of a +sentence, but extremely flat at the end;--or of three short syllables and +a long one, which was highly approved of by the ancients at the _close_ of +a sentence, and which I would not wholly reject, though I give the +preference to others. Even the sober _spondee_ is not to be entirely +discarded; for though it consists of two long syllables, and for that +reason may seem rather dull and heavy, it has yet a firm and steady step, +which gives it an air of dignity, and especially in the _comma_ and the +_colon_; so that it sufficiently compensates for the slowness of it's +motion, by it's peculiar weight and solemnity. When I speak of feet at the +close of a period, I do not mean precisely the last. I would be +understood, at least, to include the foot which immediately precedes it; +and, in many cases, even the foot before _that_. The _iambic_, therefore, +which consists of a long syllable and a short one, and is equal in time, +though not in the number of it's syllables, to a _choree_, which has three +short ones; or even the _dactyl_, which consists of one long and two short +syllables, will unite agreeably enough with the last foot of a sentence, +when that foot is either a _choree_ or a _spondee_; for it is immaterial +which of them is employed. But the three feet I am mentioning, are neither +of them very proper for closing a period, (that is, to form the last foot +of it) unless when a _dactyl_ is substituted for a _cretic_, for you may +use either of them at pleasure; because, even in verse, it is of no +consequence whether the last syllable is long or short. He, therefore, who +recommended the _paeon_, as having the long syllable last, was certainly +guilty of an oversight; because the quantity of the last syllable is never +regarded. The _paeon_, however, as consisting of four syllables, is +reckoned by some to be only a _number_, and not a _foot_. But call it +which you please, it is in general, what all the ancients have represented +it, (such as _Aristotle, Theophrastus, Theodectes_, and _Euphorus_) the +fittest of all others both for the beginning and the middle of a period. +They are likewise of opinion, that it is equally proper at the end; where, +in my opinion, the _cretic_ deserves the preference. The _dochimus_, which +consists of five syllables, (i.e. a short and two long ones, and a short, +and a long one, as in _amicos tenes_) may be used indifferently in any +part of a sentence, provided it occurs but once: for if it is continued or +repeated, our attention to our numbers will be discovered, and alarm the +suspicion of the hearer. On the other hand, if we properly blend and +intermingle the several varieties above-mentioned, our design will not be +so readily noticed; and we shall also prevent that satiety which would +arise from an elaborate uniformity of cadence. + +But the harmony of language does not result entirely from the use of +_numbers_, but from the _juncture_ and _composition_ of our words; and +from that neatness and _concinnity_ of expression which I have already +mentioned. By _composition_, I here mean when our words are so judiciously +connected as to produce an agreeable sound (independent of _numbers_) +which rather appears to be the effect of nature than of art; as in the +following passage from Crassus, _Nam ubi lubido dominatur, innocentiae +leve praesidium est_ [Footnote: In the sentence which is here quoted from +Crassus, every word which ends with a consonant is immediately succeeded +by another which begins with a vowel; and, _vice versa_, if the preceding +word ends with a vowel, the next begins with a consonant.]: for here the +mere order in which the words are connected, produces a harmony of sound, +without any visible attention of the Speaker. When the ancients, +therefore, (I mean _Herodotus_, and _Thucydides_, and all who flourished +in the same age) composed a numerous and a musical period, it must rather +be attributed to the casual order of their words, than to the labour and +artifice of the writer. + +But there are likewise certain forms of expression, which have such a +natural concinnity, as will necessarily have a similar effect to that of +regular numbers. For when parallel circumstances are compared, or opposite +ones contrasted, or words of the same termination are placed in a regular +succesion, they seldom fail to produce a numerous cadence. But I have +already treated of these, and subjoined a few examples; so that we are +hereby furnished with an additional and a copious variety of means to +avoid the uniformity of cadence above-mentioned; especially as these +measured forms of expression may be occasionally relaxed and dilated. +There is, however, a material difference between a style which is merely +_numerous_, (or, in other words, which has a moderate resemblance to +_metre_) and that which is entirely composed of _numbers_: the latter is +an insufferable fault; but our language, without the former, would be +absolutely vague, unpolished, and dissipated. + +But as a numerous style (strictly so called) is not frequently, and indeed +but seldom admissible in forensic causes,--it seems necessary to enquire, +in the next place, what are those _commas_ and _colons_ before-mentioned, +and which, in real causes, should occupy the major part of an Oration. The +_period_, or complete sentence, is usually composed of four divisions, +which are called _members_, (or _colons_) that it may properly fill the +ear, and be neither longer nor shorter than is requisite for that purpose. +But it sometimes, or rather frequently happens, that a sentence either +falls short of, or exceeds the limits of a regular period, to prevent it +from fatiguing the ear on the one hand, or disappointing it on the other. +What I mean is to recommend an agreeable mediocrity: for we are not +treating of verse, but of rhetorical prose, which is confessedly more free +and unconfined. A full period, then, is generally composed of four parts, +which may be compared to as many hexameter verses, each of which have +their proper points, or particles of continuation, by which they are +connected so as to form a perfect period. But when we speak by _colons_, +we interupt their union, and, as often as occasion requires (which indeed +will frequently be the case) break off with ease from this laboured and +suspicious flow of language; but yet nothing should be so numerous in +reality as that which appears to be least so, and yet has a forcible +effect. Such is the following passage in Crassus:--"_Missos faciant +patronos; ipsi prodeant_." "Let them dismiss their patrons: let them +answer for themselves." Unless "_ipsi prodeant_" was pronounced after a +pause, the hearer must have discovered a complete iambic verse. It would +have had a better cadence in prose if he had said "_prodeant ipsi_." But I +am only to consider the species, and not the cadence of the sentence. He +goes on, "_Cur clandestinis consiliis nos oppugnant? cur de perfugis +nostris copias comparant contra nos_?" "Why do they attack us by +clandestine measures? why do they collect forces against us from our own +deserters?" In the former passage there are two _commas_: in the latter he +first makes use of the _colon_, and afterwards of the _period_: but the +period is not a long one, as only consisting of two _colons_, and the +whole terminates in _spondees_. In this manner Crassus generally expressed +himself; and I much approve his method. But when we speak either in +_commas_, or _colons_, we should be very attentive to the harmony of their +cadence: as in the following instance.--"_Domus tibi deerat? at habebas. +Pecunia superabat? at egebas_." "Was you without a habitation? You had a +house of your own. Was your pocket well provided? You was not master of a +farthing." These are four _commas_; but the two following members are both +_colons_;--"_Incurristi omens in columnas, in alienos insanus insanisti_." + +"You rushed like a madman upon your best supporters; you vented your fury +on your enemies withput mercy." The whole is afterwards supported by a +full period, as by a solid basis;--"Depressam, caecam, jacentem domum, +pluris quam te, et fortunas tuas aestimāsti." "You have shewn more regard +to an unprosperous, an obscure, and a fallen family, than to your own +safety and reputation." This sentence ends with a _dichoree_, but the +preceeding one in a _double spondee_. For in those sentences which are to +be used like daggers for close-fighting, their very shortness makes our +numbers less exceptionable. They frequently consist of a single number;-- +generally of _two_, with the addition perhaps of half a foot to each: and +very seldom of more than three. To speak in _commas_ or _colons_ has a +very good effect in real causes; and especially in those parts of an +Oration where it is your business either to prove or refute: as in my +second defence of Cornelius, where I exclaimed, "O callidos homines! O rem +excogitatam! O ingenia metuenda!" "What admirable schemers! what a curious +contrivance! what formidable talents!" Thus far I spoke in _colons_; and +afterwards by _commas_; and then returned to the colon, in "_Testes dare +volumus_," "We are willing to produce our witnesses." This was succeeded +by the following _period_, consisting of two _colons_, which is the +shortest that can be formed,--"_Quem, quaeso, nostrūm sesellit ita vos +esse facturos?_" "Which of us, think you, had not the sense to foresee +that you would proceed in this manner?" + +There is no method of expressing ourselves which, if properly timed, is +more agreeable or forcible, than these rapid turns, which are completed in +two or three words, and sometimes in a single one; especially, when they +are properly diversified, and intermingled here and there with a +_numerous_ period; which _Egesias_ avoids with such a ridiculous nicety, +that while he affects to imitate _Lysias_ (who was almost a second +_Demosthenes_) he seems to be continually cutting capers, and clipping +sentence after sentence. He is as frivolous in his sentiments as in his +language: so that no person who is acquainted with his writings, need to +seek any farther for a coxcomb. But I have selected several examples from +Crassus, and a few of my own, that any person, who is so inclined, may +have an opportunity of judging with his own ears, what is really +_numerous_, as well in the shortest as in any other kind of sentences. + +Having, therefore, treated of a _numerous_ style more copiously than any +author before me, I shall now proceed to say something of it's _utility_. +For to speak handsomely, and like an Orator (as no one, my Brutus, knows +better than yourself) is nothing more than to express the choicest +sentiments in the finest language. The noblest thoughts will be of little +service to an orator, unless he is able to communicate them in a correct +and agreeable style: nor will the splendor of our expressions appear to a +proper advantage, unless they are carefully and judiciously ranged. Permit +me to add, that the beauty of both will be considerably heightened by the +harmony of our numbers:--such numbers (for I cannot repeat it too often) +as are not only not cemented together, like those of the poets, but which +avoid all appearance of metre, and have as little resemblance to it as +possible; though it is certainly true that the numbers themselves are the +same, not only of the Poets and Orators, but of all in general who +exercise the faculty of speech, and, indeed, of every instrument which +produces a sound whose time can be measured by the ear. It is owing +entirely to the different arrangement of our feet that a sentence assumes +either the easy air of prose, or the uniformity of verse. Call it, +therefore, by what name you please (_Composition, Perfection_, or +_Number_) it is a necessary restraint upon our language; not only (as +_Aristotle_ and _Theophrastus_ have observed) to prevent our sentences +(which should be limited neither by the breath of the speaker, nor the +pointing of a transcriber, but by the sole restraint of _number_) from +running on without intermission like a babbling current of water; but +chiefly, because our language, when properly measured, has a much greater +effect than when it is loose and unconfined. For as Wrestlers and +Gladiators, whether they parry or make an assault, have a certain grace in +their motions, so that every effort which contributes to the defence or +the victory of the combatants, presents an agreeable attitude to the eye: +so the powers of language can neither give nor evade an important blow, +unless they are gracefully exerted. That style, therefore, which is not +regulated by _numbers_, is to me as unbecoming as the motions of a +Gladiator who has not been properly trained and exercised: and so far is +our language from being _enervated_ by a skilful arrangement of our words +(as is pretended by those who, for want either of proper instructors, +capacity, or diligence, have not been able to attain it) that, on the +contrary, without this, it is impossible it should have any force or +efficacy. + +But it requires a long and attentive course of practice to avoid the +blemishes of those who were unacquainted with this numerous species of +composition, so as not to transpose our words too openly to assist the +cadence and harmony of our periods; which _L. Caelius Antipater_, in the +Introduction to his Punic War, declares he would never attempt, unless +when compelled by necessity. "_O virum simplicem_," (says he, speaking of +himself) "_qui nos nihil celat; sapientem, qui serviendum necessitati +putet_." "O simple man, who has not the skill his art to conceal; and yet +to the rigid laws of necessity he has the wisdom to submit." But he was +totally unskilled in composition. By us, however, both in writing and +speaking, necessity is never admitted as a valid plea; for, in fact, there +is no such thing as an absolute constraint upon the order and arrangement +of our words; and, if there was, it is certainly unnecessary to own it. +But _Antipater_, though he requests the indulgence of Laelius, to whom he +dedicates his work, and attempts to excuse himself, frequently transposes +his words without contributing in the least either to the harmony, or +agreeable cadence of his periods. + +There are others, and particularly the _Asiatics_, who are such slaves to +_number_, as to insert words which have no use nor meaning to fill up the +vacuities in a sentence. There are likewise some who, in imitation of +_Hegesias_ (a notorious trifler as well in this as in every other respect) +curtail and mince their numbers, and are thus betrayed into the low and +paltry style of the Sicilians. Another fault in composition is that which +occurs in the speeches of _Hierocles_ and _Menecles_, two brothers, who +may be considered as the princes of Asiatic Eloquence, and, in my opinion, +are by no means contemptible: for though they deviate from the style of +nature, and the strict laws of Atticism, yet they abundantly compensate +the defect by the richness and fertility of their language. But they have +no variety of cadence, and their sentences are almost always terminated in +the same manner. He therefore, who carefully avoids these blemishes, and +who neither transposes his words too openly,--nor inserts any thing +superfluous or unmeaning to fill up the chasms of a period,--nor curtails +and clips his language, so as to interrupt and enervate the force of it,-- +nor confines himself to a dull uniformity of cadence,--_he_ may justly be +said to avoid the principal and most striking defects of prosaic harmony. +As to its positive graces, these we have already specified; and from +thence the particular blemishes which are opposite to each, will readily +occur to the attentive reader. + +Of what consequence it is to regulate the structure of our language, may +be easily tried by selecting a well-wrought period from some Orator of +reputation, and changing the arrangement of the words; [Footnote: +Professor _Ward_ has commented upon an example of this kind from the +preface to the Vth volume of the Spectator:--"_You have acted in so much +consistency with yourself, and promoted the interests of your country in +so uniform a manner; that even those, who would misrepresent your generous +designs for the public good, cannot but approve the steadiness and +intredipity, with which you pursue them_." I think, says the Doctor, this +may be justly esteemed an handsome period. It begins with ease, rises +gradually till the voice is inflected, then sinks again, and ends with a +just cadency, And perhaps there is not a word in it, whole situation would +be altered to an advantage. Let us now but shift the place of one word in +the last member, and we shall spoil the beauty of the whole sentence. For +if, instead of saying, as it now stands, _cannot but approve the +steadiness and intrepidity, with which you pursue them_; we put it thus, +_cannot but approve the steadiness and intrepidity which you pursue them +with_; the cadency will be flat and languid, and the harmony of the period +entirely lost. Let us try it again by altering the place of the two last +members, which at present stand in this order, _that even those who would +misrepresent your generous designs for the public good, cannot but approve +the steadiness and intrepidity, with which you pursue them_. Now if the +former member be thrown last, they will run thus, _that even those cannot +but approve the steadiness and intrepidity, with which you pursue them, +who would misrepresent your generous designs for the public good_. Here +the sense is much obscured by the inversion of the relative _them_, which +ought to refer to something that went before, and not to the words +_generous designs_, which in this situation of the members are placed +after it. WARD'S Rhetoric. Vol. 1, p. 338, 339.] the beauty of it would +then be mangled and destroyed. Suppose, for instance, we take the +following passage from my Defence of _Cornelius,--"Neque me divitae +movent, quibus omnes Africanos et Laelios, multi venalitii mercatoresque +superarunt._" "Nor am I dazzled by the splendor of wealth, in which many +retailers, and private tradesmen have outvied all the _Africani_ and the +_Lelii_" Only invert the order a little, and say,--"_Multi superārunt +mercatores, venatitiique_," and the harmony of the period will be loft. +Try the experiment on the next sentence;--"_Neque vestes, aut celatum +aurum, & argentum, quo nostros veteres Marcellos, Maximosque multi eunuchi +e Syriā Egyptoque vicerunt_:" Nor do. I pay the least regard to costly +habits, or magnificent services of plate, in which many eunuchs, imported +from Syria and Egypt, have far surpassed the illustrious _Marcelli_, and +the _Maximi_. Alter the disposition of the words into, "_vicerunt eunuchi +e Syria, Egyptoque,_" and the whole beauty of the sentence will be +destroyed. Take a third passage from the same paragraph;--"_Neque vero +ornamenta ista villarum, quibus Paulum & L. Mummium, qui rebus his urbem, +Italiamque omnem reserserunt, ab aliquo video perfacile Deliaco aut Syro +potuisse superari:"--"Nor the splendid ornaments of a rural villa, in +which I daily behold every paltry Delian and Syrian outvying the dignity +of Paulus and Lucius Mummius, who, by their victories, supplied the whole +city, and indeed every part of Italy, with a super- fluity of these +glittering trifles!" Only change the latter part of the sentence into,-- +"_potuisse superari ab aliquo Syro aut Deliaco,_" and you will see, though +the meaning and the words are still the same, that, by making this slight +alteration in the order, and breaking the form of the period, the whole +force and spirit of it will be lost. + +On the other hand, take one of the broken sentences of a writer unskilled +in composition, and make the smallest alteration in the arrangement of the +words,--and that which before was loose and disordered, will assume a +just and a regular form. Let us, for instance, take the following passage +from the speech of Gracchus to the Censors;--"_Abesse non potest, quin +ejusdem hominis fit, probos improbare, qui improbos probet_;" "There is no +possibility of doubting that the same person who is an enemy to virtue, +must be a friend to vice." How much better would the period have +terminated if he had said,--"_quin ejusdem hominis fit, qui improbos +probet, probos improbare_!"--"that the same person who is a friend to +vice, must be an enemy to virtue!" There is no one who would object to the +last:--nay, it is impossible that any one who was able to speak thus, +should have been willing to express himself otherwise. But those who have +pretended to speak in a different manner, had not skill enough to speak as +they ought; and for that reason, truly, we must applaud them for their +_Attic_ taste;--as if the great DEMOSTHENES could speak like an _Asiatic_ +[Footnote: Quasi vero Trallianus fuerit Demosthenes.] _Trallianus_ +signifies an inhabitant of _Tralles_, a city in the lesser Asia, between +_Caria_ and _Lydia_. The Asiatics, in the estimation of Cicero, were not +distinguished by the delicacy of their taste.,--that Demosthenes, whose +thunder would have lost half it's force, if it's flight had not been +accelerated by the rapidity of his numbers. + +But if any are better pleased with a broken and dissipated style, let them +follow their humour, provided they condescend to counterbalance it by the +weight, and dignity of their sentiments: in the same manner, as if a +person should dash to pieces the celebrated shield of _Phidias_, though he +would destroy the symmetry of the whole, the fragments would still retain +their separate beauty;--or, as in the history of Thucydides, though we +discover no harmony in the structure of his periods, there are yet many +beauties which excite our admiration. But these triflers, when they +present us with one of their rugged and broken sentences, in which there +is neither a thought, nor word, but what is low and puerile, appear to me +(if I may venture on a comparison which is not indeed very elevated, but +is strictly applicable to the case in hand) to have untied a besom, that +we may contemplate the scattered twigs. If, however, they wish to convince +us that they really despise the species of composition which I have now +recommended, let them favour us with a few lines in the taste of +Isocrates, or such as we find in the orations of _Aeschines_ and +_Demosthenes_. I will then believe they decline the use of it, not from a +consciousness of their inability to put it in practice, but from a real +conviction of it's futility; or, at least, I will engage to find a person, +who, on the same condition, will undertake either to speak or write, in +any language they may please to fix upon, in the very manner they propose. +For it is much easier to disorder a good period, than to harmonize a bad +one. + +But, to speak my whole meaning at once, to be scrupulously attentive to +the measure and harmony of our periods, without a proper regard to our +sentiments, is absolute madness:--and, on the other hand, to speak +sensibly and judiciously, without attending to the arrangement of our +words, and the regularity of our periods, is (at the best) to speak very +awkwardly; but it is such a kind of awkwardness that those who are guilty +of it, may not only escape the title of blockheads, but pass for men of +good-sense and understanding;--a character which those speakers who are +contented with it, are heartily welcome to enjoy! But an Orator who is +expected not only to merit the approbation, but to excite the wonder, the +acclamations, and the plaudits of those who hear him, must excel in every +part of Eloquence, and be so thoroughly accomplished, that it would be a +disgrace to him that any thing should be either seen or heard with greater +pleasure than himself. + + * * * * * + +Thus, my Brutus, I have given you my opinion of a complete Orator; which +you are at liberty either to adopt or reject, as your better judgment +shall incline you. If you see reason to think differently, I shall have no +objection to it; nor so far indulge my vanity as to presume that my +sentiments, which I have so freely communicated in the present Essay, are +more just and accurate than yours. For it is very possible not only that +you and I may have different notions, but that what appears true even to +myself at one time, may appear otherwise at another. Nor only in the +present case, which be determined by the taste of the multitude, and the +capricious pleasure of the ear (which are, perhaps, the most uncertain +judges we can fix upon)--but in the most important branches of science, +have I yet been able to discover a surer rule to direct my judgment, than +to embrace that which has the greatest appearance of probability: for +_Truth_ is covered with too thick a veil to be distinguished to a +certainty. I request, therefore, if what I have advanced should not have +the happiness to merit your approbation, that you will be so much my +friend as to conclude, either that the talk I have attempted is +impracticable, or that my unwillingness to disoblige you has betrayed me +into the rash presumption of undertaking a subject to which my abilities +are unequal. + + + + + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Cicero's Brutus or History of Famous +Orators; also His Orator, or Accomplished Speaker., by Cicero + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CICERO'S BRUTUS *** + +***** This file should be named 9776-8.txt or 9776-8.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + https://www.gutenberg.org/9/7/7/9776/ + +Produced by Anne Soulard, Ted Garvin, and the Project +Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: Cicero's Brutus or History of Famous Orators; also His Orator, or Accomplished Speaker. + +Author: Cicero + +Posting Date: November 15, 2011 [EBook #9776] +Release Date: January, 2006 +First Posted: October 15, 2003 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CICERO'S BRUTUS *** + + + + +Produced by Anne Soulard, Ted Garvin, and the Project +Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team + + + + + + + + + + + +CICERO'S BRUTUS, + +OR + +HISTORY OF FAMOUS ORATORS: + +ALSO, + +HIS ORATOR, + +OR + +ACCOMPLISHED SPEAKER. + +Now first translated into English by E. Jones + + + + + + + +PREFACE. + + +As the following Rhetorical Pieces have never appeared before in the +English language, I thought a Translation of them would be no unacceptable +offering to the Public. The character of the Author (Marcus Tullius +Cicero) is so universally celebrated, that it would be needless, and +indeed impertinent, to say any thing to recommend them. + +The first of them was the fruit of his retirement, during the remains of +the _Civil War_ in Africa; and was composed in the form of a Dialogue. It +contains a few short, but very masterly sketches of all the Speakers +who had flourished either in Greece or Rome, with any reputation of +Eloquence, down to his own time; and as he generally touches the principal +incidents of their lives, it will be considered, by an attentive reader, +as a _concealed epitome of the Roman history_. The conference is supposed +to have been held with Atticus, and their common friend Brutus, in +Cicero's garden at Rome, under the statue of Plato, whom he always +admired, and usually imitated in his dialogues: and he seems in this to +have copied even his _double titles_, calling it _Brutus, or the History +of famous Orators_. It was intended as a _supplement_, or _fourth book_, +to three former ones, on the qualifications of an Orator. + +The second, which is intitled _The Orator_, was composed a very short time +afterwards (both of them in the 61st year of his age) and at the request +of Brutus. It contains a plan, or critical delineation, of what he himself +esteemed the most finished Eloquence, or style of Speaking. He calls it +_The Fifth Part, or Book_, designed to complete his _Brutus_, and _the +former three_ on the same subject. It was received with great approbation; +and in a letter to Lepta, who had complimented him upon it, he declares, +that whatever judgment he had in Speaking, he had thrown it all into that +work, and was content to risk his reputation on the merit of it. But it is +particularly recommended to our curiosity, by a more exact account of the +rhetorical _composition_, or _prosaic harmony_ of the ancients, than is to +be met with in any other part of his works. + +As to the present Translation, I must leave the merit of it to be decided +by the Public; and have only to observe, that though I have not, to my +knowledge, omitted a single sentence of the original, I was obliged, in +some places, to paraphrase my author, to render his meaning intelligible +to a modern reader. My chief aim was to be clear and perspicuous: if I +have succeeded in _that_, it is all I pretend to. I must leave it to abler +pens to copy the _Eloquence_ of Cicero. _Mine_ is unequal to the task. + + + + +BRUTUS, OR THE HISTORY OF ELOQUENCE. + + +When I had left Cilicia, and arrived at Rhodes, word was brought me of the +death of Hortensius. I was more affected with it than, I believe, was +generally expected. For, by the loss of my friend, I saw myself for ever +deprived of the pleasure of his acquaintance, and of our mutual +intercourse of good offices. I likewise reflected, with Concern, that the +dignity of our College must suffer greatly by the decease of such an +eminent augur. This reminded me, that _he_ was the person who first +introduced me to the College, where he attested my qualification upon +oath; and that it was _he_ also who installed me as a member; so that I +was bound by the constitution of the Order to respect and honour him as a +parent. My affliction was increased, that, in such a deplorable dearth of +wife and virtuous citizens, this excellent man, my faithful associate in +the service of the Public, expired at the very time when the Commonwealth +could least spare him, and when we had the greatest reason to regret the +want of his prudence and authority. I can add, very sincerely, that in +_him_ I lamented the loss, not (as most people imagined) of a dangerous +rival and competitor, but of a generous partner and companion in the +pursuit of same. For if we have instances in history, though in studies of +less public consequence, that some of the poets have been greatly +afflicted at the death of their contemporary bards; with what tender +concern should I honour the memory of a man, with whom it is more glorious +to have disputed the prize of eloquence, than never to have met with an +antagonist! especially, as he was always so far from obstructing _my_ +endeavours, or I _his_, that, on the contrary, we mutually assisted each +other, with our credit and advice. + +But as _he_, who had a perpetual run of felicity, left the world at a +happy moment for himself, though a most unfortunate one for his fellow- +citizens; and died when it would have been much easier for him to lament +the miseries of his country, than to assist it, after living in it as long +as he _could_ have lived with honour and reputation;--we may, indeed, +deplore his death as a heavy loss to _us_ who survive him. If, however, we +consider it merely as a personal event, we ought rather to congratulate +his fate, than to pity it; that, as often as we revive the memory of this +illustrious and truly happy man, we may appear at least to have as much +affection for him as for ourselves. For if we only lament that we are no +longer permitted to enjoy him, it must, indeed, be acknowledged that this +is a heavy misfortune to _us_; which it, however, becomes us to support +with moderation, less our sorrow should be suspected to arise from motives +of interest, and not from friendship. But if we afflict ourselves, on the +supposition that _he_ was the sufferer;--we misconstrue an event, which to +_him_ was certainly a very happy one. + +If Hortensius was now living, he would probably regret many other +advantages in common with his worthy fellow-citizens. But when he beheld +the Forum, the great theatre in which he used to exercise his genius, no +longer accessible to that accomplished eloquence, which could charm the +ears of a Roman, or a Grecian audience; he must have felt a pang of which +none, or at least but few, besides himself, could be susceptible. Even _I_ +am unable to restrain my tears, when I behold my country no longer +defensible by the genius, the prudence, and the authority of a legal +magistrate,--the only weapons which I have learned to weild, and to which +I have long been accustomed, and which are most suitable to the character +of an illustrious citizen, and of a virtuous and well-regulated state. + +But if there ever was a time, when the authority and eloquence of an +honest individual could have wrested their arms from the hands of his +distracted fellow-citizens; it was then when the proposal of a compromise +of our mutual differences was rejected, by the hasty imprudence of some, +and the timorous mistrust of others. Thus it happened, among other +misfortunes of a more deplorable nature, that when my declining age, after +a life spent in the service of the Public, should have reposed in the +peaceful harbour, not of an indolent, and a total inactivity, but of a +moderate and becoming retirement; and when my eloquence was properly +mellowed, and had acquired its full maturity;--thus it happened, I say, +that recourse was then had to those fatal arms, which the persons who had +learned the use of them in honourable conquest, could no longer employ to +any salutary purpose. Those, therefore, appear to me to have enjoyed a +fortunate and a happy life, (of whatever State they were members, but +especially in _our's_) who held their authority and reputation, either for +their military or political services, without interruption: and the sole +remembrance of them, in our present melancholy situation, was a pleasing +relief to me, when we lately happened to mention them in the course of +conversation. + +For, not long ago, when I was walking for my amusement, in a private +avenue at home, I was agreeably interrupted by my friend Brutus, and T. +Pomponius, who came, as indeed they frequently did, to visit me;--two +worthy citizens who were united to each other in the closest friendship, +and were so dear and so agreeable to me, that, on the first sight of them, +all my anxiety for the Commonwealth subsided. After the usual +salutations,--"Well, gentlemen," said I, "how go the times? What news have +you brought?" "None," replied Brutus, "that you would wish to hear, or +that I can venture to tell you for truth."--"No," said Atticus; "we are +come with an intention that all matters of state should be dropped; and +rather to hear something from you, than to say any thing which might serve +to distress you." "Indeed," said I, "your company is a present remedy for +my sorrow; and your letters, when absent, were so encouraging, that they +first revived my attention to my studies."--"I remember," replied +Atticus, "that Brutus sent you a letter from Asia, which I read with +infinite pleasure: for he advised you in it like a man of sense, and gave +you every consolation which the warmest friendship could suggest."-- +"True," said I, "for it was the receipt of that letter which recovered me +from a growing indisposition, to behold once more the cheerful face of +day; and as the Roman State, after the dreadful defeat near Cannae, first +raised its drooping head by the victory of Marcellus at Nola, which was +succeeded by many other victories; so, after the dismal wreck of our +affairs, both public and private, nothing occurred to me before the letter +of my friend Brutus, which I thought to be worth my attention, or which +contributed, in any degree, to the anxiety of my heart."--"That was +certainly my intention," answered Brutus; "and if I had the happiness to +succeed, I was sufficiently rewarded for my trouble. But I could wish to +be informed, what you received from Atticus which gave you such uncommon +pleasure."--"That," said I, "which not only entertained me; but, I hope, +has restored me entirely to myself."--"Indeed!" replied he; "and what +miraculous composition could that be?"--"Nothing," answered I; "could have +been a more acceptable, or a more seasonable present, than that excellent +Treatise of his which roused me from a state of languor and despondency." +--"You mean," said he, "his short, and, I think, very accurate abridgment +of Universal History."--"The very same," said I; "for that little Treatise +has absolutely saved me."--"I am heartily glad of it," said Atticus; "but +what could you discover in it which was either new to you, or so +wonderfully beneficial as you pretend?"--"It certainly furnished many +hints," said I, "which were entirely new to me: and the exact order of +time which you observed through the whole, gave me the opportunity I had +long wished for, of beholding the history of all nations in one regular +and comprehensive view. The attentive perusal of it proved an excellent +remedy for my sorrows, and led me to think of attempting something on your +own plan, partly to amuse myself, and partly to return your favour, by a +grateful, though not an equal acknowledgment. We are commanded, it is +true, in that precept of Hesiod, so much admired by the learned, to return +with the same measure we have received; or, if possible, with a larger. As +to a friendly inclination, I shall certainly return you a full proportion +of it; but as to a recompence in kind, I confess it to be out of my power, +and therefore hope you will excuse me: for I have no first-fruits (like a +prosperous husbandman) to acknowledge the obligation I have received; my +whole harvest having sickened and died, for want of the usual manure: and +as little am I able to present you with any thing from those hidden stores +which are now consigned to perpetual darkness, and to which I am denied +all access; though, formerly, I was almost the only person who was able to +command them at pleasure. I must therefore, try my skill in a long- +neglected and uncultivated soil; which I will endeavour to improve with so +much care, that I may be able to repay your liberality with interest; +provided my genius should be so happy as to resemble a fertile field, +which, after being suffered to lie fallow a considerable time, produces a +heavier crop than usual."--"Very well," replied Atticus, "I shall expect +the fulfilment of your promise; but I shall not insist upon it till it +suits your convenience; though, after all, I shall certainly be better +pleased if you discharge the obligation."--"And I also," said Brutus, +"shall expect that you perform your promise to my friend Atticus: nay, +though I am only his voluntary solicitor, I shall, perhaps, be very +pressing for the discharge of a debt, which the creditor himself is +willing to submit to your own choice."--"But I shall refuse to pay you," +said I, "unless the original creditor takes no farther part in the suit." +--"This is more than I can promise," replied he, "for I can easily +foresee, that this easy man, who disclaims all severity, will urge his +demand upon you, not indeed to distress you, but yet very closely and +seriously."--"To speak ingenuously," said Atticus, "my friend Brutus, I +believe, is not much mistaken: for as I now find you in good spirits, for +the first time, after a tedious interval of despondency, I shall soon make +bold to apply to you; and as this gentleman has promised his assistance, +to recover what you owe me, the least I can do is to solicit, in my turn, +for what is due to him." + +"Explain your meaning," said I.--"I mean," replied he, "that you must +write something to amuse us; for your pen has been totally silent this +long time; and since your Treatise on Politics, we have had nothing from +you of any kind; though it was the perusal of that which fired me with the +ambition to write an Abridgment of Universal History. But we shall, +however, leave you to answer this demand, when, and in what manner you +shall think most convenient. At present, if you are not otherwise engaged, +you must give us your sentiments on a subject on which we both desire to +be better informed."--"And what is that?" said I.--"What you gave me a +hasty sketch of," replied he, "when I saw you last at Tusculanum,--the +History of Famous Orators;--_when_ they made their appearance, and _who_ +and _what_ they were; which, furnished such an agreeable train of +conversation, that when I related the substance of it to _your_, or I +ought rather to have said our _common_ friend, Brutus, he expressed a +violent desire to hear the whole of it from your own mouth. Knowing you, +therefore, to be at leisure, we have taken the present opportunity to wait +upon you; so that, if it is really convenient, you will oblige us both by +resuming the subject."--"Well, gentlemen," said I, "as you are so +pressing, I will endeavour to satisfy you in the best manner I am able."-- +"You are _able_ enough," replied he; "only unbend yourself a little, or, +if you can set your mind at full liberty."--"If I remember right," said I, +"Atticus, what gave rise to the conversation, was my observing, that the +cause of Deiotarus, a most excellent Sovereign, and a faithful ally, was +pleaded by our friend Brutus, in my hearing, with the greatest elegance +and dignity."--"True," replied he, "and you took occasion from the ill +success of Brutus, to lament the loss of a fair administration of justice +in the Forum."--"I did so," answered I, "as indeed I frequently do: and +whenever I see you, my Brutus, I am concerned to think where your +wonderful genius, your finished erudition, and unparalleled industry will +find a theatre to display themselves. For after you had thoroughly +improved your abilities, by pleading a variety of important causes; and +when my declining vigour was just giving way, and lowering the ensigns of +dignity to your more active talents; the liberty of the State received a +fatal overthrow, and that Eloquence, of which we are now to give the +History, was condemned to perpetual silence."--"Our other misfortunes," +replied Brutus, "I lament sincerely; and I think I ought to lament them:-- +but as to Eloquence, I am not so fond of the influence and the glory it +bestows, as of the study and the practice of it, which nothing can deprive +me of, while you are so well disposed to assist me: for no man can be an +eloquent speaker, who has not a clear and ready conception. Whoever, +therefore, applies himself to the study of Eloquence, is at the same time +improving his judgment, which is a talent equally necessary in all +military operations." + +"Your remark," said I, "is very just; and I have a higher opinion of the +merit of eloquence, because, though there is scarcely any person so +diffident as not to persuade himself, that he either has, or may acquire +every other accomplishment which, formerly, could have given him +consequence in the State; I can find no person who has been made an orator +by the success of his military prowess.--But that we may carry on the +conversation with greater ease, let us seat ourselves."--As my visitors +had no objection to this, we accordingly took our seats in a private lawn, +near a statue of Plato. + +Then resuming the conversation,--"to recommend the study of eloquence," +said I, "and describe its force, and the great dignity it confers upon +those who have acquired it, is neither our present design, nor has any +necessary connection with it. But I will not hesitate to affirm, that +whether it is acquired by art or practice, or the mere powers of nature, +it is the most difficult of all attainments; for each of the five branches +of which it is said to consist, is of itself a very important art; from +whence it may easily be conjectured, how great and arduous must be the +profession which unites and comprehends them all. + +"Greece alone is a sufficient witness of this:--for though she was fired +with a wonderful love of Eloquence, and has long since excelled every +other nation in the practice of it, yet she had all the rest of the arts +much earlier; and had not only invented, but even compleated them, a +considerable time before she was mistress of the full powers of elocution. +But when I direct my eyes to Greece, your beloved Athens, my Atticus, +first strikes my sight, and is the brightest object in my view: for in +that illustrious city the _orator_ first made his appearance, and it is +there we shall find the earliest records of eloquence, and the first +specimens of a discourse conducted by rules of art. But even in Athens +there is not a single production now extant which discovers any taste for +ornament, or seems to have been the effort of a real orator, before the +time of Pericles (whose name is prefixed to some orations which still +remain) and his cotemporary Thucydides; who flourished,--not in the +infancy of the State, but when it was arrived at its full maturity of +power. + +"It is, however, supposed, that Pisistratus (who lived many years before) +together with Solon, who was something older, and Clisthenes, who survived +them both, were very able speakers for the age they lived in. But some +years after these, as may be collected from the Attic Annals, came the +above-mentioned Themistocles, who is said to have been as much +distinguished by his eloquence as by his political abilities;--and after +him the celebrated Pericles, who, though adorned with every kind of +excellence, was most admired for his talent of speaking. Cleon also (their +cotemporary) though a turbulent citizen, was allowed to be a tolerable +orator. + +"These were immediately succeeded by Alcibiades, Critias, and Theramenes, +whose manner of speaking may be easily inferred from the writings of +Thucydides, who lived at the same time: their discourses were nervous and +stately, full of sententious remarks, and so excessively concise as to be +sometimes obscure. But as soon as the force of a regular and a well- +adjusted speech was understood, a sudden crowd of rhetoricians appeared,-- +such as Gorgias the Leontine, Thrasymachus the Chalcedonian, Protagoras +the Abderite, and Hippias the Elean, who were all held in great esteem,-- +with many others of the same age, who professed (it must be owned, rather +too arrogantly) to teach their scholars,--_how the worse might be made, by +the force of eloquence, to appear the better cause_. But these were openly +opposed by the famous Socrates, who, by an adroit method of arguing which +was peculiar to himself, took every opportunity to refute the principles +of their art. His instructive conferences produced a number of intelligent +men, and _Philosophy_ is said to have derived her birth from him;--not the +doctrine of _Physics_, which was of an earlier date, but that Philosophy +which treats of men, and manners, and of the nature of good and evil. But +as this is foreign to our present subject, we must defer the Philosophers +to another opportunity, and return to the Orators, from whom I have +ventured to make a sort digression. + +"When the professors therefore, abovementioned were in the decline of +life, Isocrates made his appearance, whos house stood open to all Greece +as the _School of Eloquence_. He was an accomplished orator, and an +excellent teacher; though he did not display his talents in the Forum, but +cherished and improved that glory within the walls of his academy, which, +in my opinion, no poet has ever yet acquired. He composed many valuable +specimens of his art, and taught the principles of it to others; and not +only excelled his predecessors in every part of it, but first discovered +that a certain _metre_ should be observed in prose, though totally +different from the measured rhyme of the poets. Before _him_, the +artificial structure and harmony of language was unknown;--or if there are +any traces of it to be discovered, they appear to have been made without +design; which, perhaps, will be thought a beauty:--but whatever it may be +deemed, it was, in the present case, the effect rather of native genius, +or of accident, than of art and observation. For mere nature itself will +measure and limit our sentences by a convenient compass of words; and when +they are thus confined to a moderate flow of expression, they will +frequently have a _numerous_ cadence:--for the ear alone can decide what +is full and complete, and what is deficient; and the course of our +language will necessarily be regulated by our breath, in which it is +excessively disagreeable, not only to fail, but even to labour. + +"After Isocrates came Lysias, who, though not personally engaged in +forensic causes, was a very artful and an elegant composer, and such a one +as you might almost venture to pronounce a complete orator: for +Demosthenes is the man who approaches the character so nearly, that you +may apply it to him without hesitation. No keen, no artful turns could +have been contrived for the pleadings he has left behind him, which he did +not readily discover;--nothing could have been expressed with greater +nicety, or more clearly and poignantly, than it has been already expressed +by him;--and nothing greater, nothing more rapid and forcible, nothing +adorned with a nobler elevation either of language, or sentiment, can be +conceived than what is to be found in his orations. He was soon rivalled +by his cotemporaries Hyperides, Aeschines, Lycurgus, Dinarchus, and +Demades (none of whose writings are extant) with many others that might be +mentioned: for this age was adorned with a profusion of good orators; and +the genuine strength and vigour of Eloquence appears to me to have +subsisted to the end of this period, which was distinguished by a natural +beauty of composition without disguise or affectation. + +"When these orators were in the decline of life, they were succeeded by +Phalereus; who was then in the prime of youth. He was indeed a man of +greater learning than any of them, but was fitter to appear on the parade, +than in the field; and, accordingly, he rather pleased and entertained the +Athenians, than inflamed their passions; and marched forth into the dust +and heat of the Forum, not from a weather-beaten tent, but from the shady +recesses of Theophrastus, a man of consummate erudition. He was the first +who relaxed the force of Eloquence, and gave her a soft and tender air: +and he rather chose to be agreeable, as indeed he was, than great and +striking; but agreeable in such a manner as rather charmed, than warmed +the mind of the hearer. His greatest ambition was to impress his audience +with a high opinion of his elegance, and not, as Eupolis relates of +Pericles, to _sting_ as well as to _please_. + +"You see, then, in the very city in which Eloquence was born and nurtured, +how late it was before she grew to maturity; for before the time of Solon +and Pisistratus, we meet with no one who is so much as mentioned for his +talent of speaking. These, indeed, if we compute by the Roman date, may be +reckoned very ancient; but if by that of the Athenians, we shall find them +to be moderns. For though they flourished in the reign of Servius Tullius, +Athens had then subsisted much longer than Rome has at present. I have +not, however, the least doubt that the power of Eloquence has been always +more or less conspicuous. For Homer, we may suppose, would not have +ascribed such superior talents of elocution to Ulysses, and Nestor (one of +whom he celebrates for his force, and the other for his sweetness) unless +the art of Speaking had then been held in some esteem; nor could the Poet +himself have been master of such an ornamental style, and so excellent a +vein of Oratory as we actually find in him.--The time indeed in which he +lived is undetermined: but we are certain that he flourished many years +before Romulus: for he was at least of as early a date as the elder +Lycurgus, the legislator of the Spartans. + +"But a particular attention to the art, and a greater ability in the +practice of it, may be observed in Pisistratus. He was succeeded in the +following century by Themistocles, who, according to the Roman date, was a +person of the remotest antiquity; but, according to that of the Athenians, +he was almost a modern. For he lived when Greece was in the height of her +power, but when the city of Rome had but lately freed herself from the +shackles of regal tyranny;--for the dangerous war with the Volsci, who +were headed by Coriolanus (then a voluntary exile) happened nearly at the +same time as the Persian war; and we may add, that the fate of both +commanders was remarkably similar. Each of them, after distinguishing +himself as an excellent citizen, being driven from his country by the +wrongs of an ungrateful people, went over to the enemy: and each of them +repressed the efforts of his resentment by a voluntary death. For though +you, my Atticus, have represented the exit of Coriolanus in a different +manner, you must give me leave to dispatch him in the way I have +mentioned."--"You may use your pleasure," replied Atticus with a smile: +"for it is the privilege of rhetoricians to exceed the truth of history, +that they may have an opportunity of embellishing the fate of their +heroes: and accordingly, Clitarchus and Stratocles have entertained us +with the same pretty fiction about the death of Themistocles, which you +have invented for Coriolanus. Thucydides, indeed, who was himself an +Athenian of the highest rank and merit, and lived nearly at the same time, +has only informed us that he died, and was privately buried in Attica, +adding, that it was suspected by some that he had poisoned himself. But +these ingenious writers have assured us, that, having slain a bull at the +altar, he caught the blood in a large bowl, and, drinking it off, fell +suddenly dead upon the ground. For this species of death had a tragical +air, and might be described with all the pomp of rhetoric; whereas the +ordinary way of dying afforded no opportunity for ornament. As it will, +therefore, suit your purpose, that Coriolanus should resemble Themistocles +in every thing, I give you leave to introduce the fatal bowl; and you may +still farther heighten the catastrophe by a solemn sacrifice, that +Coriolanus may appear in all respects to have been a second Themistocles." + +"I am much obliged to you," said I, "for your courtesy: but, for the +future, I shall be more cautious in meddling with History when you are +present; whom I may justly commend as a most exact and scrupulous relator +of the Roman History; but nearly at the time we are speaking of (though +somewhat later) lived the above-mentioned Pericles, the illustrious son of +Xantippus, who first improved his eloquence by the friendly aids of +literature;--not that kind of literature which treats professedly of the +art of Speaking, of which there was then no regular system; but after he +had studied under Anaxagoras the Naturalist, he easily transferred his +capacity from abstruse and intricate speculations to forensic and popular +debates. + +"All Athens was charmed with the sweetness of his language; and not only +admired him for his fluency, but was awed by the superior force and the +_terrors_ of his eloquence. This age, therefore, which may be considered +as the infancy of the Art, furnished Athens with an Orator who almost +reached the summit of his profession: for an emulation to shine in the +Forum is not usually found among a people who are either employed in +settling the form of their government, or engaged in war, or struggling +with difficulties, or subjected to the arbitrary power of Kings. Eloquence +is the attendant of peace, the companion of ease and prosperity, and the +tender offspring of a free and a well established constitution. Aristotle, +therefore, informs us, that when the Tyrants were expelled from Sicily, +and private property (after a long interval of servitude) was determined +by public trials, the Sicilians Corax and Tisias (for this people, in +general, were very quick and acute, and had a natural turn for +controversy) first attempted to write precepts on the art of Speaking. +Before them, he says, there was no one who spoke by method, and rules of +art, though there were many who discoursed very sensibly, and generally +from written notes: but Protagoras took the pains to compose a number of +dissertations, on such leading and general topics as are now called common +places. Gorgias, he adds, did the same, and wrote panegyrics and +invectives on every subject: for he thought it was the province of an +Orator to be able either to exaggerate, or extenuate, as occasion might +require. Antiphon the Rhamnusian composed several essays of the same +species; and (according to Thucydides, a very respectable writer, who was +present to hear him) pleaded a capital cause in his own defence, with as +much eloquence as had ever yet been displayed by any man. But Lysias was +the first who openly professed the _Art_; and, after him, Theodorus, being +better versed in the theory than the practice of it, begun to compose +orations for others to pronounce; but reserved the method of doing it to +himself. In the same manner, Isocrates at first disclaimed the Art, but +wrote speeches for other people to deliver; on which account, being often +prosecuted for assisting, contrary to law, to circumvent one or another of +the parties in judgment, he left off composing orations for other people, +and wholly applied himself to writing rules and systems. + +"Thus then we have traced the birth and origin of the Orators of Greece, +who were, indeed, very ancient, as I have before observed, if we compute +by the Roman Annals; but of a much later date, if we reckon by their own: +for the Athenian State had signalized itself by a variety of great +exploits, both at home and abroad, a considerable time before she was +ravished with the charms of Eloquence. But this noble Art was not common +to Greece in general, but almost peculiar to Athens. For who has ever +heard of an Argive, a Corinthian, or a Theban Orator at the times we are +speaking of? unless, perhaps, some merit of the kind may be allowed to +Epaminondas, who was a man of uncommon erudition. But I have never read of +a Lacedemonian Orator, from the earliest period of time to the present. +For Menelaus himself, though said by Homer to have possessed a sweet +elocution, is likewise described as a man of few words. Brevity, indeed, +upon some occasions, is a real excellence; but it is very far from being +compatible with the general character of Eloquence. + +"The Art of Speaking was likewise studied, and admired, beyond the limits +of Greece; and the extraordinary honours which were paid to Oratory have +perpetuated the names of many foreigners who had the happiness to excel in +it. For no sooner had Eloquence ventured to sail from the Pireaeus, but +she traversed all the isles, and visited every part of Asia; till at last +she infected herself with their manners, and lost all the purity and the +healthy complexion of the Attic style, and indeed had almost forgot her +native language. The Asiatic Orators, therefore, though not to be +undervalued for the rapidity and the copious variety of their elocution, +were certainly too loose and luxuriant. But the Rhodians were of a sounder +constitution, and more resembled the Athenians. So much, then, for the +Greeks; for, perhaps, what I have already said of them, is more than was +necessary." + +"As to the necessity of it," answered Brutus, "there is no occasion to +speak of it: but what you have said of them has entertained me so +agreeably, that instead of being longer, it has been much shorter than I +could have wished."--"A very handsome compliment," said I;--"but it is +time to begin with our own countrymen, of whom it is difficult to give any +further account than what we are able to conjecture from our Annals.--For +who can question the address, and the capacity of Brutus, the illustrious +founder of your family? That Brutus, who so readily discovered the meaning +of the Oracle, which promised the supremacy to him who should first salute +his mother? That Brutus, who concealed the most consummate abilities under +the appearance of a natural defect of understanding? Who dethroned and +banished a powerful monarch, the son of an illustrious sovereign? Who +settled the State, which he had rescued from arbitrary power, by the +appointment of an annual magistracy, a regular system of laws, and a free +and open course of justice? And who abrogated the authority of his +colleague, that he might rid the city of the smallest vestige of the +_regal_ name?--Events, which could never have been produced without +exerting the powers of Persuasion!--We are likewise informed that a few +years after the expulsion of the Kings, when the Plebeians retired to the +banks of the Anio, about three miles from the city, and had possessed +themselves of what is called The _sacred_ Mount, M. Valerius the dictator +appeased their fury by a public harangue; for which he was afterwards +rewarded with the highest posts of honour, and was the first Roman who was +distinguished by the surname of _Maximus_. Nor can L. Valerius Potitus be +supposed to have been destitute of the powers of utterance, who, after the +odium which had been excited against the Patricians by the tyrannical +government of the _Decemviri_, reconciled the people to the Senate, by his +prudent laws and conciliatory speeches. We may likewise suppose, that +Appius Claudius was a man of some eloquence; since he dissuaded the Senate +from consenting to a peace with King Pyrrhus, though they were much +inclined to it. The same might be said of Caius Fabricius, who was +dispatched to Pyrrhus to treat for the ransom of his captive fellow- +citizens; and of Titus Coruncanius, who appears by the memoirs of the +pontifical college, to have been a person of no contemptible genius: and +likewise of M. Curius (then a tribune of the people) who, when the +Interrex Appius _the Blind_, an artful Speaker, held the _Comitia_ +contrary to law, by refusing to admit any consuls of plebeian rank, +prevailed upon the Senate to protest against the conduct: of his +antagonist; which, if we consider that the Moenian law was not then in +being, was a very bold attempt. We may also conjecture, that M. Popilius +was a man of abilities, who, in the time of his consulship, when he was +solemnizing a public sacrifice in the proper habit of his office, (for he +was also a Flamen Carmentalis) hearing of the mutiny and insurrection of +the people against the Senate, rushed immediately into the midst of the +assembly, covered as he was with his sacerdotal robes, and quelled the +sedition by his authority and the force of his elocution. I do not pretend +to have read that the persons I have mentioned were then reckoned Orators, +or that any fort of reward or encouragement was given to Eloquence: I only +conjecture what appears very probable. It is also recorded, that C. +Flaminius, who, when tribune of the people proposed the law for dividing +the conquered territories of the Gauls and Piceni among the citizens, and +who, after his promotion to the consulship, was slain near the lake +Thrasimenus, became very popular by the mere force of his address, Quintus +Maximus Verrucosus was likewise reckoned a good Speaker by his +cotemporaries; as was also Quintus Metellus, who, in the second Punic war, +was joint consul with L. Veturius Philo. But the first person we have any +certain account of, who was publicly distinguished as an _Orator_, and who +really appears to have been such, was M. Cornelius Cethegus; whose +eloquence is attested by Q. Ennius, a voucher of the highest credibility; +since he actually heard him speak, and gave him this character after his +death; so that there is no reason to suspect that he was prompted by the +warmth of his friendship to exceed the bounds of truth. In his ninth book +of Annals, he has mentioned him in the following terms: + + "_Additur Orator Corneliu' suaviloquenti + Ore Cethegus Marcu', Tuditano collega, + Marci Filius._" + +"_Add the_ Orator _M. Cornelius Cethegus, so much admired for his +mellifluent tongue; who was the colleague of Tuditanus, and the son of +Marcus_." + +"He expressly calls him an _Orator_, you see, and attributes to him a +remarkable sweetness of elocution; which, even now a-days, is an +excellence of which few are possessed: for some of our modern Orators are +so insufferably harsh, that they may rather be said to bark than to speak. +But what the Poet so much admires in his friend, may certainly be +considered as one of the principal ornaments of Eloquence. He adds; + +" ----_is dictus, ollis popularibus olim, + Qui tum vivebant homines, atque aevum agitabant, + Flos delibatus populi_." + +"_He was called by his cotemporaries, the choicest Flower of the State_." + +"A very elegant compliment! for as the glory of a man is the strength of +his mental capacity, so the brightest ornament of that is Eloquence; in +which, whoever had the happiness to excel, was beautifully styled, by the +Ancients, the _Flower_ of the State; and, as the Poet immediately +subjoins, + + "'--_Suadaeque medulla:' + +"the very marrow and quintessence of Persuasion_." + +"That which the Greeks call [Greek: Peitho], _(i.e. Persuasion)_ and which +it is the chief business of an Orator to effect, is here called _Suada_ by +Ennius; and of this he commends Cethegus as the _quintessence_; so that he +makes the Roman Orator to be himself the very substance of that amiable +Goddess, who is said by Eupolis to have dwelt on the lips of Pericles. +This Cethegus was joint-consul with P. Tuditanus in the second Punic war; +at which time also M. Cato was Quaestor, about one hundred and forty years +before I myself was promoted to the consulship; which circumstance would +have been absolutely lost, if it had not been recorded by Ennius; and the +memory of that illustrious citizen, as has probably been the case of many +others, would have been obliterated by the rust of antiquity. The manner +of speaking which was then in vogue, may easily be collected from the +writings of _Naevius_: for Naevius died, as we learn from the memoirs of +the times, when the persons above-mentioned were consuls; though Varro, a +most accurate investigator of historical truth, thinks there is a mistake +in this, and fixes the death of Naevius something later. For Plautus died +in the consulship of P. Claudius and L. Porcius, twenty years after the +consulship of the persons we have been speaking of, and when Cato was +Censor. Cato, therefore, must have been younger than Cethegus, for he was +consul nine years after him: but we always consider him as a person of the +remotest antiquity, though he died in the consulship of Lucius Marcius and +M. Manilius, and but eighty-three years before my own promotion to the +same office. He is certainly, however, the most ancient Orator we have, +whose writings may claim our attention; unless any one is pleased with the +above-mentioned speech of Appius, on the peace with Pyrrhus, or with a set +of panegyrics on the dead, which, I own, are still extant. For it was +customary in most families of note to preserve their images, their +trophies of honour, and their memoirs, either to adorn a funeral when any +of the family deceased, or to perpetuate the fame of their ancestors, or +prove their own nobility. But the truth of History has been much corrupted +by these laudatory essays; for many circumstances were recorded in them +which never existed; such as false triumphs, a pretended succession of +consulships, and false alliances and elevations, when men of inferior rank +were confounded with a noble family of the same name: as if I myself +should pretend that I am descended from M. Tullius, who was a Patrician, +and shared the consulship with Servius Sulpicius, about ten years after +the expulsion of the kings. + +"But the real speeches of Cato are almost as numerous as those of Lysias +the Athenian; a great number of whose are still extant. For Lysias was +certainly an Athenian; because he not only died but received his birth at +Athens, and served all the offices of the city; though Timaesus, as if he +acted by the Licinian or the Mucian law, remands him back to Syracuse. +There is, however, a manifest resemblance between _his_ character and that +of _Cato_: for they are both of them distinguished by their acuteness, +their elegance, their agreeable humour, and their brevity. But the Greek +has the happiness to be most admired: for there are some who are so +extravagantly fond of him, as to prefer a graceful air to a vigorous +constitution, and who are perfectly satisfied with a slender and an easy +shape, if it is only attended with a moderate share of health. It must, +however, be acknowledged, that even Lysias often displays a strength of +arm, than which nothing can be more strenuous and forcible; though he is +certainly, in all respects, of a more thin and feeble habit than Cato, +notwithstanding he has so many admirers, who are charmed with his very +slenderness. But as to Cato, where will you find a modern Orator who +condescends to read him?--nay, I might have said, who has the least +knowledge of him?--And yet, good Gods! what a wonderful man! I say nothing +of his merit as a Citizen, a Senator, and a General; we must confine our +attention to the Orator. Who, then, has displayed more dignity as a +panegyrist?--more severity as an accuser?--more ingenuity in the turn of +his sentiments?--or more neatness and address in his narratives and +explanations? Though he composed above a hundred and fifty orations, +(which I have seen and read) they are crowded with all the beauties of +language and sentiment. Let us select from these what deserves our notice +and applause: they will supply us with all the graces of Oratory. Not to +omit his _Antiquities_, who will deny that these also are adorned with +every flower, and with all the lustre of Eloquence? and yet he has +scarcely any admirers; which some ages ago was the case of Philistus the +Syracusan, and even of Thucydides himself. For as the lofty and elevated +style of Theopompus soon diminished the reputation of their pithy and +laconic harangues, which were sometimes scarcely intelligible through +their excessive brevity and quaintness; and as Demosthenes eclipsed the +glory of Lysias, so the pompous and stately elocution of the moderns has +obscured the lustre of Cato. But many of us are shamefully ignorant and +inattentive; for we admire the Greeks for their antiquity, and what is +called their Attic neatness, and yet have never noticed the same quality +in Cato. It was the distinguishing character, say they, of Lysias and +Hyperides. I own it, and I admire them for it: but why not allow a share +of it to Cato? They are fond, they tell us, of the _Attic_ style of +Eloquence: and their choice is certainly judicious, provided they borrow +the blood and the healthy juices, as well as the bones and membranes. What +they recommend, however, is, to do it justice, an agreeable quality. But +why must Lysias and Hyperides be so fondly courted, while Cato is entirely +overlooked? His language indeed has an antiquated air, and some of his +expressions are rather too harsh and crabbed. But let us remember that +this was the language of the time: only change and modernize it, which it +was not in his power to do;--add the improvements of number and cadence, +give an easier turn to his sentences, and regulate the structure and +connection of his words, (which was as little practised even by the older +Greeks as by him) and you will discover no one who can claim the +preference to Cato. The Greeks themselves acknowledge that the chief +beauty of composition results from the frequent use of those +_translatitious_ forms of expression which they call _Tropes_, and of +those various attitudes of language and sentiment which they call +_Figures_: but it is almost incredible in what numbers, and with what +amazing variety, they are all employed by Cato. I know, indeed, that he is +not sufficiently polished, and that recourse must be had to a more perfect +model for imitation: for he is an author of such antiquity, that he is the +oldest now extant, whose writings can be read with patience; and the +ancients in general acquired a much greater reputation in every other art, +than in that of Speaking. But who that has seen the statues of the +moderns, will not perceive in a moment, that the figures of Canachus are +too stiff and formal, to resemble life? Those of Calamis, though evidently +harsh, are somewhat softer. Even the statues of Myron are not sufficiently +alive; and yet you would not hesitate to pronounce them beautiful. But +those of Polycletes are much finer, and, in my mind, completely finished. +The case is the same in Painting; for in the works of Zeuxis, Polygnotus, +Timanthes, and several other masters who confined themselves to the use of +four colours, we commend the air and the symmetry of their figures; but in +Aetion, Nicomachus, Protogenes, and Apelles, every thing is finished to +perfection. This, I believe, will hold equally true in all the other arts; +for there is not one of them which was invented and completed at the same +time. I cannot doubt, for instance, that there were many Poets before +Homer: we may infer it from those very songs which he himself informs us +were sung at the feasts of the Phaeacians, and of the profligate suitors +of Penelope. Nay, to go no farther, what is become of the ancient poems of +our own countrymen?" + + "Such as the Fauns and rustic Bards compos'd, + When none the rocks of poetry had cross'd, + Nor wish'd to form his style by rules of art, + Before this vent'rous man: &c. + +"Old Ennius here speaks of himself; nor does he carry his boast beyond the +bounds of truth: the case being really as he describes it. For we had only +an Odyssey in Latin, which resembled one of the rough and unfinished +statues of Daedalus; and some dramatic pieces of Livius, which will +scarcely bear a second reading. This Livius exhibited his first +performance at Rome in the Consulship of M. Tuditanus, and C. Clodius the +son of Caecus, the year before Ennius was born, and, according to the +account of my friend Atticus, (whom I choose to follow) the five hundred +and fourteenth from the building of the city. But historians are not +agreed about the date of the year. Attius informs us that Livius was taken +prisoner at Tarentum by Quintus Maximus in his fifth Consulship, about +thirty years after he is said by Atticus, and our ancient annals, to have +introduced the drama. He adds that he exhibited his first dramatic piece +about eleven years after, in the Consulship of C. Cornelius and Q. +Minucius, at the public games which Salinator had vowed to the Goddess of +Youth for his victory over the Senones. But in this, Attius was so far +mistaken, that Ennius, when the persons above-mentioned were Consuls, was +forty years old: so that if Livius was of the same age, as in this case he +would have been, the first dramatic author we had must have been younger +than Plautus and Naevius, who had exhibited a great number of plays before +the time he specifies. If these remarks, my Brutus, appear unsuitable to +the subject before us, you must throw the whole blame upon Atticus, who +has inspired me with a strange curiosity to enquire into the age of +illustrious men, and the respective times of their appearance."--"On the +contrary," said Brutus, "I am highly pleased that you have carried your +attention so far; and I think your remarks well adapted to the curious +task you have undertaken, the giving us a history of the different classes +of Orators in their proper order."--"You understand me right," said I; +"and I heartily wish those venerable Odes were still extant, which Cato +informs us in his Antiquities, used to be sung by every guest in his turn +at the homely feasts of our ancestors, many ages before, to commemorate +the feats of their heroes. But the _Punic war_ of that antiquated Poet, +whom Ennius so proudly ranks among the _Fauns and rustic Bards_, affords +me as exquisite a pleasure as the finest statue that was ever formed by +Myron. Ennius, I allow, was a more finished writer: but if he had really +undervalued the other, as he pretends to do, he would scarcely have +omitted such a bloody war as the first _Punic_, when he attempted +professedly to describe all the wars of the Republic. Nay he himself +assigns the reason. + + "Others" (said he) "that cruel war have sung:" + +Very true, and they have sung it with great order and precision, though +not, indeed, in such elegant strains as yourself. This you ought to have +acknowledged, as you must certainly be conscious that you have borrowed +many ornaments from Naevius; or if you refuse to own it, I shall tell you +plainly that you have _pilfered_ them. + +"Cotemporary with the Cato above-mentioned (though somewhat older) were C. +Flaminius, C. Varro, Q. Maximus, Q. Metellus, P. Lentulus, and P. Crassus +who was joint Consul with the elder Africanus. This Scipio, we are told, +was not destitute of the powers of Elocution: but his son, who adopted the +younger Scipio (the son of Paulus Aemilius) would have stood foremost in +the list of Orators, if he had possessed a firmer constitution. This is +evident from a few Speeches, and a Greek History of his, which are very +agreeably written. In the same class we may place Sextus Aelius, who was +the best lawyer of his time, and a ready speaker. A little after these, +was C. Sulpicius Gallus, who was better acquainted with the Grecian +literature than all the rest of the nobility, and was reckoned a graceful +Orator, being equally distinguished, in every other respect, by the +superior elegance of his taste; for a more copious and splendid way of +speaking began now to prevail. When this Sulpicius, in quality of Praetor, +was celebrating the public shews in honour of Apollo, died the Poet +Ennius, in the Consulship of Q. Marcius and Cn. Servilius, after +exhibiting his Tragedy of _Thyestes_. At the same time lived Tiberius +Gracchus, the son of Publius, who was twice Consul and Censor: a Greek +Oration of his to the Rhodians is still extant, and he bore the character +of a worthy citizen, and an eloquent Speaker. We are likewise told that P. +Scipio Nasica, surnamed The Darling of the People, and who also had the +honor to be twice chosen Consul and Censor, was esteemed an able Orator: +To him we may add L. Lentulus, who was joint Consul with C. Figulus;--Q. +Nobilior, the son of Marcus, who was inclined to the study of literature +by his father's example, and presented Ennius (who had served under his +father in Aetolia) with the freedom of the City, when he founded a colony +in quality of Triumvir: and his colleague, T. Annius Luscus, who is said +to have been tolerably eloquent. We are likewise informed that L. Paulus, +the father of Africanus, defended the character of an eminent citizen in a +public speech; and that Cato, who died in the 83d year of his age, was +then living, and actually pleaded, that very year, against the defendant +Servius Galba, in the open Forum, with great energy and spirit:--he has +left a copy of this Oration behind him. But when Cato was in the decline +of life, a crowd of Orators, all younger than himself, made their +appearance at the same time: For A. Albinus, who wrote a History in Greek, +and shared the Consulship with L. Lucullus, was greatly admired for his +learning and Elocution: and almost equal to him were Servius Fulvius, and +Servius Fabius Pictor, the latter of whom was well acquainted with the +laws of his country, the Belles Lettres, and the History of Antiquity. +Quintus Fabius Labeo was likewise adorned with the same accomplishments. +But Q. Metellus whose four sons attained the consular dignity, was admired +for his Eloquence beyond the rest;--he undertook the defence of L. Cotta, +when he was accused by Africanus,--and composed many other Speeches, +particularly that against Tiberius Gracchus, which we have a full account +of in the Annals of C. Fannius. L. Cotta himself was likewise reckoned a +_veteran_; but C. Laelius, and P. Africanus were allowed by all to be more +finished Speakers: their Orations are still extant, and may serve as +specimens of their respective abilities. But Servius Galba, who was +something older than any of them, was indisputably the best speaker of the +age. He was the first among the Romans who displayed the proper and +distinguishing talents of an Orator, such as, digressing from his subject +to embellish and diversify it,--soothing or alarming the passions, +exhibiting every circumstance in the strongest light,--imploring the +compassion of his audience, and artfully enlarging on those topics, or +general principles of Prudence or Morality, on which the stress of his +argument depended: and yet, I know not how, though he is allowed to have +been the greatest Orator of his time, the Orations he has left are more +lifeless, and have a more antiquated air, than those of Laelius, or +Scipio, or even of Cato himself: in short, the strength and substance of +them has so far evaporated, that we have scarcely any thing of them +remaining but the bare skeletons. In the same manner, though both Laelius +and Scipio are greatly extolled for their abilities; the preference was +given to Laelius as a speaker; and yet his Oration, in defence of the +privileges of the Sacerdotal College, has no greater merit than any one +you may please to fix upon of the numerous speeches of Scipio. Nothing, +indeed, can be sweeter and milder than that of Laelius, nor could any +thing have been urged with greater dignity to support the honour of +religion: but, of the two, Laelius appears to me to be rougher, and more +old-fashioned than Scipio; and, as different Speakers have different +tastes, he had in my mind too strong a relish for antiquity, and was too +fond of using obsolete expressions. But such is the jealousy of mankind, +that they will not allow the same person to be possessed of too many +perfections. For as in military prowess they thought it impossible that +any man could vie with Scipio, though Laelius had not a little +distinguished himself in the war with Viriathus; so for learning, +Eloquence, and wisdom, though each was allowed to be above the reach of +any other competitor, they adjudged the preference to Laelius. Nor was +this only the opinion of the world, but it seems to have been allowed by +mutual consent between themselves: for it was then a general custom, as +candid in this respect as it was fair and just in every other, to give his +due to each. I accordingly remember that P. Rutilius Rufus once told me at +Smyrna, that when he was a young man, the two Consuls P. Scipio and D. +Brutus, by order of the Senate, tried a capital cause of great +consequence. For several persons of note having been murdered in the Silan +Forest, and the domestics, and some of the sons, of a company of gentlemen +who farmed the taxes of the pitch-manufactory, being charged with the +fact, the Consuls were ordered to try the cause in person. Laelius, he +said, spoke very sensibly and elegantly, as indeed he always did, on the +side of the farmers of the customs. But the Consuls, after hearing both +sides, judging it necessary to refer the matter to a second trial, the +same Laelius, a few days after, pleaded their cause again with more +accuracy, and much better than at first. The affair, however, was once +more put off for a further hearing. Upon this, when his clients attended +Laelius to his own house, and, after thanking him for what he had already +done, earnestly begged him not to be disheartened by the fatigue he had +suffered;--he assured them he had exerted his utmost to defend their +reputation; but frankly added, that he thought their cause would be more +effectually supported by Servius Galba, whose manner of speaking was more +embellished and more spirited than his own. They, accordingly, by the +advice of Laelius, requested Galba to undertake it. To this he consented; +but with the greatest modesty and reluctance, out of respect to the +illustrious advocate he was going to succeed:--and as he had only the next +day to prepare himself, he spent the whole of it in considering and +digesting his cause. When the day of trial was come, Rutilius himself, at +the request of the defendants, went early in the morning to Galba, to give +him notice of it, and conduct him to the court in proper time. But till +word was brought that the Consuls were going to the bench, he confined +himself in his study, where he suffered no one to be admitted; and +continued very busy in dictating to his Amanuenses, several of whom (as +indeed he often used to do) he kept fully employed at once. While he was +thus engaged, being informed that it was high time for him to appear in +court, he left his house with so much life in his eyes, and such an ardent +glow upon his countenance, that you would have thought he had not only +_prepared_ his cause, but actually _carried_ it. Rutilius added, as +another circumstance worth noticing, that his scribes, who attended him to +the bar, appeared excessively fatigued: from whence he thought it probable +that he was equally warm and vigorous in the composition, as in the +delivery of his speeches. But to conclude the story, Galba pleaded his +cause before Laelius himself, and a very numerous and attentive audience, +with such uncommon force and dignity, that every part of his Oration +received the applause of his hearers: and so powerfully did he move the +feelings, and affect the pity of the judges, that his clients were +immediately acquitted of the charge, to the satisfaction of the whole +court. + +"As, therefore, the two principal qualities required in an Orator, are to +be neat and clear in stating the nature of his subject, and warm and +forcible in moving the passions; and as he who fires and inflames his +audience, will always effect more than he who can barely inform and amuse +them; we may conjecture from the above narrative, which I was favoured +with by Rutilius, that Laelius was most admired for his elegance, and +Galba for his pathetic force. But this force of his was most remarkably +exerted, when, having in his Praetorship put to death some Lusitanians, +contrary (it was believed) to his previous and express engagement;--T. +Libo the Tribune exasperated the people against him, and preferred a bill +which was to operate against his conduct as a subsequent law. M. Cato (as +I have before mentioned) though extremely old, spoke in support of the +bill with great vehemence; which Speech he inserted in his Book of +_Antiquities_, a few days, or at most only a month or two, before his +death. On this occasion, Galba refusing to plead to the charge, and +submitting his fate to the generosity of the people, recommended his +children to their protection, with tears in his eyes; and particularly his +young ward the son of C. Gallus Sulpicius his deceased friend, whose +orphan state and piercing cries, which were the more regarded for the sake +of his illustrious father, excited their pity in a wonderful manner;--and +thus (as Cato informs us in his History) he escaped the flames which would +otherwise have consumed him, by employing the children to move the +compassion of the people. I likewise find (what may be easily judged from +his Orations still extant) that his prosecutor Libo was a man of some +Eloquence." + +As I concluded these remarks with a short pause;--"What can be the +reason," said Brutus, "if there was so much merit in the Oratory of Galba, +that there is no trace of it to be seen in his Orations;--a circumstance +which I have no opportunity to be surprized at in others, who have left +nothing behind them in writing."--"The reasons," said I, "why some have +not wrote any thing, and others not so well as they spoke, are very +different. Some of our Orators have writ nothing through mere indolence, +and because they were loath to add a private fatigue to a public one: for +most of the Orations we are now possessed of were written not before they +were spoken, but some time afterwards. Others did not choose the trouble +of improving themselves; to which nothing more contributes than frequent +writing; and as to perpetuating the fame of their Eloquence, they thought +it unnecessary; supposing that their eminence in that respect was +sufficiently established already, and that it would be rather diminished +than increased by submitting any written specimen of it to the arbitrary +test of criticism. Some also were sensible that they spoke much better +than they were able to write; which is generally the case of those who +have a great genius, but little learning, such as Servius Galba. When he +spoke, he was perhaps so much animated by the force of his abilities, and +the natural warmth and impetuosity of his temper, that his language was +rapid, bold, and striking; but afterwards, when he took up the pen in his +leisure hours, and his passion had sunk into a calm, his Elocution became +dull and languid. This indeed can never happen to those whose only aim is +to be neat and polished; because an Orator may always be master of that +discretion which will enable him both to speak and write in the same +agreeable manner: but no man can revive at pleasure the ardour of his +passions; and when that has once subsided, the fire and pathos of his +language will be extinguished. This is the reason why the calm and easy +spirit of Laelius seems still to breathe in his writings, whereas the +force of Galba is entirely withered and lost. + +"We may also reckon in the number of middling Orators, the two brothers L. +and Sp. Mummius, both whose Orations are still in being:--the style of +Lucius is plain and antiquated; but that of Spurius, though equally +unembellished, is more close, and compact; for he was well versed in the +doctrine of the Stoics. The Orations of Sp. Alpinus, their cotemporary, +are very numerous: and we have several by L. and C. Aurelius Oresta, who +were esteemed indifferent Speakers. P. Popilius also was a worthy citizen, +and had a tolerable share of utterance: but his son Caius was really +eloquent. To _these_ we may add C. Tuditanus, who was not only very +polished, and genteel, in his manners and appearance, but had an elegant +turn of expression; and of the same class was M. Octavius, a man of +inflexible constancy in every just and laudable measure; and who, after +being affronted and disgraced in the most public manner, defeated his +rival Tiberius Gracchus by the mere dint of his perseverance. But M. +Aemilius Lepidus, who was surnamed Porcina, and flourished at the same +time as Galba, though he was indeed something younger, was esteemed an +Orator of the first eminence; and really appears, from his Orations which +are still extant, to have been a masterly writer. For he was the first +Speaker, among the Romans, who gave us a specimen of the easy gracefulness +of the Greeks; and who was distinguished by the measured flow of his +language, and a style regularly polished and improved by art. His manner +was carefully studied by C. Carbo and Tib. Gracchus, two accomplished +youths who were nearly of an age: but we must defer their character as +public Speakers, till we have finished our account of their elders. For Q. +Pompeius, according to the style of the time, was no contemptible Orator; +and actually raised himself to the highest honours of the State by his own +personal merit, and without being recommended, as usual, by the quality of +his ancestors. Lucius Cassius too derived his influence, which was very +considerable, not indeed from his _Eloquence_, but from his manly way of +speaking: for it is remarkable that he made himself popular, not, as +others did, by his complaisance and liberality, but by the gloomy rigour +and severity of his manners. His law for collecting the votes of the +people by way of ballot, was strongly opposed by the Tribune M. Antius +Briso, who was supported by M. Lepidus one of the Consuls: and it was +afterwards objected to Africanus, that Briso dropped the opposition by his +advice. At this time the two Scipios were very serviceable to a number of +clients by their superior judgment, and Eloquence; but still more so by +their extensive interest and popularity. But the written speeches of +Pompeius (though it must be owned they have rather an antiquated air) +discover an amazing sagacity, and are very far from being dry and +spiritless. To these we must add P. Crassus, an orator of uncommon merit, +who was qualified for the profession by the united efforts of art and +nature, and enjoyed some other advantages which were almost peculiar to +his family. For he had contracted an affinity with that accomplished +Speaker Servius Galba above-mentioned, by giving his daughter in marriage +to Galba's son; and being likewise himself the son of Mucius, and the +brother of P. Scaevola, he had a fine opportunity at home (which he made +the best use of) to gain a thorough knowledge of the Civil Law. He was a +man of unusual application, and was much beloved by his fellow-citizens; +being constantly employed either in giving his advice, or pleading causes +in the Forum. Cotemporary with the Speakers I have mentioned were the two +C. Fannii, the sons of C. and M. one of whom, (the son of C.) who was +joint Consul with Domitius, has left us an excellent speech against +Gracchus, who proposed the admission of the Latin and Italian allies to +the freedom of Rome."--"Do you really think, then," said Atticus, "that +Fannius was the author of that Oration? For when we were young, there were +different opinions about it. Some asserted it was wrote by C. Persius, a +man of letters, and the same who is so much extolled for his learning by +Lucilius: and others believed it was the joint production of a number of +noblemen, each of whom contributed his best to complete it."--"This I +remember," said I; "but I could never persuade myself to coincide with +either of them. Their suspicion, I believe, was entirely founded on the +character of Fannius, who was only reckoned among the _middling_ Orators; +whereas the speech in question is esteemed the best which the time +afforded. But, on the other hand, it is too much of a piece to have been +the mingled composition of many: for the flow of the periods, and the turn +of the language, are perfectly similar, throughout the whole of it.--and +as to _Persius_, if _he_ had composed it for Fannius to pronounce, +Gracchus would certainly have taken some notice of it in his reply; +because Fannius rallies Gracchus pretty severely, in one part of it, for +employing Menelaus of Marathon, and several others, to manufacture his +speeches. We may add that Fannius himself was no contemptible Orator: for +he pleaded a number of causes, and his Tribuneship, which was chiefly +conducted under the management and direction of P. Africanus, was very far +from being an idle one. But the other C. Fannius, (the son of M.) and son- +in-law of C. Laelius, was of a rougher cast, both in his temper, and +manner of speaking. By the advice of his father-in-law, (of whom, by the +bye, he was not remarkably fond, because he had not voted for his +admission into the college of augurs, but gave the preference to his +younger son-in-law Q. Scaevola; though Laelius genteely excused himself, +by saying that the preference was not given to the youngest son, but to +his wife the eldest daughter,) by his advice, I say, he attended the +lectures of Panaetius. His abilities as a Speaker may be easily +conjectured from his History, which is neither destitute of elegance, nor +a perfect model of composition. As to his brother Mucius the augur, +whenever he was called upon to defend himself, he always pleaded his own +cause; as, for instance, in the action which was brought against him for +bribery by T. Albucius. But he was never ranked among the Orators; his +chief merit being a critical knowledge of the Civil Law, and an uncommon +accuracy of judgment. L. Caelius Antipater likewise (as you may see by his +works) was an elegant and a handsome writer for the time he lived in; he +was also an excellent Lawyer, and taught the principles of jurisprudence +to many others, particularly to L. Crassus. As to Caius Carbo and T. +Gracchus, I wish they had been as well inclined to maintain peace and good +order in the State, as they were qualified to support it by their +Eloquence: their glory would then have been out-rivaled by no one. But the +latter, for his turbulent Tribuneship, which he entered upon with a heart +full of resentment against the great and good, on account of the odium he +had brought upon himself by the treaty of Numantia, was slain by the hands +of the Republic: and the other, being impeached of a seditious affectation +of popularity, rescued himself from the severity of the judges by a +voluntary death. That both of them were excellent Speakers, is very plain +from the general testimony of their cotemporaries: for as to their +Speeches now extant, though I allow them to be very artful and judicious, +they are certainly defective in Elocution. Gracchus had the advantage of +being carefully instructed by his mother Cornelia from his very childhood, +and his mind was enriched with all the stores of Grecian literature: for +he was constantly attended by the ablest masters from Greece, and +particularly, in his youth, by Diophanes of Mitylene, who was the most +eloquent Grecian of his age: but though he was a man of uncommon genius, +he had but a short time to improve and display it. As to Carbo, his whole +life was spent in trials, and forensic debates. He is said by very +sensible men who heard him, and, among others, by our friend L. Gellius +who lived in his family in the time of his Consulship, to have been a +sonorous, a fluent, and a spirited Speaker, and likewise, upon occasion, +very pathetic, very engaging, and excessively humorous: Gellius used to +add, that he applied himself very closely to his studies, and bestowed +much of his time in writing and private declamation. He was, therefore, +esteemed the best pleader of his time; for no sooner had he began to +distinguish himself in the Forum, but the depravity of the age gave birth +to a number of law-suits; and it was first found necessary, in the time of +his youth, to settle the form of public trials, which had never been done +before. We accordingly find that L. Piso, then a Tribune of the people, +was the first who proposed a law against bribery; which he did when +Censorinus and Manilius were Consuls. This Piso too was a professed +pleader, and the proposer and opposer of a great number of laws: he left +some Orations behind him, which are now lost, and a Book of Annals very +indifferently written. But in the public trials, in which Carbo was +concerned, the assistance of an able advocate had become more necessary +than ever, in consequence of the law for voting by ballots, which was +proposed and carried by L. Cassius, in the Consulship of Lepidus and +Mancinus. + +"I have likewise been often assured by the poet Attius, (an intimate +friend of his) that your ancestor D. Brutus, the son of M. was no +inelegant Speaker; and that for the time he lived in, he was well versed +both in the Greek and Roman literature. He ascribed the same +accomplishments to Q. Maximus, the grandson of L. Paulus: and added that, +a little prior to Maximus, the Scipio, by whose instigation (though only +in a private capacity) T. Gracchus was assassinated, was not only a man of +great ardour in all other respects, but very warm and spirited in his +manner of speaking. P. Lentulus too, the Father of the Senate, had a +sufficient share of eloquence for an honest and useful magistrate. About +the same time L. Furius Philus was thought to speak our language as +elegantly, and more correctly than any other man; P. Scaevola to be very +artful and judicious, and rather more fluent than Philus; M. Manilius to +possess almost an equal share of judgment with the latter; and Appius +Claudius to be equally fluent, but more warm and pathetic. M. Fulvius +Flaccus, and C. Cato the nephew of Africanus, were likewise tolerable +Orators: some of the writings of Flaccus are still in being, in which +nothing, however, is to be seen but the mere scholar. P. Decius was a +professed rival of Flaccus; he too was not destitute of Eloquence; but his +style, as well as his temper, was too violent. M. Drusus the son of C. +who, in his Tribuneship, baffled [Footnote: _Laffiea_. In the original it +runs, "_Caium Gracchum collegam, iterum Tribinum fecit_." but this was +undoubtedly a mistake of the transcriber, as being contrary not only to +the truth of History, but to Cicero's own account of the matter in lib. +IV. _Di Finibus_. Pighius therefore has very properly recommended the word +_fregit_ instead of _fecit_.] his colleague Gracchus (then raised to the +same office a second time) was a nervous Speaker, and a man of great +popularity: and next to him was his brother C. Drusus. Your kinsman also, +my Brutus, (M. Pennus) successfully opposed the Tribune Gracchus, who was +something younger than himself. For Gracchus was Quaestor, and Pennus (the +son of that M. who was joint Consul with Q. Aelius) was Tribune, in the +Consulship of M. Lepidus and L. Orestes: but after enjoying the +Aedileship, and a prospect: of succeeding to the highest honours, he was +snatched off by an untimely death. As to T. Flaminius, whom I myself have +seen, I can learn nothing but that he spoke our language with great +accuracy. To these we may join C. Curio, M. Scaurus, P. Rutilius, and C. +Gracchus. It will not be amiss to give a short account of Scaurus and +Rutilius; neither of whom, indeed, had the reputation of being a first- +rate Orator, though each of them pleaded a number of causes. But some +deserving men, who were not remarkable for their genius, may be justly +commended for their industry; not that the persons I am speaking of were +really destitute of genius, but only of that particular kind of it which +distinguishes the Orator. For it is of little consequence to discover what +is proper to be said, unless you are able to express it in a free and +agreeable manner: and even that will be insufficient, if not recommended +by the voice, the look, and the gesture. It is needless to add that much +depends upon _Art_: for though, even without this, it is possible, by the +mere force of nature, to say many striking things; yet, as they will after +all be nothing more than so many lucky hits, we shall not be able to +repeat them at our pleasure. The style of Scaurus, who was a very sensible +and honest man, was remarkably serious, and commanded the respect of the +hearer: so that when he was speaking for his client, you would rather have +thought he was giving evidence in his favour, than pleading his cause. +This manner of speaking, however, though but indifferently adapted to the +bar, was very much so to a calm, debate in the Senate, of which Scaurus +was then esteemed the Father: for it not only bespoke his prudence, but +what was still a more important recommendation, his credibility. This +advantage, which it is not easy to acquire by art, he derived entirely +from nature: though you know that even _here_ we have some precepts to +assist us. We have several of his Orations still extant, and three books +inscribed to L. Fufidius containing the History of his own Life, which, +though a very useful work, is scarcely read by any body. But the +_Institution of Cyrus_, by Xenophon, is read by every one; which, though +an excellent performance of the kind, is much less adapted to our manners +and form of government, and not superior in merit to the honest simplicity +of Scaurus. Fufidius himself was likewise a tolerable pleader. But +Rutilius was distinguished by his solemn and austere way of speaking; and +both of them were naturally warm, and spirited. Accordingly, after they +had rivalled each other for the Consulship, he who had lost his election, +immediately sued his competitor for bribery; and Scaurus, the defendant, +being honourably acquitted of the charge, returned the compliment to +Rutilius, by commencing a similar prosecution against _him_. Rutilius was +a man of great industry and application; for which he was the more +respected, because, besides his pleadings, he undertook the office (which +was a very troublesome one) of giving advice to all who applied to him, in +matters of law. His Orations are very dry, but his juridical remarks are +excellent: for he was a learned man, and well versed in the Greek +literature, and was likewise an attentive and constant hearer of +Panaetius, and a thorough proficient in the doctrine of the Stoics; whose +method of discoursing, though very close and artful, is too precise, and +not at all adapted to engage the attention of common people. That self- +confidence, therefore, which is so peculiar to the sect, was displayed by +_him_ with amazing firmness and resolution; for though he was perfectly +innocent of the charge, a prosecution was commenced against him for +bribery (a trial which raised a violent commotion in the city)--and yet +though L. Crassus and M. Antonius, both of Consular dignity, were, at that +time, in very high repute for their Eloquence, he refused the assistance +of either; being determined to plead his cause himself, which he +accordingly did. C. Cotta, indeed, who was his nephew, made a short speech +in his vindication, which he spoke in the true style of an Orator, though +he was then but a youth. Q. Mucius too said much in his defence, with his +usual accuracy and elegance; but not with that force, and extension, which +the mode of trial, and the importance of the cause demanded. Rutilius, +therefore, was an Orator of the _Stoical_, and Scaurus of the _Antique_ +cast: but they are both entitled to our commendation; because, in _them_, +even this formal and unpromising species of Elocution has appeared among +us with some degree of merit. For as in the Theatre, so in the Forum, I +would not have our applause confined to those alone who act the busy, and +more important characters; but reserve a share of it for the quiet and +unambitious performer who is distinguished by a simple truth of gesture, +without any violence. As I have mentioned the Stoics, I must take some +notice of Q. Aelius Tubero, the grandson of L. Paullus, who made his +appearance at the time we are speaking of. He was never esteemed an +Orator, but was a man of the most rigid virtue, and strictly conformable +to the doctrine he professed: but, in truth, he was rather too crabbed. In +his Triumvirate, he declared, contrary to the opinion of P. Africanus his +uncle, that the Augurs had no right of exemption from sitting in the +courts of justice: and as in his temper, so in his manner of speaking, he +was harsh, unpolished, and austere; on which account, he could never raise +himself to the honourable ports which were enjoyed by his ancestors. But +he was a brave and steady citizen, and a warm opposer of Gracchus, as +appears from an Oration of Gracchus against him: we have likewise some of +Tubero's speeches against Gracchus. He was not indeed a shining Orator: +but he was a learned, and a very skilfull disputant. + +"I find," said Brutus, "that the case is much the same among us, as with +the Greeks; and that the Stoics, in general, are very judicious at an +argument, which they conduct by certain rules of art, and are likewise +very neat and exact in their language; but if we take them from this, to +speak in Public, they make a poor appearance. Cato, however, must be +excepted; in whom, though as rigid a Stoic as ever existed, I could not +wish for a more consummate degree of Eloquence: I can likewise discover a +moderate share of it in Fannius,--not so much in Rutilius;--but none at +all in Tubero."--"True," said I; "and we may easily account for it: Their +whole attention was so closely confined to the study of Logic, that they +never troubled themselves to acquire the free, diffusive, and variegated +style which is so necessary for a public Speaker. But your uncle, you +doubtless know, was wise enough to borrow only that from the Stoics, which +they were able to furnish for his purpose (the art of reasoning:) but for +the art of Speaking, he had recourse to the masters of Rhetoric, and +exercised himself in the manner they directed. If, however, we must be +indebted for everything to the Philosophers, the Peripatetic discipline +is, in my mind, much the properest to form our language. For which reason, +my Brutus, I the more approve your choice, in attaching yourself to a +sect, (I mean the Philosophers of the Old Academy,) in whose system, a +just and accurate way of reasoning is enlivened by a perpetual sweetness +and fluency of expression: but even the delicate and flowing style of the +Peripatetics, and Academics, is not sufficient to complete an Orator; nor +yet can he be complete without it. For as the language of the Stoics is +too close, and contracted, to suit the ears of common people; so that of +the latter is too diffusive and luxuriant for a spirited contest in the +Forum, or a pleading at the bar. Who had a richer style than Plato? The +Philosophers tell us, that if Jupiter himself was to converse in Greek, he +would speak like _him_. Who also was more nervous than Aristotle? Who +sweeter than Theophrastus? We are told that even Demosthenes attended the +lectures of Plato, and was fond of reading what he published; which, +indeed, is sufficiently evident from the turn, and the majesty of his +language and he himself has expressly mentioned it in one of his Letters. +But the style of this excellent Orator is, notwithstanding, much too +fierce for the Academy; as that of the Philosophers is too mild and placid +for the Forum. I shall now, with your leave, proceed to the age and merits +of the rest of the Roman Orators."--"Nothing," said Atticus, "(for I can +safely answer for my friend Brutus) would please us better."--"Curio, +then," said I, "was nearly of the age I have just mentioned,--a celebrated +Speaker, whose genius may be easily decided from his Orations. For, among +several others, we have a noble Speech of his for Ser. Fulvius, in a +prosecution for incest. When we were children, it was esteemed the best +then extant; but now it is almost overlooked among the numerous +performances of the same kind which have been lately published."--"I am +very sensible," replied Brutus, "to whom we are obliged for the numerous +performances you speak of."--"And I am equally sensible," said I, "who is +the person you intend: for I have at least done a service to my young +countrymen, by introducing a loftier, and more embellished way of +speaking, than was used before: and, perhaps, I have also done some harm, +because after _mine_ appeared, the Speeches of our ancestors and +predecessors began to be neglected by most people; though never by _me_, +for I can assure you, I always prefer them to my own."--"But you must +reckon me," said Brutus, "among the _most people_; though I now see, from +your recommendation, that I have a great many books to read, of which +before I had very little opinion."--"But this celebrated Oration," said I, +"in the prosecution for incest, is in some places excessively puerile; and +what is said in it of the passion of love, the inefficacy of questioning +by tortures, and the danger of trusting to common hear-say, is indeed +pretty enough, but would be insufferable to the tutored ears of the +moderns, and to a people who are justly distinguished for the solidity of +their knowledge. He likewise wrote several other pieces, spoke a number of +good Orations, and was certainly an eminent pleader; so that I much +wonder, considering how long he lived, and the character he bore, that he +was never preferred to the Consulship. But I have a man here, [Footnote: +He refers, perhaps, to the Works of Gracchus, which he might then have in +his hand; or, more probably, to a statue of him, which stood near the +place where he and his friends were sitting.] (C. Gracchus) who had an +amazing genius, and the warmest application; and was a Scholar from his +very childhood: For you must not imagine, my Brutus, that we have ever yet +had a Speaker, whose language was richer and more copious than his."--"I +really think so," answered Brutus; "and he is almost the only author we +have, among the ancients, that I take the trouble to read." "And he well +_deserves_ it," said I; "for the Roman name and literature were great +losers by his untimely fate. I wish he had transferred his affection for +his brother to his country! How easily, if he had thus prolonged his life, +would he have rivalled the glory of his father, and grandfather! In +Eloquence, I scarcely know whether we should yet have had his equal. His +language was noble; his sentiments manly and judicious; and his whole +manner great and striking. He wanted nothing but the finishing touch: for +though his first attempts were as excellent as they were numerous, he did +not live to complete them. In short, my Brutus, _he_, if any one, should +be carefully studied by the Roman youth: for he is able, not only to edge, +but to feed and ripen their talents. After _him_ appeared C. Galba, the +son of the eloquent Servius, and the son-in-law of P. Crassus, who was +both an eminent Speaker, and a skilful Civilian. He was much commended by +our fathers, who respected him for the sake of _his_: but he had the +misfortune to be stopped in his career. For being tried by the Mamilian +law, as a party concerned in the conspiracy to support Jugurtha, though he +exerted all his abilities to defend himself, he was unhappily cast. His +peroration, or, as it is often called, his epilogue, is still extant; and +was so much in repute, when we were school-boys, that we used to learn it +by heart: he was the first member of the Sacerdotal College, since the +building of Rome, who was publicly tried and condemned. As to P. Scipio, +who died in his Consulship, he neither spoke much, nor often: but he was +inferior to no one in the purity of his language, and superior to all in +wit and pleasantry. His colleague L. Bestia, who begun his Tribuneship +very successfully, (for, by a law which he preferred for the purpose, he +procured the recall of Popillius, who had been exiled by the influence of +Caius Gracchus) was a man of spirit, and a tolerable Speaker: but he did +not finish his Consulship so happily. For, in consequence of the invidious +law of Mamilius above-mentioned, C. Galba one of the Priests, and the four +Consular gentlemen L. Bestia, C. Cato, Sp. Albinus, and that excellent +citizen L. Opimius, who killed Gracchus; of which he was acquitted by the +people, though he had constantly sided against them,--were all condemned +by their judges, who were of the Gracchan party. Very unlike him in his +Tribuneship, and indeed in every other part of his life, was that infamous +citizen C. Licinius Nerva; but he was not destitute of Eloquence. Nearly +at the same time, (though, indeed, he was somewhat older) flourished C. +Fimbria, who was rather rough and abusive, and much too warm and hasty: +but his application, and his great integrity and firmness made him a +serviceable Speaker in the Senate. He was likewise a tolerable Pleader, +and Civilian, and distinguished by the same rigid freedom in the turn of +his language, as in that of his virtues. When we were boys, we used to +think his Orations worth reading; though they are now scarcely to be met +with. But C. Sextius Calvinus was equally elegant both in his taste, and +his language, though, unhappily, of a very infirm constitution:--when the +pain in his feet intermitted, he did not decline the trouble of pleading, +but he did not attempt it very often. His fellow-citizens, therefore, made +use of his advice, whenever they had occasion for it; but of his +patronage, only when his health permitted. Cotemporary with these, my good +friend, was your namesake M. Brutus, the disgrace of your noble family; +who, though he bore that honourable name, and had the best of men, and an +eminent Civilian, for his father, confined his practice to accusations, as +Lycurgus is said to have done at Athens. He never sued for any of our +magistracies; but was a severe, and a troublesome prosecutor: so that we +easily see that, in _him_, the natural goodness of the flock was corrupted +by the vicious inclinations of the man. At the same time lived L. +Caesulenus, a man of Plebeian rank, and a professed accuser, like the +former: I myself heard him in his old age, when he endeavoured, by the +Aquilian law, to subject L. Sabellius to a fine, for a breach of justice. +But I should not have taken any notice of such a low-born wretch, if I had +not thought that no person I ever heard, could give a more suspicious turn +to the cause of the defendant, or exaggerate it to a higher degree of +criminality. T. Albucius, who lived in the same age, was well versed in +the Grecian literature, or, rather, was almost a Greek himself. I speak of +him, as I think; but any person, who pleases, may judge what he was by his +Orations. In his youth, he studied at Athens, and returned from thence a +thorough proficient in the doctrine of Epicurus; which, of all others, is +the least adapted to form an orator. His cotemporary, Q. Catulus, was an +accomplished Speaker, not in the ancient taste, but (unless any thing more +perfect can be exhibited) in the finished style of the moderns. He had a +plentiful stock of learning; an easy, winning elegance, not only in his +manners and disposition, but in his very language; and an unblemished +purity and correctness of style. This may be easily seen by his Orations; +and particularly, by the History of his Consulship, and of his subsequent +transactions, which he composed in the soft and agreeable manner of +Xenophon, and made a present of to the poet, A. Furius, an intimate +acquaintance of his: but this performance is as little known, as the three +books of Scaurus before-mentioned."--"Indeed, I must confess," said +Brutus, "that both the one and the other, are perfectly unknown to me: but +that is entirely my _own_ fault. I shall now, therefore, request a sight +of them from _you_; and am resolved, in future, to be more careful in +collecting such valuable curiosities."--"This Catulus," said I, "as I have +just observed, was distinguished by the purity of his language; which, +though a material accomplishment, is too much neglected by most of the +Roman orators; for as to the elegant tone of his voice, and the sweetness +of his accent, as you knew his son, it will be needless to take any notice +of them. His son, indeed, was not in the list of Orators: but whenever he +had occasion to deliver his sentiments in public, he neither wanted +judgment, nor a neat and liberal turn of expression. Nay, even the father +himself was not reckoned the foremost in the list of Orators: but still he +had that kind of merit, that notwithstanding, after you had heard two or +three speakers, who were particularly eminent in their profession, you +might judge him inferior; yet, whenever you heard him _alone_, and without +an immediate opportunity of making a comparison, you would not only be +satisfied with him, but scarcely wish for a better advocate. As to Q. +Metellus Numidicus, and his Colleague M. Silanus, they spoke, on matters +of government, with as much eloquence as was really necessary for men of +their illustrious character, and of consular dignity. But M. Aurelius +Scaurus, though he spoke in public but seldom, always spoke very neatly, +and he had a more elegant command of the Roman language than most men. A. +Albinus was a speaker of the same kind; but Albinus, the Flamen, was +esteemed an _orator_. Q. Capio too had a great deal of spirit, and was a +brave citizen: but the unlucky chance of war was imputed to him as a +crime, and the general odium of the people proved his ruin. C. and L. +Memmius were likewise indifferent orators, and distinguished by the +bitterness and asperity of their accusations: for they prosecuted many, +but seldom spoke for the defendant. Sp. Torius, on the other hand, was +distinguished by his _popular_ way of speaking; the very same man, who, by +his corrupt and frivolous law, diminished [Footnote: By dividing great +part of them among the people.] the taxes which were levied on the public +lands. M. Marcellus, the father of Aeserninus, though not reckoned a +professed pleader, was a prompt, and, in some degree, a practised speaker; +as was also his son P. Lentulus. L. Cotta likewise, a man of Praetorian +rank, was esteemed a tolerable orator; but he never made any great +progress; on the contrary, he purposely endeavoured, both in the choice of +his words, and the rusticity of his pronunciation, to imitate the manner +of the ancients. I am indeed sensible that in this instance of Cotta, and +in many others, I have, and shall again insert in the list of Orators, +those who, in reality, had but little claim to the character. For it was, +professedly, my design, to collect an account of all the Romans, without +exception, who made it their business to excel in the profession of +_Eloquence_: and it may be easily seen from this account, by what slow +gradations they advanced, and how excessively difficult it is, in every +thing, to rise to the summit of perfection. As a proof of this, how many +orators have been already recounted, and how much time have we bestowed +upon them, before we could force our way, after infinite fatigue and +drudgery, as, among the Greek's, to _Demosthenes_ and _Hyperides_, so now, +among our own countrymen, to _Antonius_ and _Crassus_! For, in my mind, +these were consummate Orators, and the first among the Romans whose +diffusive Eloquence rivalled the glory of the Greeks. Antonius discovered +every thing which could be of service to his cause, and that in the very +order in which it would be most so: and as a skilful General posts the +cavalry, the infantry, and the light troops, where each of them can act to +most advantage; so Antonius drew up his arguments in those parts of his +discourse, where they were likely to have the best effect. He had a quick +and retentive memory, and a frankness of manner which precluded any +suspicion of artifice. All his speeches were, in appearance, the +unpremeditated effusions of an honest heart; and yet, in reality, they +were preconcerted with so much skill, that the judges were, sometimes, not +so well prepared, as they should have been, to withstand the force of +them. His language, indeed, was not so refined as to pass for the standard +of elegance; for which reason he was thought to be rather a careless +speaker; and yet, on the other hand, it was neither vulgar nor incorrect, +but of that solid and judicious turn, which constitutes the real merit of +an Orator, as to the choice of his words. For, as to a purity of style, +though this is certainly (as before observed) a very commendable quality, +it is not so much so for its intrinsic consequence, as because it is too +generally neglected. In short, it is not so meritorious to speak our +native tongue correctly, as it is scandalous to speak it otherwise; nor is +it so much the property of a good Orator, as of a well-bred Citizen. But +in the choice of his words (in which he had more regard to their weight +than their brilliance) and likewise in the structure of his language, and +the compass of his periods, Antonius conformed himself to the dictates of +reason, and, in a great measure, to the nicer rules of art: though his +chief excellence was a judicious management of the figures and decorations +of sentiment. This was likewise the distinguishing excellence of +Demosthenes; in which he was so far superior to all others, as to be +allowed, in the opinion of the best judges, to be the Prince of Orators. +For the _figures_ (as they are called by the Greeks) are the principal +ornaments of an able speaker, I mean those which contribute not so much to +paint and embellish our language, as to give a lustre to our sentiments. +But besides these, of which Antonius had a great command, he had a +peculiar excellence in his manner of delivery, both as to his voice and +gesture; for the latter was such as to correspond to the meaning of every +sentence, without beating time to the words. His hands, his shoulders, the +turn of his body, the stamp of his foot, his posture, his air, and, in +short, his every motion, was adapted to his language and sentiments: and +his voice was strong and firm, though naturally hoarse;--a defect which he +alone was capable of improving to his advantage; for in capital causes, it +had a mournful dignity of accent, which was exceedingly proper, both to +win the assent of the judges, and excite their compassion for a suffering +client: so that in _him_ the observation of Demosthenes was eminently +verified, who being asked what was the _first_ quality of a good Orator, +what the _second_, and what the _third_, constantly replied, A good +enunciation. + +"But many thought that he was equalled, and others that he was even +excelled by Lucius Crassus. All, however, were agreed in this, that +whoever had either of them for his advocate, had no cause to wish for a +better. For my own part, notwithstanding the uncommon merit I have +ascribed to Antonius, I must also acknowlege, that there cannot be a more +finished character than that of Crassus. He possessed a wonderful dignity +of elocution, with an agreeable mixture of wit and pleasantry, which was +perfectly genteel, and without the smallest tincture of scurrility. His +style was correct and elegant without stiffness or affectation: his method +of reasoning was remarkably clear and distinct: and when his cause turned +upon any point of law, or equity, he had an inexhaustible fund of +arguments, and comparative illustrations. For as Antonius had an admirable +turn for suggesting apposite hints, and either suppressing or exciting the +suspicions of the hearer; so no man could explain and define, or discuss a +point of equity, with a more copious facility than Crassus; as +sufficiently appeared upon many other occasions, but particularly in the +cause of M. Curius, which was tried before the Centum Viri. For he urged a +great variety of arguments in the defence of right and equity, against the +literal _jubeat_ of the law; and supported them by such a numerous series +of precedents, that he overpowered Q. Scaevola (a man of uncommon +penetration, and the ablest Civilian of his time) though the case before +them was only a matter of legal right. But the cause was so ably managed +by the two advocates, who were nearly of an age, and both of consular +rank, that while each endeavoured to interpret the law in favour of his +client, Crassus was universally allowed to be the best Lawyer among the +Orators, and Scaevola to be the most eloquent Civilian of the age: for the +latter could not only discover with the nicest precision what was +agreeable to law and equity; but had likewise a conciseness and propriety +of expression, which was admirably adapted to his purpose. In short, he +had such a wonderful vein of oratory in commenting, explaining, and +discussing, that I never beheld his equal; though in amplifying, +embellishing, and refuting, he was rather to be dreaded as a formidable +critic, than admired as an eloquent speaker."--"Indeed," said Brutus, +"though I always thought I sufficiently understood the character of +Scaevola, by the account I had heard of him from C. Rutilius, whose +company I frequented for the sake of his acquaintance with him, I had not +the least idea of his merit as an orator. I am now, therefore, not a +little pleased to be informed, that our Republic has had the honour of +producing so accomplished a man, and such an excellent genius."--"Really, +my Brutus," said I, "you may take it from me, that the Roman State had +never been adorned with two finer characters than these. For, as I have +before observed, that the one was the best Lawyer among the Orators, and +the other the best Speaker among the Civilians of his time; so the +difference between them, in all other respects, was of such a nature, that +it would almost be impossible for you to determine which of the two you +would rather choose to resemble. For, as Crassus was the closest of all +our elegant speakers, so Scaevola was the most elegant among those who +were distinguished by the frugal accuracy of their language: and as +Crassus tempered his affability with a proper share of severity, so the +rigid air of Scaevola was not destitute of the milder graces of an affable +condescension. Though this was really their character, it is very possible +that I may be thought to have embellished it beyond the bounds of truth, +to give an agreeable air to my narrative: but as your favourite sect, my +Brutus, the Old Academy, has defined all Virtue to be a just Mediocrity, +it was the constant endeavour of these two eminent men to pursue this +Golden Mean; and yet it so happened, that while each of them shared a part +of the other's excellence, he preserved his own entire."--"To speak what I +think," replied Brutus, "I have not only acquired a proper acquaintance +with their characters from your account of them, but I can likewise +discover, that the same comparison might be drawn between _you_ and Serv. +Sulpicius, which you have just been making between Crassus and Scaevola." +--"In what manner?" said I.--"Because _you_," replied Brutus, "have taken +the pains to acquire as extensive a knowledge of the law as is necessary +for an Orator; and Sulpicius, on the other hand, took care to furnish +himself with sufficient eloquence to support the character of an able +Civilian. Besides, your age corresponded as nearly to his, as the age of +Crassus did to that of Scaevola."--"As to my own abilities," said I, "the +rules of decency forbid me to speak of them: but your character of Servius +is a very just one, and I may freely tell you what I think of him. There +are few, I believe, who have applied themselves more assiduously to the +art of Speaking than he did, or indeed to the study of every useful +science. In our youth, we both of us followed the same liberal exercises; +and he afterwards accompanied me to Rhodes, to pursue those studies which +might equally improve him as a Man and a Scholar; but when he returned +from thence, he appears to me to have been rather ambitious to be the +foremost man in a secondary profession, than the second in that which +claims the highest dignity. I will not pretend to say that he could not +have ranked himself among the foremost in the latter profession; but he +rather chose to be, what he actually made himself, the first Lawyer of his +time."--"Indeed!" said Brutus: "and do you really prefer Servius to Q. +Scaevola?"--"My opinion," said I, "Brutus, is, that Q. Scaevola, and many +others, had a thorough practical knowledge of the law; but that Servius +alone understood it as _science_: which he could never have done by the +mere study of the law, and without a previous acquaintance with the art +which teaches us to divide a whole into its subordinate parts, to, decide +an indeterminate idea by an accurate definition: to explain what is +obscure, by a clear interpretation; and first to discover what things are +of a _doubtful_ nature, then to distinguish them by their different +degrees of probability; and lastly, to be provided with a certain rule or +measure by which we may judge what is true, and what false, and what +inferences fairly may, or may not be deduced from any given premises. This +important art he applied to those subjects which, for want of it, were +necessarily managed by others without due order and precision."--"You +mean, I suppose," said Brutus, "the Art of Logic."--"You suppose very +right," answered I: "but he added to it an extensive acquaintance with +polite literature, and an elegant manner of expressing himself; as is +sufficiently evident from the incomparable writings he has left behind +him. And as he attached himself, for the improvement of his eloquence, to +L. Lucilius Balbus, and C. Aquilius Gallus, two very able speakers; he +effectually thwarted the prompt celerity of the latter (though a keen, +experienced man) both in supporting and refuting a charge, by his accuracy +and precision, and overpowered the deliberate formality of Balbus (a man +of great learning and erudition) by his adroit and dextrous method of +arguing: so that he equally possessed the good qualities of both, without +their defects. As Crassus, therefore, in my mind, acted more prudently +than Scaevola; (for the latter was very fond of pleading causes, in which +he was certainly inferior to Crassus; whereas the former never engaged +himself in an unequal competition with Scaevola, by assuming the character +of a Civilian;) so Servius pursued a plan which sufficiently discovered +his wisdom; for as the profession of a Pleader, and a Lawyer, are both of +them held in great esteem, and give those who are masters of them the most +extensive influence among their fellow-citizens; he acquired an undisputed +superiority in the one, and improved himself as much in the other as was +necessary to support the authority of the Civil Law, and promote him to +the dignity of a Consul."--"This is precisely the opinion I had formed of +him," said Brutus. "For, a few years ago I heard him often and very +attentively at Samos, when I wanted to be instructed by him in the +Pontifical Law, as far as it is connected with the Civil; and I am now +greatly confirmed in my opinion of him, by finding that it coincides so +exactly with yours. I am likewise not a little pleased to observe, that +the equality of your ages, your sharing the same honours and preferments, +and the vicinity of your respective studies and professions, has been so +far from precipitating either of you into that envious detraction of the +other's merit, which most people are tormented with, that, instead of +wounding your mutual friendship, it has only served to increase and +strengthen it; for, to my own knowlege, he had the same affection for, and +the same favourable sentiments of _you_, which I now discover in you +towards _him_. I cannot, therefore, help regretting very sincerely, that +the Roman State has so long been deprived of the benefit of his advice, +and of your Eloquence;--a circumstance which is indeed calamitous enough +in itself; but must appear much more so to him who considers into what +hands that once respectable authority has been of late, I will not say +transferred, but forcibly wrested."--"You certainly forget," said Atticus, +"that I proposed, when we began the conversation, to drop all matters of +State; by all means, therefore, let us keep to our plan: for if we once +begin to repeat our grievances, there will be no end, I need not say to +our inquiries, but to our sighs and lamentations."--"Let us proceed, +then," said I, "without any farther digression, and pursue the plan we set +out upon. Crassus (for he is the Orator we were just speaking of) always +came into the Forum ready prepared for the combat. He was expected with +impatience, and heard with pleasure. When he first began his Oration +(which he always did in a very accurate style) he seemed worthy of the +great expectations he had raised. He was very moderate in the sway of his +body, had no remarkable variation of voice, never advanced from the ground +he stood upon, and seldom stamped his foot: his language was forcible, and +sometimes warm and pathetic; he had many strokes of humour, which were +always tempered with a becoming dignity; and, what is a difficult +character to hit, he was at once very florid, and very concise. In a close +contest, he never met with his equal; and there was scarcely any kind of +causes, in which he had not signalized his abilities; so that he enrolled +himself very early among the first Orators of the time. He accused C. +Carbo, though a man of great Eloquence, when he was but a youth;--and +displayed his talents in such a manner, that they were not only applauded, +but admired by every body. He afterwards defended the Virgin Licinia, when +he was only twenty-seven years of age; on which occasion he discovered an +uncommon share of Eloquence, as is evident from those parts of his Oration +which he left behind him in writing. As he was then desirous to have the +honour of settling the colony of Narbonne (as he afterwards did) he +thought it adviseable to recommend himself, by undertaking the management +of some popular cause. His Oration, in support of the act which was +proposed for that purpose, is still extant; and discovers a greater +maturity of genius than might have been expected at that time of life. He +afterwards pleaded many other causes: but his tribuneship was such a +remarkably silent one, that if he had not supped with Granius the beadle +when he enjoyed that office (a circumstance which has been twice mentioned +by Lucilius) we should scarcely have known that a tribune of that name had +existed."--"I believe so," replied Brutus: "but I have heard as little of +the tribuneship of Scaevola, though I must naturally suppose that he was +the colleague of Crassus."--"He was so," said I, "in all his other +preferments; but he was not tribune till the year after him; and when he +sat in the Rostrum in that capacity, Crassus spoke in support of the +Servilian law. I must observe, however, that Crassus had not Scaevola for +his colleague in the censorship; for none of the Scaevolas ever sued for +that office. But when the last-mentioned Oration of Crassus was published +(which I dare say you have frequently read) he was thirty-four years of +age, which was exactly the difference between his age and mine. For he +supported the law I have just been speaking of, in the very consulship +under which I was born; whereas he himself was born in the consulship of +Q. Caepio, and C. Laelius, about three years later than Antonius. I have +particularly noticed this circumstance, to specify the time when the Roman +Eloquence attained its first _maturity_; and was actually carried to such +a degree of perfection, as to leave no room for any one to carry it +higher, unless by the assistance of a more complete and extensive +knowledge of philosophy, jurisprudence, and history."--"But does there," +said Brutus, "or will there ever exist a man, who is furnished with all +the united accomplishments you require?"--"I really don't know," said I; +"but we have a speech made by Crassus in his consulship, in praise of Q. +Caepio, intermingled with a defence of his conduct, which, though a short +one if we consider it as an Oration, is not so as a Panegyric;--and +another, which was his last, and which he spoke in the 48th year of his +age, at the time he was censor. In these we have the genuine complexion of +Eloquence, without any painting or disguise: but his periods (I mean +Crassus's) were generally short and concise; and he was fond of expressing +himself in those minuter sentences, or members, which the Greeks call +Colons."--"As you have spoken so largely," said Brutus, "in praise of the +two last-mentioned Orators, I heartily wish that Antonius had left us some +other specimen of his abilities, than his trifling Essay on the Art of +Speaking, and Crassus more than he has: by so doing, they would have +transmitted their fame to _posterity_; and to us a valuable system of +Eloquence. For as to the elegant language of Scaevola, we have sufficient +proofs of it in the Orations he has left behind him."--"For my part," said +I, "the Oration I was speaking of, on Caepio's case, has been my pattern, +and my tutoress, from my very childhood. It supports the dignity of the +Senate, which was deeply interested in the debate; and excites the +jealousy of the audience against the party of the judges and accusers, +whose power it was necessary to expose in the most popular terms. Many +parts of it are very strong and nervous, many others very cool and +composed; and some are distinguished by the asperity of their language, +and not a few by their wit and pleasantry: but much more was said than was +committed to writing, as is sufficiently evident from several heads of the +Oration, which are merely proposed without any enlargement or explanation. +But the oration in his censorship against his colleague Cn. Domitius, is +not so much an Oration, as an analysis of the subject, or a general sketch +of what he had said, with here and there a few ornamental touches, by way +of specimen: for no contest was ever conducted with greater spirit than +this. Crassus, however, was eminently distinguished by the popular turn of +his language: but that of Antonius was better adapted to judicial trials, +than to a public debate. As we have had occasion to mention him, Domitius +himself must not be left unnoticed: for though he is not enrolled in the +list of Orators, he had a sufficient share both of utterance and genius, +to support his character as a magistrate and his dignity as a consul. I +might likewise observe of C. Caelius, that he was a man of great +application, and many eminent qualities, and had eloquence enough to +support the private interests of his friends, and his own dignity in the +State. At the same time lived M. Herennius, who was reckoned among the +middling Orators, whose principal merit was the purity and correctness of +their language; and yet, in a suit for the consulship, he got the better +of L. Philippus, a man of the first rank and family, and of the most +extensive connections, and who was likewise a member of the College, and a +very eloquent speaker. _Then_ also lived C. Clodius, who, besides his +consequence as a nobleman of the first distinction, and a man of the most +powerful influence, was likewise possessed of a moderate share of +Eloquence. Nearly of the same age was C. Titius, a Roman knight, who, in +my judgment, arrived at as high a degree of perfection as a Roman orator +was able to do, without the assistance of the Grecian literature, and a +good share of practice. His Orations have so many delicate turns, such a +number of well-chosen examples, and such an agreeable vein of politeness, +that they almost seem to have been composed in the true Attic style. He +likewise transferred his delicacies into his very Tragedies, with +ingenuity enough, I confess, but not in the tragic taste. But the poet L. +Afranius, whom he studiously imitated, was a very smart writer, and, as +you well know, a man of great expression in the dramatic way. Q. Rubrius +Varro, who with C. Marius, was declared an enemy by the Senate, was +likewise a warm, and a very spirited prosecutor. My relation, M. +Gratidius, was a plausible speaker of the same kind, well versed in the +Grecian literature, formed by nature for the profession of Eloquence, and +an intimate acquaintance of M. Antonius: he commanded under him in +Cilicia, where he lost his life: and he once commenced a prosecution +against C. Fimbria, the father of M. Marius Gratidianus. There have +likewise been several among the Allies, and the Latins, who were esteemed +good Orators; as, for instance, Q. Vettius of Vettium, one of the Marsi, +whom I myself was acquainted with, a man of sense, and a concise speaker; +--the Q. and D. Valerii of Sora, my neighbours and acquaintances, who were +not so remarkable for their talent of speaking, as for their skill both in +the Greek and Roman literature; and C. Rusticellus of Bononia, an +experienced Orator, and a man of great natural volubility. But the most +eloquent of all those who were not citizens of Rome, was T. Betucius +Barrus of Asculum, some of whose Orations, which were spoken in that city, +are still extant: that which he made at Rome against Caepio, is really an +excellent one: the speech which Caepio delivered in answer to it, was made +by Aelius, who composed a number of Orations, but pronounced none himself. +But among those of a remoter date, L. Papirius of Fregellae in Latium, who +was almost cotemporary with Ti. Gracchus, was universally esteemed the +most eloquent: we have a speech of his in vindication of the Fregellani, +and the Latin Colonies, which was delivered before the Senate."--"And what +then is the merit," said Brutus, "which you mean to ascribe to these +provincial Orators?"--"What else," replied I, "but the very same which I +have ascribed to the city-orators; excepting that their language is not +tinctured with the same fashionable delicacy?"--"What fashionable delicacy +do you mean?" said he.--"I cannot," said I, "pretend to define it: I only +know that there is such a quality existing. When you go to your province +in Gaul, you will be convinced of it. You will there find many expressions +which are not current in Rome; but these may be easily changed, and +corrected. But, what is of greater importance, our Orators have a +particular accent in their manner of pronouncing, which is more elegant, +and has a more agreeable effect than any other. This, however, is not +peculiar to the Orators, but is equally common to every well-bred citizen. +I myself remember that T. Tineas, of Placentia, who was a very facetious +man, once engaged in a repartee skirmish with my old friend Q. Granius, +the public crier."--"Do you mean that Granius," said Brutus, "of whom +Lucilius has related such a number of stories?"--"The very same," said I: +"but though Tineas said as many smart things as the other, Granius at last +overpowered him by a certain vernacular _gout_, which gave an additional +relish to his humour: so that I am no longer surprised at what is said to +have happened to Theophrastus, when he enquired of an old woman who kept a +stall, what was the price of something which he wanted to purchase. After +telling him the value of it,--"Honest _stranger_," said she, "I cannot +afford it for less": "an answer which nettled him not a little, to think +that _he_ who had resided almost all his life at Athens, and spoke the +language very correctly, should be taken at last for a foreigner. In the +same manner, there is, in my opinion, a certain accent as peculiar to the +native citizens of Rome, as the other was to those of Athens. But it is +time for us to return home; I mean to the Orators of our own growth. Next, +therefore, to the two capital Speakers above-mentioned, (that is Crassus +and Antonius) came L. Philippus,--not indeed till a considerable time +afterwards; but still he must be reckoned the next. I do not mean, +however, though nobody appeared in the interim who could dispute the prize +with him, that he was entitled to the second, or even the third post of +honour. For, as in a Chariot-race I cannot properly consider _him_ as +either the second, or third winner, who has scarcely got clear of the +starting-post, before the first has reached the goal; so, among Orators, I +can scarcely honour him with the name of a competitor, who has been so far +distanced by the foremost as hardly to appear on the same ground with him. +But yet there were certainly some talents to be observed in Philippus, +which any person who considers them, without subjecting them to a +comparison with the superior merits of the two before-mentioned, must +allow to have been respectable. He had an uncommon freedom of address, a +large fund of humour, great facility in the invention of his sentiments, +and a ready and easy manner of expressing them. He was likewise, for the +time he lived in, a great adept in the literature of the Greeks; and, in +the heat of a debate, he could sting, and gash, as well as ridicule his +opponents. Almost cotemporary with these was L. Gellius, who was not so +much to be valued for his positive, as for his negative merits: for he was +neither destitute of learning, nor invention, nor unacquainted with the +history and the laws of his country; besides which, he had a tolerable +freedom of expression. But he happened to live at a time when many +excellent Orators made their appearance; and yet he served his friends +upon many occasions to good purpose: in short, his life was so long, that +he was successively cotemporary with a variety of Orators of different +dates, and had an extensive series of practice in judicial causes. Nearly +at the same time lived D. Brutus, who was fellow-consul with Mamercus;-- +and was equally skilled both in the Grecian and Roman literature. L. +Scipio likewise was not an unskilful Speaker; and Cnaeus Pompeius, the son +of Sextus, had some reputation as an Orator; for his brother Sextus +applied the excellent genius he was possessed of, to acquire a thorough +knowledge of the Civil Law, and a complete acquaintance with geometry and +the doctrine of the Stoics. A little before these, M. Brutus, and very +soon after him, C. Bilienus, who was a man of great natural capacity, made +themselves, by nearly the same application, equally eminent in the +profession of the law;--the latter would have been chosen Consul, if he +had not been thwarted by the repeated promotion of Marius, and some other +collateral embarrassments which attended his suit. But the eloquence of +Cn. Octavius, which was wholly unknown before his elevation to the +Consulship, was effectually displayed, after his preferment to that +office, in a great variety of speeches. It is, however, time for us to +drop those who were only classed in the number of good _speakers_, and +turn our attention to such as were really _Orators_."--"I think so too," +replied Atticus; "for I understood that you meant to give us an account, +not of those who took great pains to be eloquent, but of those who were so +in reality."--"C. Julius then," said I, (the son of Lucius) was certainly +superior, not only to his predecessors, but to all his cotemporaries, in +wit and humour: he was not, indeed, a nervous and striking Orator, but, in +the elegance, the pleasantry, and the agreeableness of his manner, he has +not been excelled by any man. There are some Orations of his still extant, +in which, as well as in his Tragedies, we may discover a pleasing +tranquillity of expression with very little energy. P. Cethegus, his +cotemporary, had always enough to say on matters of civil regulation; for +he had studied and comprehended them with the minutest accuracy; by which +means he acquired an equal authority in the Senate with those who had +served the office of consul, and though he made no figure in a public +debate, he was a serviceable veteran in any suit of a private nature. Q. +Lucretius Vispillo was an acute Speaker, and a good Civilian in the same +kind of causes: but Osella was better qualified for a public harangue, +than to conduct a judicial process. T. Annius Velina was likewise a man of +sense, and a tolerable pleader; and T. Juventius had a great deal of +practice in the same way:--the latter indeed was rather too heavy and +unanimated, but at the same time he was keen and artful, and knew how to +seize every advantage which was offered by his antagonist; to which we may +add, that he was far from being a man of no literature, and had an +extensive knowledge of the Civil Law. His scholar, P. Orbius, who was +almost cotemporary with me, had no great practice as a pleader; but his +skill in the Civil Law was nothing inferior to his master's. As to Titus +Aufidius, who lived to a great age, he was a professed imitator of both; +and was indeed a worthy inoffensive man, but seldom spoke at the bar. His +brother, M. Virgilius, who when he was a tribune of the people, commenced +a prosecution against L. Sylla, then advanced to the rank of General, had +as little practice as Aufidius. Virgilius's colleague, P. Magius, was more +copious and diffusive. But of all the Orators, or rather _Ranters_, I ever +knew, who were totally illiterate and unpolished, and (I might have added) +absolutely coarse and rustic, the readiest and keenest, were Q. Sertorius, +and C. Gorgonius, the one of consular, and the other of equestrian rank. +T. Junius (the son of L.) who had served the office of tribune, and +prosecuted and convicted P. Sextius of bribery, when he was praetor elect, +was a prompt and an easy speaker: he lived in great splendor, and had a +very promising genius; and, if he had not been of a weak, and indeed a +sickly constitution, he would have advanced much farther than he did in +the road to preferment. I am sensible, however, that in the account I have +been giving, I have included many who were neither real, nor reputed +Orators; and that I have omitted others, among those of a remoter date, +who well deserved not only to have been mentioned, but to be recorded with +honour. But this I was forced to do, for want of better information: for +what could I say concerning men of a distant age, none of whose +productions are now remaining, and of whom no mention is made in the +writings of other people? But I have omitted none of those who have fallen +within the compass of my own knowledge, or that I myself remember to have +heard. For I wish to make it appear, that in such a powerful and ancient +republic as ours, in which the greatest rewards have been proposed to +Eloquence, though all have desired to be good speakers, not many have +attempted the talk, and but very few have succeeded. But I shall give my +opinion of every one in such explicit terms, that it may be easily +understood whom I consider as a mere Declaimer, and whom as an Orator." + +"About the same time, or rather something later than the above-mentioned +Julius, but almost cotemporary with each other, were C. Cotta, P. +Sulpicius, Q. Varius, Cn. Pomponius, C. Curio, L. Fufius, M. Drusus, and +P. Antistius; for no age whatsoever has been distingushed by a more +numerous progeny of Orators. Of these, Cotta and Sulpicius, both in my +opinion, and in that of the Public at large, had an evident claim to the +preference."--"But wherefore," interrupted Atticus, "do you say, _in your +own opinion, and in that of the Public at large?_ In deciding the merits +of an Orator, does the opinion of the vulgar, think you, always coincide +with that of the learned? Or rather does not one receive the approbation +of the populace, while another of a quite opposite character is preferred +by those who are better qualified to give their judgment?"--"You have +started a very pertinent question," said I; "but, perhaps, _the Public at +large_ will not approve my answer to it."--"And what concern need _that_ +give you," replied Atticus, "if it meets the approbation of Brutus?"-- +"Very true," said I; "for I had rather my _sentiments_ on the +qualifications of an Orator would please you and Brutus, than all the +world besides: but as to my _Eloquence_, I should wish _this_ to please +every one. For he who speaks in such a manner as to please the people, +must inevitably receive the approbation of the learned. As to the truth +and propriety of what I hear, I am indeed to judge of this for myself, as +well as I am able: but the general merit of an Orator must and will be +decided by the effects which his eloquence produces. For (in my opinion at +least) there are three things which an Orator should be able to effect; +_viz_. to _inform_ his hearers, to _please_ them, and to _move their +passions_. By what qualities in the Speaker each of these, effects may be +produced, or by what deficiencies they are either lost, or but imperfectly +performed, is an enquiry which none but an artist can resolve: but whether +an audience is really so affected by an Orator as shall best answer his +purpose, must be left to their own feelings, and the decision of the +Public. The learned, therefore, and the people at large, have never +disagreed about who was a good Orator, and who was otherwise. For do you +suppose, that while the Speakers above-mentioned were in being, they had +not the same degree of reputation among the learned as among the populace? +If you had enquired of one of the latter, _who was the most eloquent man +in the city_, he might have hesitated whether to say _Antonius_ or +_Crassus_; or this man, perhaps, would have mentioned the one, and that +the other. But would any one have given the preference to _Philippus_, +though otherwise a smooth, a sensible, and a facetious Speaker?--that +_Philippus_ whom we, who form our judgment upon these matters by rules of +art, have decided to have been the next in merit? Nobody would, I am +certain. For it is the invariable, property of an accomplished Orator, to +be reckoned such in the opinion of the people. Though Antigenidas, +therefore, the musician, might say to his scholar, who was but coldly +received by the Public, Play on, to please me and the Muses;--I shall say +to my friend Brutus, when he mounts the Rostra, as he frequently does,-- +Play to me and the people;--that those who hear him may be sensible of the +effect of his Eloquence, while I can likewise amuse myself with remarking +the causes which produce it. When a Citizen hears an able Orator, he +readily credits what is said;--he imagines every thing to be true, he +believes and relishes the force of it; and, in short, the persuasive +language of the Speaker wins his absolute, his hearty assent. You, who are +possessed of a critical knowledge of the art, what more will you require? +The listening multitude is charmed and captivated by the force of his +Eloquence, and feels a pleasure which is not to be resisted. What here can +you find to censure? The whole audience is either flushed with joy, or +overwhelmed with grief;--it smiles, or weeps,--it loves, or hates,--it +scorns or envies,--and, in short, is alternately seized with the various +emotions of pity, shame, remorse, resentment, wonder, hope, and fear, +according as it is influenced by the language, the sentiments, and the +action of the speaker. In this case, what necessity is there to await the +sanction of a critic? For here, whatever is approved by the feelings of +the people, must be equally so by men of taste and erudition: and, in this +instance of public decision, there can be no disagreement between the +opinion of the vulgar, and that of the learned. For though many good +Speakers have appeared in every species of Oratory, which of them who was +thought to excel the rest in the judgment of the populace, was not +approved as such by every man of learning? or which of our ancestors, when +the choice of a pleader was left to his own option, did not immediately +fix it either upon Crassus or Antonius? There were certainly many others +to be had: but though any person might have hesitated to which of the +above two he should give the preference, there was nobody, I believe, who +would have made choice of a third. And in the time of my youth, when Cotta +and Hortensius were in such high reputation, who, that had liberty to +choose for himself, would have employed any other?"--"But what occasion is +there," said Brutus, "to quote the example of other speakers to support +your assertion? have we not seen what has always been the wish of the +defendant, and what the judgment of Hortensius, concerning yourself? for +whenever the latter shared a cause with you, (and I was often present on +those occasions) the peroration, which requires the greatest exertion of +the powers of Eloquence, was constantly left to _you_."--"It was," said I; +"and Hortensius (induced, I suppose, by the warmth of his friendship) +always resigned the post of honour to me. But, as to myself, what rank I +hold in the opinion of the people I am unable to determine: as to others, +however, I may safely assert, that such of them as were reckoned most +eloquent in the judgment of the vulgar, were equally high in the +estimation of the learned. For even Demosthenes himself could not have +said what is related of Antimachus, a poet of Claros, who, when he was +rehearsing to an audience assembled for the purpose, that voluminous piece +of his which you are well acquainted with, and was deserted by all his +hearers except Plato, in the midst of his performance, cried out, "I +shall proceed notwithstanding_; for Plato alone is of _more consequence to +me than many thousands_." "The remark was very just. For an abstruse poem, +such as his, only requires the approbation of the judicious few; but a +discourse intended for the people should be perfectly suited to their +taste. If Demosthenes, therefore, after being deserted by the rest of his +audience, had even Plato left to hear him, and no one else, I will answer +for it, he could not have uttered another syllable. 'Nay, or could you +yourself, my Brutus, if the whole assembly was to leave you, as it once +did Curio?"--"To open my whole mind to you," replied he, "I must confess +that even in such causes as fall under the cognizance of a few select +judges, and not of the people at large, if I was to be deserted by the +casual crowd who came to hear the trial, I should not be able to +proceed."--"The case, then, is plainly this," said I: "as a flute, which +will not return its proper sound when it is applied to the lips, would be +laid aside by the musician as useless; so, the ears of the people are the +instrument upon which an Orator is to play: and if these refuse to admit +the breath he bestows upon them, or if the hearer, like a restive horse, +will not obey the spur, the speaker must cease to exert himself any +farther. There is, however, the exception to be made; the people sometimes +give their approbation to an orator who does not deserve it. But even here +they approve what they have had no opportunity of comparing with something +better: as, for instance, when they are pleased with an indifferent, or, +perhaps, a bad speaker. His abilities satisfy their expectation: they have +seen nothing preferable: and, therefore, the merit of the day, whatever it +may happen to be, meets their full applause. For even a middling Orator, +if he is possessed of any degree of Eloquence, will always captivate the +ear; and the order and beauty of a good discourse has an astonishing +effect upon the human mind. Accordingly, what common hearer who was +present when Q. Scaevola pleaded for M. Coponius, in the cause above- +mentioned, would have wished for, or indeed thought it possible to find +any thing which was more correct, more elegant, or more complete? When he +attempted to prove, that, as M. Curius was left heir to the estate only in +case of the death of his future ward before he came of age, he could not +possibly be a legal heir, when the expected ward was never born;--what did +he leave unsaid of the scrupulous regard which should be paid to the +literal meaning of every testament? what of the accuracy and preciseness +of the old and established forms; of law? and how carefully did he specify +the manner in which the will would have been expressed, if it had intended +that Curius should be the heir in case of a total default of issue? in +what a masterly manner did he represent the ill consequences to the +Public, if the letter of a will should be disregarded, its intention +decided by arbitrary conjectures, and the written bequests of plain +illiterate men, left to the artful interpretation of a pleader? how often +did he urge the authority of his father, who had always been an advocate +for a strict adherence to the letter of a testament? and with what +emphasis did he enlarge upon the necessity of supporting the common forms +of law? All which particulars he discussed not only very artfully, and +skilfully; but in such a neat,--such a close,--and, I may add, in so +florid, and so elegant a style, that there was not a single person among +the common part of the audience, who could expect any thing more complete, +or even think it possible to exist. But when Crassus, who spoke on the +opposite side, began with the story of a notable youth, who having found a +cock-boat as he was rambling along the shore, took it into his head +immediately that he would build a ship to it;--and when he applied the +tale to Scaevola, who, from the cock-boat of an argument [which he had +deduced from certain imaginary ill consequences to the Public] represented +the decision of a private will to be a matter of such importance as to +deserve he attention of the _Centum-viri_;--when Crassus, I say, in the +beginning of his discourse, had thus taken off the edge of the strongest +plea of his antagonist, he entertained his hearers with many other turns +of a similar kind; and, in a short time, changed the serious apprehensions +of all who were present into open mirth and good-humour; which is one of +those three effects which I have just observed an Orator should be able to +produce. He then proceeded to remark that it was evidently the intention +and the will of the testator, that in cafe, either by death, or default of +issue, there should happen to be no son to fall to his charge, the +inheritance should devolve to Curius:--'that most people in a similar case +would express themselves in the same manner, and that it would certainly +stand good in law, and always had. By these, and many other observations +of the same kind, he gained the assent of his hearers; which is another of +the three duties of an Orator. Lastly, he supported, at all events, the +true meaning and spirit of a will, against the literal construction: +justly observing, that there would be an endless cavilling about words, +not only in wills, but in all other legal deeds, if the real intention of +the party was to be disregarded: and hinting very smartly, that his +friend Scaevola had assumed a most unwarrantable degree of importance, if +no person must afterwards presume to indite a legacy, but in the musty +form which he himself might please to prescribe. As he enlarged on each of +these arguments with great force and propriety, supported them by a number +of precedents, exhibited them in a variety of views, and enlivened them +with many occasional turns of wit and pleasantry, he gained so much +applause, and gave such general satisfaction, that it was scarcely +remembered that any thing had been said on the contrary side of the +question. This was the third, and the most important duty we assigned to +an Orator. + +"Here, if one of the people was to be judge, the same person who had heard +the first Speaker with a degree of admiration, would, on hearing the +second, despise himself for his former want of judgment:--whereas a man of +taste and erudition, on hearing Scaevola, would have observed that he was +really master of a rich and ornamental style; but if, on comparing the +manner in which each of them concluded his cause, it was to be enquired +which of the two was the best Orator, the decision of the man of learning +would not have differed from that of the vulgar. What advantage, then, it +will be said, has the skilful critic over the illiterate hearer? A great +and very important advantage; if it is indeed a matter of any consequence, +to be able to discover by what means that which is the true and real end +of speaking, is either obtained or lost. He has likewise this additional +superiority, that when two or more Orators, as has frequently happened, +have shared the applauses of the Public, he can judge, on a careful +observation of the principal merits of each, what is the most perfect +character of Eloquence: since whatever does not meet the approbation of +the people, must be equally condemned by a more intelligent hearer. For as +it is easily understood by the sound of a harp, whether the strings are +skilfully touched; so it may likewise be discovered from the manner in +which the passions of an audience are affected, how far the Speaker is +able to command them. A man, therefore, who is a real connoisseur in the +art, can sometimes by a single glance as he passes through the Forum, and +without stopping to listen attentively to what is said, form a tolerable +judgment of the ability of the Speaker. When he observes any of the Bench +either yawning, or speaking to the person who is next to him, or looking +carelessly about him, or sending to enquire the time of day, or teazing +the Quaestor to dismiss the court; he concludes very naturally that the +cause upon trial is not pleaded by an Orator who understands how to apply +the powers of language to the passions of the judges, as a skilful +musician applies his fingers to the harp. On the other hand, if, as he +passes by, he beholds the judges looking attentively before them, as if +they were either receiving some material information, or visibly approved +what they had already heard--if he sees them listening to the voice of the +Pleader with a kind of extasy like a fond bird to some melodious tune;-- +and, above all, if he discovers in their looks any strong indications of +pity, abhorrence, or any other emotion of the mind;--though he should not +be near enough to hear a single word, he immediately discovers that the +cause is managed by a real Orator, who is either performing, or has +already played his part to good purpose." + +After I had concluded these digressive remarks, my two friends were kind +enough to signify their approbation, and I resumed my subject.--"As this +digression," said I, "took its rise from Cotta and Sulpicius, whom I +mentioned as the two most approved Orators of the age they lived in, I +shall first return to _them,_ and afterwards notice the rest in their +proper order, according to the plan we began upon. I have already observed +that there are two classes of _good_ Orators (for we have no concern with +any others) of which the former are distinguished by the simple neatness +and brevity of their language, and the latter by their copious dignity and +elevation: but although the preference must always be given to that which +is great and striking; yet, in speakers of real merit, whatever is most +perfect of the kind, is justly entitled to our commendation. It must, +however, be observed, that the close and simple Orator should be careful +not to sink into a driness and poverty of expression; while, on the other +hand, the copious and more stately Speaker should be equally on his guard +against a swelling and empty parade of words. + +"To begin with Cotta, he had a ready, quick Invention, and spoke correctly +and freely; and as he very prudently avoided every forcible exertion of +his voice on account of the weakness of his lungs, so his language was +equally adapted to the delicacy of his constitution. There was nothing in +his style but what was neat, compact, and healthy; and (what may justly be +considered as his greatest excellence) though he was scarcely able, and +therefore never attempted to force the passions of the judges by a strong +and spirited elocution, yet he managed them so artfully, that the gentle +emotions he raised in them, answered exactly the same purpose, and +produced the same effect, as the violent ones which were excited by +Sulpicius. For Sulpicius was really the most striking, and, if I may be +allowed the expression, the most tragical Orator I ever heard:--his voice +was strong and sonorous, and yet sweet, and flowing:--his gesture, and the +sway of his body, was graceful and ornamental, but in such a style as to +appear to have been formed for the Forum, and not for the stage:--and his +language, though rapid and voluble, was neither loose nor exuberant. He +was a professed imitator of Crassus, while Cotta chose Antonius for his +model: but the latter wanted the force of Antonius, and the former the +agreeable humour of Crassus."--"How extremely difficult, then," said +Brutus, "must be the art of speaking, when such consummate Orators as +these were each of them destitute of one of its principal beauties!"--"We +may likewise observe," said I, "in the present instance, that two Orators +may have the highest degree of merit, who are totally unlike each other: +for none could be more so than Cotta and Sulpicius, and yet both of them +were far superior to any of their cotemporaries. It is therefore the +business of every intelligent matter to take notice what is the natural +bent of his pupil's capacity; and, taking that for his guide, to imitate +the conduct of Socrates with his two scholars Theopompus and Ephorus, who, +after remarking the lively genius of the former, and the mild and timid +bashfulness of the latter, is reported to have said that he applied a spur +to the one, and a curb to the other. The Orations now extant, which bear +the name of Sulpicius, are supposed to have been written after his decease +by my cotemporary P. Canutius, a man indeed of inferior rank, but who, in +my mind, had a great command of language. But we have not a single speech +of Sulpicius that was really his own: for I have often heard him say, that +he neither had, nor ever could commit any thing of the kind to writing. +And as to Cotta's speech in defence of himself, called a vindication of +the _Varian Law_, it was composed, at his own request, by L. Aelius. This +Aelius was a man of merit, and a very worthy Roman knight, who was +thoroughly versed in the Greek and Roman literature. He had likewise a +critical knowledge of the antiquities of his country, both as to the date +and particulars of every new improvement, and every memorable transaction, +and was perfectly well read in the ancient writers;--a branch of learning +in which he was succeeded by our friend Varro, a man of genius, and of the +most extensive erudition, who afterwards enlarged the plan by many +valuable collections of his own, and gave a much fuller and more elegant +system of it to the Public. For Aelius himself chose to assume the +character of a Stoic, and neither aimed to be, nor ever was an Orator: but +he composed several Orations for other people to pronounce; as for Q. +Metellus, F. Q. Caepio, and Q. Pompeius Rufus; though the latter composed +those speeches himself which he spoke in his own defence, but not without +the assistance of Aelius. For I myself was present at the writing of them, +in the younger part of my life, when I used to attend Aelius for the +benefit of his instructions. But I am surprised, that Cotta, who was +really an excellent Orator, and a man of good learning, should be willing +that the trifling Speeches of Aelius mould be published to the world as +_his_. + +"To the two above-mentioned, no third person of the same age was esteemed +an equal: Pomponius, however, was a Speaker much to my taste; or, at +least, I have very little fault to find with him. But there was no +employment for any in capital causes, excepting for those I have already +mentioned; because Antonius, who was always courted on these occasions, +was very ready to give his service; and Crassus, though not so compliable, +generally consented, on any pressing sollicitation, to give _his_. Those +who had not interest enough to engage either of these, commonly applied to +Philip, or Caesar; but when Cotta and Sulpicius were at liberty, they +generally had the preference: so that all the causes in which any honour +was to be acquired, were pleaded by these six Orators. We may add, that +trials were not so frequent then as they are at present; neither did +people employ, as they do now, several pleaders on the same side of the +question,--a practice which is attended with many disadvantages. For +hereby we are often obliged to speak in reply to those whom we had not an +opportunity of hearing; in which case, what has been alledged on the +opposite side, is often represented to us either falsely or imperfectly; +and besides, it is a very material circumstance, that I myself should be +present to see with what countenance my antagonist supports his +allegations, and, still more so, to observe the effect of every part of +his discourse upon the audience. And as every defence should be conducted +upon one uniform plan, nothing can be more improperly contrived, than to +re-commence it by assigning the peroration, or pathetical part of it, to a +second advocate. For every cause can have but one natural introduction and +conclusion; and all the other parts of it, like the members of an animal +body, will best retain their proper strength and beauty, when they are +regularly disposed and connected. We may add, that as it is very difficult +in a single Oration of any length, to avoid saying something which does +not comport with the rest of it so well as it ought to do, how much more +difficult must it be to contrive that nothing shall be said, which does +not tally exactly with the speech of another person who has spoken before +you? But as it certainly requires more labour to plead a whole cause, than +only a part of it, and as many advantageous connections are formed by +assisting in a suit in which several persons are interested, the custom, +however preposterous in itself, has been readily adopted. + +"There were some, however, who esteemed Curio the third best Orator of the +age; perhaps, because his language was brilliant and pompous, and because +he had a habit (for which I suppose he was indebted to his domestic +education) of expressing himself with tolerable correctness: for he was a +man of very little learning. But it is a circumstance of great importance, +what sort of people we are used to converse with at home, especially in +the more early part of life; and what sort of language we have been +accustomed to hear from our tutors and parents, not excepting the mother. +We have all read the Letters of Cornelia, the mother of the Gracchi; and +are satisfied, that her sons were not so much nurtured in their mother's +lap, as in the elegance and purity of her language. I have often too +enjoyed the agreeable conversation of Laelia, the daughter of Caius, and +observed in her a strong tincture of her father's elegance. I have +likewise conversed with his two daughters, the Muciae, and his +granddaughters, the two Liciniae, with one of whom (the wife of Scipio) +you, my Brutus, I believe, have sometimes been in company."--"I have," +replied he, "and was much pleased with her conversation; and the more so, +because she was the daughter of Crassus."--"And what think you," said I, +"of Crassus, the son of that Licinia, who was adopted by Crassus in his +will?"--"He is said," replied he, "to have been a man of great genius: and +the Scipio you have mentioned, who was my colleague, likewise appears to +me to have been a good Speaker, and an elegant companion."--"Your opinion, +my Brutus," said I, "is very just. For this family, if I may be allowed +the expression, seems to have been the offspring of Wisdom. As to their +two grandfathers, Scipio and Crassus, we have taken notice of them +already: as we also have of their great grandfathers, Q. Metellus, who had +four sons,--P. Scipio, who, when a private citizen, freed the Republic +from the arbitrary influence of T. Gracchus,--and Q. Scaevola, the augur, +who was the ablest and most affable Civilian of his time. And lastly, how +illustrious are the names of their next immediate progenitors, P. Scipio, +who was twice Consul, and was called the Darling of the People,--and C. +Laelius, who was esteemed the wisest of men?"--"A generous stock indeed!" +cries Brutus, "into which the wisdom of many has been successively +ingrafted, like a number of scions on the same tree!"--"I have likewise a +suspicion," replied I, "(if we may compare small things with great) that +Curio's family, though he himself was left an orphan, was indebted to his +father's instruction, and good example, for the habitual purity of their +language: and so much the more, because, of all those who were held in any +estimation for their Eloquence, I never knew one who was so totally rude +and unskilled in every branch of liberal science. He had not read a single +poet, or studied a single orator; and he knew little or nothing either of +Public, Civil, or Common law. We might say almost the same, indeed, of +several others, and some of them very able Orators, who (we know) were but +little acquainted with these useful parts of knowledge; as, for instance, +of Sulpicius and Antonius. But this deficiency was supplied in them by an +elaborate knowledge of the art of Speaking; and there was not one of them +who was totally unqualified in any of the five [Footnote: Invention, +Disposition, Elocution, Memory, and Pronunciation.] principal parts of +which it is composed; for whenever this is the case, (and it matters not +in which of those parts it happens) it intirely incapacitates a man to +shine as an Orator. Some, however, excelled in one part, and some in +another. Thus Antonius could readily invent such arguments as were most in +point, and afterwards digest and methodize them to the best advantage; and +he could likewise retain the plan he had formed with great exactness: but +his chief merit was the goodness of his delivery, in which he was justly +allowed to excel. In some of these qualifications he was upon an equal +footing with Crassus, and in others he was superior: but then the language +of Crassus was indisputably preferable to _his_. In the same manner, it +cannot be said that either Sulpicius or Cotta, or any other Speaker of +repute, was absolutely deficient in any one of the five parts of Oratory. +But we may justly infer from the example of Curio, that nothing will more +recommend an Orator, than a brilliant and ready flow of expression; for he +was remarkably dull in the invention, and very loose and unconnected in +the disposition of his arguments. The two remaining parts are +Pronunciation and Memory; in each of which he was so poorly qualified, as +to excite the laughter and the ridicule of his hearers. His gesture was +really such as C. Julius represented it, in a severe sarcasm, that will +never be forgotten; for as he was swaying and reeling his whole body from +side to side, Julius enquired very merrily, _who it was that was speaking +from a boat_. To the same purpose was the jest of Cn. Sicinius, a very +vulgar sort of man, but exceedingly humourous, which was the only +qualification he had to recommend him as an Orator. When this man, as +Tribune of the people, had summoned Curio and Octavius, who were then +Consuls, into the Forum, and Curio had delivered a tedious harangue, while +Octavius sat silently by him, wrapt up in flannels, and besmeared with +ointments, to ease the pain of the gout;"--"_Octavius," said he, "you are +infinitely obliged to your colleague; for if he had not tossed and flung +himself about to-day, in the manner he did, you would have certainly have +been devoured by the flies._"--"As to his memory, it was so extremely +treacherous, that after he had divided his subject into three general +heads, he would sometimes, in the course of speaking, either add a fourth, +or omit the third. In a capital trial, in which I had pleaded for Titinia, +the daughter of Cotta, when he attempted to reply to me in defence of +Serv. Naevius, he suddenly forgot every thing he had intended to say, and +attributed it to the pretended witchcraft, and magic artifices of Titinia. +These were undoubted proofs of the weakness of his memory. But, what is +still more inexcusable, he sometimes forgot, even in his written +treatises, what he had mentioned but a little before. Thus, in a book of +his, in which he introduces himself as entering into conversation with our +friend Pansa, and his son Curio, when he was walking home from the Senate- +house; the Senate is supposed to have been summoned by Caesar in his first +Consulship; and the whole conversation arises from the son's enquiry what +the House had resolved upon. Curio launches out into a long invective +against the conduct of Caesar, and, as is generally the custom in +dialogues, the parties are engaged in a close dispute on the subject: but +very unhappily, though the conversation commences at the breaking up of +the Senate which Caesar held when he was first Consul, the author censures +those very actions of the same Caesar, which did not happen till the next, +and several other succeeding years of his government in Gaul."--"Is it +possible then," said Brutus, with an air of surprize, "that any man, (and +especially in a written performance) could be so forgetful as not to +discover, upon a subsequent perusal of his own work, what an egregious +blunder he had committed?"--"Very true," said I; "for if he wrote with a +design to discredit the measures which he represents in such an odious +light, nothing could be more stupid than not to commence his dialogue at a +period which was subsequent to those measures. But he so entirely forgets +himself, as to tell us, that he did not choose to attend a Senate which +was held in one of Caesar's future consulships, in the very same dialogue +in which he introduces himself as returning home from a Senate which was +held in his first consulship. It cannot, therefore, be wondered at, that +he who was so remarkably defective in a faculty which is the steward of +our other intellectual powers, as to forget, even in a written treatise, a +material circumstance which he had mentioned but a little before, should +find his memory fail him, as it generally did, in a sudden and +unpremeditated harangue. It accordingly happened, though he had many +connections, and was fond of speaking in public, that few causes were +intrusted to his management. But, among his cotemporaries, he was esteemed +next in merit to the first Orators of the age; and that merely, as I said +before, for his good choice of words, and his uncommon readiness, and +great fluency of expression. His Orations, therefore, may deserve a +cursory perusal. It is true, indeed, they are much too languid and +spiritless; but they may yet be of service to enlarge and improve an +accomplishment, of which he certainly had a moderate share; and which has +so much force and efficacy, that it gave Curio the appearance and +reputation of an Orator, without the assistance of any other good quality. + +"But to return to our subject,--C. Carbo, of the same age, was likewise +reckoned an Orator of the second class: he was the son, indeed, of the +truly eloquent man before-mentioned, but was far from being an acute +Speaker himself: he was, however, esteemed an Orator. His language was +tolerably nervous, he spoke with ease,--and there was an air of authority +in his address that was perfectly natural. But Q. Varius was a man of +quicker invention, and, at the same time, had an equal freedom of +expression: besides which, he had a bold and spirited delivery, and a vein +of elocution which was neither poor, nor coarse and vulgar;--in short, you +need not hesitate to pronounce him an _Orator_. Cn. Pomponius was a +vehement, a rousing, and a fierce and eager Speaker, and more inclined to +act the part of a prosecutor, than of an advocate. But far inferior to +these was L. Fufius; though his application was, in some measure, rewarded +by the success of his prosecution against M. Aquilius. For as to M. +Drusus, your great uncle, who spoke like an Orator only upon matters of +government;--L. Lucullus, who was indeed an artful Speaker, and your +father, my Brutus, who was well acquainted with the Common and Civil Law; +--M. Lucullus, and M. Octavius, the son of Cnaeus, who was a man of so +much authority and address, as to procure the repeal of Sempronius's +corn-act, by the suffrages of a full assembly of the people;--Cn. +Octavius, the son of Marcus,--and M. Cato, the father, and Q. Catulus, +the son;--we must excuse these (if I may so express myself) from the +fatigues and dangers of the field,--that is, from the management of +judicial causes, and place them in garison over the general interests +of the Republic, a duty to which they seem to have been sufficiently +adequate. I should have assigned the same post to Q. Caepio, if he +had not been so violently attached to the Equestrian Order, as to set +himself at variance with the Senate. I have also remarked, that Cn. +Carbo, M. Marius, and several others of the same stamp, who would +not have merited the attention of an audience that had any taste for +elegance, were extremely well suited to address a tumultuous crowd. +In the same class, (if I may be allowed to interrupt the series of +my narrative) L. Quintius lately made his appearance: though Palicanus, +it must be owned, was still better adapted to please the ears of the +populace. But, as I have mentioned this inferior kind of Speakers, +I must be so just to L. Apuleius Saturninus, as to observe that, of all +the factious declaimers since the time of the Gracchi, he was generally +esteemed the ablest: and yet he caught the attention of the Public, more +by his appearance, his gesture, and his dress, than by any real fluency of +expression, or even a tolerable share of good sense. But C. Servilius +Glaucia, though the most abandoned wretch that ever existed, was very keen +and artful, and excessively humourous; and notwithstanding the meanness of +his birth, and the depravity of his life, he would have been advanced to +the dignity of a Consul in his Praetorship, if it had been judged lawful +to admit his suit: for the populace were entirely at his devotion, and he +had secured the interest of the Knights, by an act he had procured in +their favour. He was slain in the open Forum, while he was Praetor, on the +same day as the tribune Saturninus, in the Consulship of Marius and +Flaccus; and bore a near resemblance to Hyperbolus, the Athenian, whose +profligacy was so severely stigmatized in the old Attic Comedies. These +were succeeded by Sext. Titius, who was indeed a voluble Speaker, and +possessed a ready comprehension, but he was so loose and effeminate in his +gesture, as to furnish room for the invention of a dance, which was called +the _Titian jigg_: so careful should we be to avoid every oddity in our +manner of speaking, which may afterwards be exposed to ridicule by a +ludicrous imitation. + +"But we have rambled back insensibly to a period which has been already +examined: let us, therefore, return to that which we were reviewing a +little before. Cotemporary with Sulpicius was P. Antistius,--a plausible +declaimer, who, after being silent for several years, and exposed, (as he +often was) not only to the contempt, but the derision of his hearers, +first spoke with applause in his tribuneship, in a real and very +interesting protest against the illegal application of C. Julius for the +consulship; and that so much the more, because though Sulpicius himself, +who then happened to be his colleague, spoke on the same side of the +debate, Antistius argued more copiously, and to better purpose. This +raised his reputation so high, that many, and (soon afterwards) every +cause of importance, was eagerly recommended to his patronage. To speak +the truth, he had a quick conception, a methodical judgment, and a +retentive memory; and though his language was not much embellished, it was +very far from being low. In short, his style was easy, and flowing, and +his appearance rather genteel than otherwise: but his action was a little +defective, partly through the disagreeable tone of his voice, and partly +by a few ridiculous gestures, of which he could not entirely break +himself. He flourished in the time between the flight and the return of +Sylla, when the Republic was deprived of a regular administration of +justice, and of its former dignity and splendor. But the very favourable +reception he met with was, in some measure, owing to the great scarcity of +good Orators which then prevailed in the Forum. For Sulpicius was dead; +Cotta and Curio were abroad; and no pleaders of any eminence were left but +Carbo and Pomponius, from each of whom he easily carried off the palm. His +nearest successor in the following age was L. Sisenna, who was a man of +learning, had a taste for the liberal Sciences, spoke the Roman language +with accuracy, was well acquainted with the laws and constitution of his +country, and had a tolerable share of wit; but he was not a Speaker of any +great application, or extensive practice; and as he happened to live in +the intermediate time between the appearance of Sulpicius and Hortensius, +he was unable to equal the former, and forced to yield to the superior +talents of the latter. We may easily form a judgment of his abilities from +the historical Works he has left behind him; which, though evidently +preferable to any thing of the kind which had appeared before, may serve +as a proof that he was far below the standard of perfection, and that this +species of composition had not then been improved to any great degree of +excellence among the Romans. But the genius of Q. Hortensius, even in his +early youth, like one of Phidias's statues, was no sooner beheld than it +was universally admired! He spoke his first Oration in the Forum in the +consulship of L. Crassus and Q. Scaevola, to whom it was personally +adressed; and though he was then only nineteen years old, he descended +from the Rostra with the hearty approbation not only of the audience in +general, but of the two Consuls themselves, who were the most intelligent +judges in the whole city. He died in the consulship of L. Paulus and C. +Marcellus; from which it appears that he was four-and-forty years a +Pleader. We shall review his character more at large in the sequel: but in +this part of my history, I chose to include him in the number of Orators +who were rather of an earlier date. This indeed must necessarily happen to +all whose lives are of any considerable length: for they are equally +liable to a comparison with their Elders and their Juniors; as in the case +of the poet Attius, who says that both he and Pacuvius applied themselves +to the cultivation of the drama under the fame Aediles; though, at the +time, the one was eighty, and the other only thirty years old. Thus +Hortensius may be paralleled not only with those who were properly his +contemporaries, but with me, and you, my Brutus, and with others of a +prior date. For he began to speak in public while Crassus was living but +his fame increased when he appeared as a joint advocate with Antonius and +Philip (at that time in the decline of life) in defence of Cn. Pompeius,-- +a cause in which (though a mere youth) he distinguished himself above the +rest. He may therefore be included in the lift of those whom I have placed +in the time of Sulpicius; but among his proper coevals, such as M. Piso, +M. Crassus, Cn. Lentulus, and P. Lentulus Sura, he excelled beyond the +reach of competition; and after these he happened upon me, in the early +part of my life (for I was eight years younger than himself) and spent a +number of years with me in pursuit of the same forensic glory: and at +last, (a little before his death) he once pleaded with _you_, in defence +of Appius Claudius, as I have frequently done for others. Thus you see, my +Brutus, I am come insensibly to _yourself_, though there was undoubtedly a +great variety of Orators between my first appearance in the Forum, and +yours. But as I determined, when we began the conversation, to make no +mention of those among them who are still living, to prevent your +enquiring too minutely what is my opinion concerning each; I shall confine +myself to such as are now no more."--"That is not the true reason," said +Brutus, "why you choose to be silent about the living."--"What then do you +suppose it to be," said I?--"You are only fearful," replied he, "that your +remarks should afterwards be mentioned by us in other company, and that, +by this means, you should expose yourself to the resentment of those, whom +you may not think it worth your while to notice."--"Indeed," answered I, +"I have not the least doubt of your secresy."--"Neither have you any +reason," said he; "but after all, I suppose, you had rather be silent +_yourself_, than rely upon our taciturnity."--"To confess the truth," +replied I, "when I first entered upon the subject, I never imagined that I +should have extended it to the age now before us; whereas I have been +drawn by a continued series of history among the moderns of latest date." +--"Introduce, then," said he, "those intermediate Orators you may think +worthy of our notice: and afterwards let us return to yourself, and +Hortensius."--"To Hortensius," replied I, "with all my heart; but as to my +_own_ character, I shall leave it to other people to examine, if they +choose to take the trouble."--"I can by no means agree to _that_," said +he: "for though every part of the account you have favoured us with, has +entertained me very agreeably, it now begins to seem tedious, because I am +impatient to hear something of _yourself_: I do not mean the wonderful +qualities, but the _progressive steps_, and advances of your Eloquence; +for the former are sufficiently known already both to me, and the whole +world."--"As you do not require me," said I, "to sound the praises of my +own genius, but only to describe my labour and application to improve it, +your request shall be complied with. But to preserve the order of my +narrative, I shall first introduce such other Speakers as I think ought to +be previously noticed: and I shall begin with M. Crassus, who was +contemporary with Hortensius. With a tolerable share of learning, and a +very moderate capacity, his application, assiduity, and interest, procured +him a place among the ablest Pleaders of the time for several years. His +language was pure, his expression neither low nor ungenteel, and his ideas +well digested: but he had nothing in him that was florid, and ornamental; +and the real ardor of his mind was not supported by any vigorous exertion +of his voice, so that he pronounced almost every thing in the same uniform +tone. His equal, and professed antagonist C. Fimbria was not able to +maintain his character so long; and though he always spoke with a strong +and elevated voice, and poured forth a rapid torrent of well-chosen +expressions, he was so immoderately vehement that you might justly be +surprised that the people should have been so absent and inattentive as to +admit a _madman_, like him, into the lift of Orators. As to Cn. Lentulus, +his action acquired him a reputation for his Eloquence very far beyond his +real abilities: for though he was not a man of any great penetration +(notwithstanding he carried the appearance of it in his countenance) nor +possessed any real fluency of expression (though he was equally specious +in this respect as in the former)--yet by his sudden breaks, and +exclamations, he affected such an ironical air of surprize, with a sweet +and sonorous turn of voice, and his whole action was so warm and lively, +that his defects were scarcely noticed. For as Curio acquired the +reputation of an Orator with no other quality than a tolerable freedom of +Elocution; so Cn. Lentulus concealed the mediocrity of his other +accomplishments by his _action_, which was really excellent. Much the same +might be said of P. Lentulus, whose poverty of invention and expression +was secured from notice by the mere dignity of his presence, his correct +and graceful gesture, and the strength and sweetness of his voice: and his +merit depended so entirely upon his action, that he was more deficient in +every other quality than his namesake. But M. Piso derived all his talents +from his erudition; for he was much better versed in the Grecian +literature than any of his predecessors. He had, however, a natural +keenness of discernment, which he greatly improved by art, and exerted +with great address and dexterity, though in very indifferent language: but +he was frequently warm and choleric, sometimes cold and insipid, and now +and then rather smart and humourous. He did not long support the fatigue, +and emulous contention of the Forum; partly, on account of the weakness of +his constitution; and partly, because he could not submit to the follies +and impertinencies of the common people (which we Orators are forced to +swallow) either, as it was generally supposed, from a peculiar moroseness +of temper, or from a liberal and ingenuous pride of heart. After +acquiring, therefore, in his youth, a tolerable degree of reputation, his +character began to sink: but in the trial of the Vestals, he again +recovered it with some additional lustre, and being thus recalled to the +theatre of Eloquence, he kept his rank, as long as he was able to support +the fatigue of it; after which his credit declined, in proportion as he +remitted his application.--P. Murena had a moderate genius, but was +passionately fond of the study of Antiquity; he applied himself with equal +diligence to the Belles Lettres, in which he was tolerably versed; in +short, he was a man of great industry, and took the utmost pains to +distinguish himself.--C. Censorinus had a good stock of Grecian +literature, explained whatever he advanced with great neatness and +perspicuity, and had a graceful action, but was too cold and unanimated +for the Forum.--L. Turius with a very indifferent genius, but the most +indefatigable application, spoke in public very often, in the best manner +he was able; and, accordingly, he only wanted the votes of a few Centuries +to promote him to the Consulship.--C. Macer was never a man of much +interest or authority, but was one of the most active Pleaders of his +time; and if his life, his manners, and his very looks, had not ruined the +credit of his genius, he would have ranked higher in the lift of Orators. +He was neither copious, nor dry and barren; neither eat and embellished, +nor wholly inelegant; and his voice, his gesture, and every part of his +action, was without any grace: but in inventing and digesting his ideas, +he had a wonderful accuracy, such as no man I ever saw either possessed +or exerted in a more eminent degree; and yet, some how, he displayed it +rather with the air of a Quibbler, than of an Orator. Though he had +acquired some reputation in public causes, he appeared to most advantage +and was most courted and employed in private ones.--C. Piso, who comes +next in order, had scarcely any exertion, but he was a Speaker of a very +convertible style; and though, in fact, he was far from being slow of +invention, he had more penetration in his look and appearance than he +really possessed.--His cotemporary M. Glabrio, though carefully instructed +by his grandfather Scaevola, was prevented from distinguishing himself by +his natural indolence and want of attention.--L. Torquatus, on the +contrary, had an elegant turn of expression, and a clear comprehension, +and was perfectly genteel and well-bred in his whole manner.--But Cn. +Pompeius, my coeval, a man who was born to excel in every thing, would +have acquired a more distinguished reputation for his Eloquence, if he had +not been diverted from the pursuit of it by the more dazzling charms of +military fame. His language was naturally bold and elevated, and he was +always master of his subject; and as to his powers of enunciation, his +voice was sonorous and manly, and his gesture noble, and full of dignity. +--D. Silanus, another of my cotemporaries, and your father-in-law, was not +a man of much application, but he had a very competent share of +discernment, and elocution.--Q. Pompeius, the son of Aulus, who had the +title of _Bithynicus_, and was about two years older than myself, was, to +my own knowledge, remarkably fond of the study of Eloquence, had an +uncommon stock of learning, and was a man of indefatigable industry and +perseverance: for he was connected with me and M. Piso, not only as an +intimate acquaintance, but as an associate in our studies, and private +exercises. His elocution was but poorly recommended by his action: for +though the former was sufficiently copious and diffusive, there was +nothing graceful in the latter.--His contemporary, P. Autronius, had a +very clear, and strong voice; but he was distinguished by no other +accomplishment.--L. Octavius Reatinus died in his youth, while he was in +full practice: but he ascended the rostra with more assurance, than +ability.--C. Staienus, who changed his name into Aelius by a kind of self- +adoption, was a warm, an abusive, and indeed a furious speaker; which was +so agreeable to the taste of many, that he would have risen to some rank +in the State, if it had not been for a crime of which he was clearly +convicted, and for which he afterwards suffered.--At the same time were +the two brothers C. and L. Caepasius, who, though men of an obscure +family, and little previous consequence, were yet, by mere dint of +application, suddenly promoted to the Quaestorship, with no other +recommendation than a provincial and unpolished kind of Oratory.--That I +may not seem to have put a wilful slight on any of the vociferous tribe, I +must also notice C. Cosconius Calidianus, who, without any discernment, +amused the people with a rapidity of language (if such it might be called) +which he attended with a perpetual hurry of action, and a most violent +exertion of his voice.--Of much the same cast was Q. Arrius, who may be +considered as a second-hand M. Crassus. He is a striking proof of what +consequence it is in such a city as ours to devote one's-self to the +occasions of _the many_, and to be as active as possible in promoting +their safety, or their honour. For by these means, though of the lowest +parentage, having raised himself to offices of rank, and to considerable +wealth and influence, he likewise acquired the reputation of a tolerable +patron, without either learning or abilities. But as inexperienced +champions, who, from a passionate desire to distinguish themselves in the +Circus, can bear the blows of their opponents without shrinking, are often +overpowered by the heat of the sun, when it is increased by the reflection +of the sand; so _he_, who had hitherto supported even the sharpest +encounters with good success, could not stand the severity of that year of +judicial contest, which blazed upon him like a summer's sun." + +"Upon my word," cried Atticus, "you are now treating us with the very +_dregs_ of Oratory, and you have entertained us in this manner for some +time: but I did not offer to interrupt you, because I never dreamed you +would have descended so low as to mention the _Staieni_ and _Autronii_!"-- +"As I have been speaking of the dead, you will not imagine, I suppose," +said I, "that I have done it to court their favour: but in pursuing the +order of history, I was necessarily led by degrees to a period of time +which falls within the compass of our own knowledge. But I wish it to be +noticed, that after recounting all who ever ventured to speak in public, +we find but few, (very few indeed!) whose names are worth recording; and +not many who had even the repute of being Orators. Let us, however, return +to our subject. T. Torquatus, then, the son of Titus, was a man of +learning, (which he first acquired in the school of Molo in Rhodes,) and +of a free and easy elocution which he received from Nature. If he had +lived to a proper age, he would have been chosen Consul, without any +canvassing; but he had more ability for speaking than inclination; _so_ +that, in fact, he did not do justice to the art he professed; and yet he +was never wanting to his duty, either in the private causes of his +friends and dependents, or in his senatorial capacity.--My townsman too, +P. Pontidius, pleaded a number of private causes. He had a rapidity of +expression, and a tolerable quickness of comprehension: but he was very +warm, and indeed rather too choleric and irascible; so that he often +wrangled not only with his antagonist, but (what appears very strange) +with the judge himself, whom it was rather his business to sooth and +gratify.--M. Messala, who was something younger than myself, was far from +being a poor and an abject Pleader, and yet he was not a very embellished +one. He was judicious, penetrating, and wary, very exact in digesting and +methodizing his subject, and a man of uncommon diligence and application, +and of very extensive practice.--As to the two Metelli (Celer and Nepos) +these also had a moderate share of employment at the bar; but being +destitute neither of learning nor abilities, they chiefly applied +themselves (and with some success) to debates of a more popular kind.--But +Caius Lentulus Marcellinus, who was never reckoned a bad Speaker, was +esteemed a very eloquent one in his Consulship. He wanted neither +sentiment, nor expression; his voice was sweet and sonorous; and he had a +sufficient stock of humour.--C. Memmius, the son of Lucius, was a perfect +adept in the _belles lettres_ of the Greeks; for he had an insuperable +disgust to the literature of the Romans. He was a neat and polished +Speaker, and had a sweet and harmonious turn of expression; but as he was +equally averse to every laborious effort either of the mind or the tongue, +his Eloquence declined in proportion as he lessened his application."-- +"But I heartily wish," said Brutus, "that you would give us your opinion +of those Orators who are still living; or, if you are determined to say +nothing of the rest, there are two at least, (that is Caesar and +Marcellus, whom I have often heard you speak of with the highest +approbation) whose characters would give me as much entertainment as any +of those you have already specified."--"But why," answered I, "would you +expect that I would give you my opinion of men who are as well known to +yourself as to me?"--"Marcellus, indeed," replied he, "I am very well +acquainted with; but as to Caesar, I know little of _him_. For I have +_heard_ the former very often: but, by the time I was able to judge for +myself, the latter had set out for his province."--"Mighty well," said I; +"and what think you of him you have heard so often?"--"What else can I +think," replied he, "but that you will soon have an Orator, who will very +nearly resemble yourself?"--"If that is the case," answered I, "pray think +of him as favourably as you can." "I do," said he; "for he pleases me very +highly; and not without reason. He is absolutely master of his trade, and, +neglecting every other profession, has applied himself solely to _this_; +and, for that purpose, has persevered in the rigorous task of composing a +daily Essay in writing. His words are well chosen; his language is full +and copious; and every thing he says receives an additional ornament from +the graceful tone of his voice, and the dignity of his action. In short, +he is so compleat an Orator, that there is no quality I know of, in which +I can think him deficient. But he is still more to be admired, for being +able, in these unhappy times, (which are marked with a distress that, by +some cruel fatality, has overwhelmed us all) to console himself, as +opportunity offers, with the consciousness of his own integrity, and by +the frequent renewal of his literary pursuits. I saw him lately at +Mitylene; and then (as I have already hinted) I saw him a thorough man. +For though I had before discovered in him a strong resemblance of +yourself, the likeness was much improved, after he was enriched by the +instructions of your learned, and very intimate friend Cratippus."-- +"Though I acknowledge," said I, "that I have listened with pleasure to +your Elogies on a very worthy man, for whom I have the warmest esteem, +they have led me insensibly to the recollection of our common miseries, +which our present conversation was intended to suspend. But I would +willingly hear what is Atticus's opinion of Caesar."--"Upon my word," +replied Atticus, "you are wonderfully consistent with your plan, to say +nothing _yourself_ of the living: and indeed, if you was to deal with +_them_, as you already have with the _dead_, and say something of every +paltry fellow that occurs to your memory, you would plague us with +_Autronii_ and _Steiani_ without end. But though you might possibly have +it in view not to incumber yourself with such a numerous crowd of +insignificant wretches; or perhaps, to avoid giving any one room to +complain that he was either unnoticed, or not extolled according to his +imaginary merit; yet, certainly, you might have said something of Caesar; +especially, as your opinion of _his_ abilities is well known to every +body, and his concerning _your's_ is very far from being a secret. But, +however," said he, (addressing himself to Brutus) "I really think of +Caesar, and every body else says the same of this accurate connoisseur in +the Art of Speaking, that he has the purest and the most elegant command +of the Roman language of all the Orators that have yet appeared: and that +not merely by domestic habit, as we have lately heard it observed of the +families of the Laelii and the Mucii, (though even here, I believe, this +might partly have been the case) but he chiefly acquired and brought it to +its present perfection, by a studious application to the most intricate +and refined branches of literature, and by a careful and constant +attention to the purity of his style. But that _he_, who, involved as he +was in a perpetual hurry of business, could dedicate to _you_, my Cicero, +a laboured Treatise on the Art of Speaking correctly; that _he_, who, in +the first book of it, laid it down as an axiom, that an accurate choice of +words is the foundation of Eloquence; and who has bestowed," said he, +(addressing himself again to Brutus) "the highest encomiums on this friend +of ours, who yet chooses to leave Caesar's character to _me_;--that _he_ +should be a perfect master of the language of polite conservation, is a +circumstance which is almost too obvious to be mentioned." "I said, _the +highest encomiums_," pursued Atticus, "because he says in so many words, +when he addresses himself to Cicero--_if others have bestowed all their +time and attention to acquire a habit of expressing themselves with ease +and correctness, how much is the name and dignity of the Roman people +indebted to you, who are the highest pattern, and indeed the first +inventor of that rich fertility of language which distinguishes your +performances?_"--Indeed," said Brutus, "I think he has extolled your merit +in a very friendly, and a very magnificent style: for you are not only the +_highest pattern_, and even the _first inventor_ of all our _fertility_ of +language, which alone is praise enough to content any reasonable man, but +you have added fresh honours to the name and dignity of the Roman people; +for the very excellence in which we had hitherto been conquered by the +vanquished Greeks, has now been either wrested from their hands, or +equally shared, at least, between us and them. So that I prefer this +honourable testimony of Caesar, I will not say to the public thanksgiving, +which was decreed for your _own_ military services, but to the triumphs of +many heroes."--"Very true," replied I, "provided this honourable testimony +was really the voice of Caesar's judgment, and not of his friendship: for +_he_ certainly has added more to the dignity of the Roman people, whoever +he may be (if indeed any such man has yet existed) who has not only +exemplified and enlarged, but first produced this rich fertility of +expression, than the doughty warrior who has stormed a few paltry castles +of the Ligurians, which have furnished us, you know, with many repeated +triumphs. In reality, if we can submit to hear the truth, it may be +asserted (to say nothing of those god-like plans, which, supported by the +wisdom of our Generals, has frequently saved the sinking State both abroad +and at home) that an Orator is justly entitled to the preference to any +Commander in a petty war. But the General, you will say, is the more +serviceable man to the public. Nobody denies it: and yet (for I am not +afraid of provoking your censure, in a conversation which leaves each of +us at liberty to say what he thinks) I had rather be the author of the +single Oration of Crassus, in defence of Curius, than be honoured with two +Ligurian triumphs. You will, perhaps, reply, that the storming a castle of +the Ligurians was a thing of more consequence to the State, than that the +claim of Curius should be ably supported. This I own to be true. But it +was also of more consequence to the Athenians, that their houses should be +securely roofed, than to have their city graced with a most beautiful +statue of Minerva: and yet, notwithstanding this, I would much rather have +been a Phidias, than the most skilful joiner in Athens. In the present +case, therefore, we are not to consider a man's usefulness, but the +strength of his abilities; especially as the number of painters and +statuaries, who have excelled in their profession, is very small; whereas, +there can never be any want of joiners and mechanic labourers. But +proceed, my Atticus, with Caesar; and oblige us with the remainder of his +character."--"We see then," said he, "from what has just been mentioned, +that a pure and correct style is the groundwork, and the very basis and +foundation, upon which an Orator must build his other accomplishments: +though, it is true, that those who had hitherto possessed it, derived it +more from early habit, than from any principles of art. It is needless to +refer you to the instances of Laelius and Scipio; for a purity of +language, as well as of manners, was the characteristic of the age they +lived in. It could not, indeed, be applied to every one; for their two +cotemporaries, Caecilius and Pacuvius, spoke very incorrectly: but yet +people in general, who had not resided out of the city, nor been corrupted +by any domestic barbarisms, spoke the Roman language with purity. Time, +however, as well at Rome as in Greece, soon altered matters for the worse: +for this city, (as had formerly been the case at Athens) was resorted to +by a crowd of adventurers from different parts, who spoke very corruptly; +which shews the necessity of reforming our language, and reducing it to a +certain standard, which shall not be liable to vary like the capricious +laws of custom. Though we were then very young, we can easily remember T. +Flaminius, who was joint-consul with Q. Metellus: he was supposed to speak +his native language with correctness, but was a man of no Literature. As +to Catulus, he was far indeed from being destitute of learning, as you +have already observed: but his reputed purity of diction was chiefly owing +to the sweetness of his voice, and the delicacy of his accent. Cotta, who, +by his broad pronunciation, threw off all resemblance of the elegant tone +of the Greeks, and affected a harsh and rustic utterance, quite opposite +to that of Catulus, acquired the same reputation of correctness by +pursuing a wild and unfrequented path. But Sisenna, who had the ambition +to think of reforming our phraseology, could not be lashed out of his +whimsical and new-fangled turns of expression, by all the raillery of C. +Rufius."--"What do you refer to?" said Brutus; "and who was the Caius +Rufius you are speaking of?"--"He was a noted prosecutor," replied he, +"some years ago. When this man had supported an indictment against one +Christilius, Sisenna, who was counsel for the defendant, told him, that +several parts of his accusation were absolutely _spitatical_. [Footnote: +In the original _sputatilica_, worthy to be spit upon. It appears, from +the connection, to have been a very unclassical word, whimsically derived +by the author of it from _sputa_, spittle.] _My Lords_, cried Rufius to +the judges, _I shall be cruelly over-reached, unless you give me your +assistance. His charge overpowers my comprehension; and I am afraid he has +some unfair design upon me. What, in the name of Heaven, can be intend by_ +SPITATICAL? _I know the meaning of_ SPIT, _or_ SPITTLE; _but this horrid_ +ATICAL, _at the end of it, absolutely puzzles me._ The whole Bench laughed +very heartily at the singular oddity of the expression: my old friend, +however, was still of opinion, that to speak correctly, was to speak +differently from other people. But Caesar, who was guided by the +principles of art, has corrected the imperfections of a vicious custom, by +adopting the rules and improvements of a good one, as he found them +occasionally displayed in the course of polite conversation. Accordingly, +to the purest elegance of expression, (which is equally necessary to every +well-bred Citizen, as to an Orator) he has added all the various ornaments +of Elocution; so that he seems to exhibit the finest painting in the most +advantageous point of view. As he has such extraordinary merit even in the +common run of his language, I must confess that there is no person I know +of, to whom he should yield the preference. Besides, his manner of +speaking, both as to his voice and gesture, is splendid and noble, without +the least appearance of artifice or affectation: and there is a dignity in +his very presence, which bespeaks a great and elevated mind."--"Indeed," +said Brutus, "his Orations please me highly; for I have had the +satisfaction to read several of them. He has likewise wrote some +commentaries, or short memoirs, of his own transactions;"--"and such," +said I, "as merit the highest approbation: for they are plain, correct, +and graceful, and divested of all the ornaments of language, so as to +appear (if I may be allowed the expression) in a kind of undress. But +while he pretended only to furnish the loose materials, for such as might +be inclined to compose a regular history, he may, perhaps, have gratified +the vanity of a few literary _Frisseurs_: but he has certainly prevented +all sensible men from attempting any improvement on his plan. For in +history, nothing is more pleasing than a correct and elegant brevity of +expression. With your leave, however, it is high time to return to those +Orators who have quitted the stage of life. C. Sicinius then, who was a +grandson of the Censor Q. Pompey, by one of his daughters, died after his +advancement to the Quaestorship. He was a Speaker of some merit and +reputation, which he derived from the system of Hermagoras; who, though he +furnished but little assistance for acquiring an ornamental style, gave +many useful precepts to expedite and improve the invention of an Orator. +For in this System we have a collection of fixed and determinate rules for +public speaking; which are delivered indeed without any shew or parade, +(and, I might have added, in a trivial and homely form) but yet are so +plain and methodical, that it is almost impossible to mistake the road. By +keeping close to these, and always digesting his subject before he +ventured to speak upon it, (to which we may add, that he had a tolerable +fluency of expression) he so far succeeded, without any other assistance, +as to be ranked among the pleaders of the day.--As to C. Visellius Varro, +who was my cousin, and a cotemporary of Sicinius, he was a man of great +learning. He died while he was a member of the Court of Inquests, into +which he had been admitted after the expiration of his Aedileship. The +public, I confess, had not the same opinion of his abilities that I have; +for he never passed as a man of Sterling Eloquence among the people. His +style was excessively quick and rapid, and consequently obscure; for, in +fact, it was embarrassed and blinded by the celerity of its course: and +yet, after all, you will scarcely find a man who had a better choice of +words, or a richer vein of sentiment. He had besides a complete fund of +polite literature, and a thorough knowledge of the principles of +jurisprudence, which he learned from his father Aculeo. To proceed in our +account of the dead, the next that presents himself is L. Torquatus, whom +you will not so readily pronounce a connoisseur in the Art of Speaking +(though he was by no means destitute of elocution) as, what is called by +the Greeks, _a political Adept_. He had a plentiful stock of learning, not +indeed of the common sort, but of a more abstruse and curious nature: he +had likewise an admirable memory, and a very sensible and elegant turn of +expression; all which qualities derived an additional grace from the +dignity of his deportment, and the integrity of his manners. I was also +highly pleased with the style of his cotemporary Triarius, which expressed +to perfection, the character of a worthy old gentleman, who had been +thoroughly polished by the refinements of Literature.--What a venerable +severity was there in his look! What forcible solemnity in his language! +and how thoughtful and deliberate every word he spoke!"--At the mention of +Torquatus and Triarius, for each of whom he had the most affectionate +veneration,--"It fills my heart with anguish," said Brutus, "(to omit a +thousand other circumstances) when I reflect, as I cannot help doing, on +your mentioning the names of these worthy men, that your long-respected +authority was insufficient to procure an accommodation of our differences. +The Republic would not otherwise have been deprived of these, and many +other excellent Citizens."--"Not a word more," said I, on this melancholy +subject, which can only aggravate our sorrow: for as the remembrance of +what is already past is painful enough, the prospect of what is yet to +come is still more cutting. Let us, therefore, drop our unavailing +complaints, and (agreeably to our plan) confine our attention to the +forensic merits of our deceased friends. Among those, then, who lost their +lives in this unhappy war, was M. Bibulus, who, though not a professed +orator, was a very accurate writer, and a solid and experienced advocate: +and Appius Claudius, your father-in-law, and my colleague and intimate +acquaintance, who was not only a hard student, and a man of learning, but +a practised Orator, a skilful Augurist and Civilian, and a thorough Adept +in the Roman History.--As to L. Domitius, he was totally unacquainted +with any rules of art; but he spoke his native language with purity, and +had a great freedom of address. We had likewise the two Lentuli, men of +consular dignity; one of whom, (I mean Publius) the avenger of my wrongs, +and the author of my restoration, derived all his powers and +accomplishments from the assistance of Art, and not from the bounty of +Nature: but he had such a great and noble disposition, that he claimed all +the honours of the most illustrious Citizens, and supported them with the +utmost dignity of character.--The other (L. Lentulus) was an animated +Speaker, for it would be saying too much, perhaps, to call him an Orator-- +but, unhappily, he had an utter aversion to the trouble of thinking. His +voice was sonorous; and his language, though not absolutely harsh and +forbidding, was warm and rigorous, and carried in it a kind of terror. In +a judicial trial, you would probably have wished for a more agreeable and +a keener advocate: but in a debate on matters of government, you would +have thought his abilities sufficient.--Even Titus Postumius had such +powers of utterance, as were not to be despised: but in political matters, +he spoke with the same unbridled ardour he fought with: in short, he was +much too warm; though it must be owned he possessed an extensive knowledge +of the laws and constitution of his country."--"Upon my word," cried +Atticus, "if the persons you have mentioned were still living, I should be +apt to imagine, that you was endeavouring to solicit their favour. For you +introduce every body who had the courage to stand up and speak his mind: +so that I almost begin to wonder how M. Servilius has escaped your +notice."--"I am, indeed, very sensible," replied I, "that there have been +many who never spoke in public, that were much better qualified for the +talk, than those Orators I have taken the pains to enumerate: [Footnote: +This was probably intended as an indirect Compliment to Atticus.] but I +have, at least, answered one purpose by it, which is to shew you, that in +this populous City, we have not had very many who had the resolution to +speak at all; and that even among these, there have been few who were +entitled to our applause. I cannot, therefore, neglect to take some notice +of those worthy knights, and my intimate friends, very lately deceased, P. +Comminius Spoletinus, against whom I pleaded in defence of C. Cornelius, +and who was a methodical, a spirited, and a ready Speaker; and T. Accius, +of Pisaurum, to whom I replied in behalf of A. Cluentius, and who was an +accurate, and a tolerably copious Advocate: he was also well instructed in +the precepts of Hermagoras, which, though of little service to embellish +and enrich our Elocution, furnish a variety of arguments, which, like the +weapons of the light infantry, may be readily managed, and are adapted to +every subject of debate. I must add, that I never knew a man of greater +industry and application. As to C. Piso, my son-in-law, it is scarcely +possible to mention any one who was blessed with a finer capacity. He was +constantly employed either in public speaking, and private declamatory +exercises, or, at least, in writing and thinking: and, consequently, he +made such a rapid progress, that he rather seemed to fly than to run. He +had an elegant choice of expression, and the structure of his periods was +perfectly neat and harmonious; he had an astonishing variety and strength +of argument, and a lively and agreeable turn of sentiment: and his gesture +was naturally so graceful, that it appeared to have been formed (which it +really was not) by the nicest rules of art. I am rather fearful, indeed, +that I should be thought to have been prompted by my affection for him to +have given him a greater character than he deserved: but this is so far +from being the case, that I might justly have ascribed to him many +qualities of a different and more valuable nature: for in continence, +social piety, and every other kind of virtue, there was scarcely any of +his cotemporaries who was worthy to be compared with him.--M. Caelius too +must not pass unnoticed, notwithstanding the unhappy change, either of his +fortune or disposition, which marked the latter part of his life. As long +as he was directed by my influence, he behaved himself so well as a +Tribune of the people, that no man supported the interests of the Senate, +and of all the good and virtuous, in opposition to the factious and unruly +madness of a set of abandoned citizens, with more firmness than _he_ did: +a part in which he was enabled to exert himself to great advantage, by the +force and dignity of his language, and his lively humour, and genteel +address. He spoke several harangues in a very sensible style, and three +spirited invectives, which originated from our political disputes: and his +defensive speeches, though not equal to the former, were yet tolerably +good, and had a degree of merit which was far from being contemptible. +After he had been advanced to the Aedileship, by the hearty approbation of +all the better sort of citizens, as he had lost my company (for I was then +abroad in Cilicia) he likewise lost himself; and entirely sunk his credit, +by imitating the conduct of those very men, whom he had before so +successfully opposed.--But M. Calidius has a more particular claim to our +notice for the singularity of his character; which cannot so properly be +said to have entitled him to a place among our other Orators, as to +distinguish him from the whole fraternity; for in him we beheld the most +uncommon, and the most delicate sentiments, arrayed in the softest and +finest language imaginable. Nothing could be so easy as the turn and +compass of his periods; nothing so ductile; nothing more pliable and +obsequious to his will, so that he had a greater command of it than any +Orator whatever. In short, the flow of his language was so pure and +limpid, that nothing could be clearer; and so free, that it was never +clogged or obstructed. Every word was exactly in the place where it should +be, and disposed (as Lucilius expresses it) with as much nicety as in a +curious piece of Mosaic-work. We may add, that he had not a single +expression which was either harsh, unnatural, abject, or far-fetched; and +yet he was so far from confining himself to the plain and ordinary mode of +speaking, that he abounded greatly in the metaphor,--but such metaphors as +did not appear to usurp a post that belonged to another, but only to +occupy their own. These delicacies were displayed not in a loose and +disfluent style; but in such a one as was strictly _numerous_, without +_either_ appearing to be so, or running on with a dull uniformity of +sound. He was likewise master of the various ornaments of language and +sentiment which the Greeks call _figures_, whereby he enlivened and +embellished his style as with so many forensic decorations. We may add +that he readily discovered, upon all occasions, what was the real point of +debate, and where the stress of the argument lay; and that his method of +ranging his ideas was extremely artful, his action genteel, and his whole +manner very engaging and very sensible. In short, if to speak agreeably is +the chief merit of an Orator, you will find no one who was better +qualified than Calidius. But as we have observed a little before, that it +is the business of an Orator to instruct, to please, and _to move the +passions_; he was, indeed, perfectly master of the two first; for no one +could better elucidate his subject, or charm the attention of his +audience. But as to the third qualification,--the moving and alarming the +passions,--which is of much greater efficacy than the two former, he was +wholly destitute of it. He had no force,--no exertion;--either by his own +choice, and from an opinion that those who had a loftier turn of +expression, and a more warm and spirited action, were little betther than +madmen; or because it was contrary to his natural temper, and habitual +practice; or, lastly, because it was beyond the strength of his abilities. +If, indeed, it is a useless quality, his want of it was a real excellence: +but if otherwise, it was certainly a defect. I particularly remember, that +when he prosecuted Q. Gallius for an attempt to poison him, and pretended +that he had the plainest proofs of it, and could produce many letters, +witnesses, informations, and other evidences to put the truth of his +charge beyond a doubt, interspersing many sensible and ingenious remarks +on the nature of the crime;--I remember, I say, that when it came to my +turn to reply to him, after urging every argument which the case itself +suggested, I insisted upon it as a material circumstance in favour of my +client, that the prosecutor, while he charged him with a design against +his life, and assured us that he had the most indubitable proofs of it +then in his hands, related his story with as much ease, and as much +calmness, and indifference, as if nothing had happened."--"Would it have +been possible," said I, (addressing myself to Calidius) "that you should +speak with this air of unconcern, unless the charge was purely an +invention of your own? and, above all, that you, whose Eloquence has often +vindicated the wrongs of other people with so much spirit, should speak so +coolly of a crime which threatened your life? Where was that expression of +resentment which is so natural to the injured? Where that ardour, that +eagerness, which extorts the most pathetic language even from men of the +dullest capacities? There was no visible disorder in your mind, no emotion +in your looks and gesture, no smiting of the thigh or the forehead, nor +even a single stamp of the foot. You was, therefore, so far from +interesting our passions in your favour, that we could scarcely keep our +eyes open, while you was relating the dangers you had so narrowly escaped. +Thus we employed the natural defect, or if you please, the sensible +calmness of an excellent Orator, as an argument to invalidate his +charge."--"But is it possible to doubt," cried Brutus, "whether this was a +sensible quality, or a defect? For as the greatest merit of an Orator is +to be able to inflame the passions, and give them such a biass as shall +best answer his purpose; he who is destitute of this must certainly be +deficient in the most capital part of his profession."--"I am of the same +opinion," said I; "but let us now proceed to him (Hortensius) who is the +only remaining Orator worth noticing; after which, as you may seem to +insist upon it, I shall say something of myself. I must first, however, do +justice to the memory of two promising youths, who, if they had lived to a +riper age, would have acquired the highest reputation for their +Eloquence."--"You mean, I suppose," said Brutus, "C. Curio, and C. +Licinius Calvus."--"The very same," replied I. "One of them, besides his +plausible manner, had such an easy and voluble flow of expression, and +such an inexhaustible variety, and sometimes accuracy of sentiment, that +he was one of the most ready and ornamental speakers of his time. Though +he had received but little instruction from the professed masters of the +art, Nature had furnished him with an admirable capacity of the practice +of it. I never, indeed, discovered in him any great degree of application; +but he was certainly very ambitious to distinguish himself; and if he had +continued to listen to my advice, as he had begun to do, he would have +preferred the acquisition of real honour to that of untimely grandeur."-- +"What do you mean," said Brutus? "Or in what manner are these two objects +to be distinguished?"--"I distinguish them thus," replied I: "As honour is +the reward of virtue, conferred upon a man by the choice and affection of +his fellow-citizens, he who obtains it by their free votes and suffrages +is to be considered, in my opinion, as an honourable member of the +community. But he who acquires his power and authority by taking advantage +of every unhappy incident, and without the consent of his fellow-citizens, +as Curio aimed to do, acquires only the name of honour, without the +substance. Whereas, if he had hearkened to me, he would have risen to the +highest dignity, in an honourable manner, and with the hearty approbation +of all men, by a gradual advancement to public offices, as his father and +many other eminent citizens had done before. I often gave the same advice +to P. Crassus, the son of Marcus, who courted my friendship in the early +part of his life; and recommended it to him very warmly, to consider +_that_ as the truest path to honour which had been already marked out to +him by the example of his ancestors. For he had been extremely well +educated, and was perfectly versed in every branch of polite literature: +he had likewise a penetrating genius, and an elegant variety of +expression; and appeared grave and sententious without arrogance, and +modest and diffident without dejection. But like many other young men he +was carried away by the tide of ambition; and after serving a short time +with reputation as a volunteer, nothing could satisfy him but to try his +fortune as a General,--an employment which was confined by the wisdom of +our ancestors to men who had arrived at a certain age, and who, even then, +were obliged to submit their pretensions to the uncertain issue of a +public decision. Thus, by exposing himself to a fatal catastrophe, while +he was endeavouring to rival the fame of Cyrus and Alexander, who lived to +finish their desperate career, he lost all resemblance of L. Crassus, and +his other worthy Progenitors. + +"But let us return to Calvus whom we have just mentioned,--an Orator who +had received more literary improvements than Curio, and had a more +accurate and delicate manner of speaking, which he conducted with great +taste and elegance; but, (by being too minute and nice a critic upon +himself,) while he was labouring to correct and refine his language, he +suffered all the force and spirit of it to evaporate. In short, it was so +exquisitely polished, as to charm the eye of every skilful observer; but +it was little noticed by the common people in a crowded Forum, which is +the proper theatre of Eloquence."--"His aim," said Brutus, "was to be +admired as an _Attic_ Orator: and to this we must attribute that accurate +exility of style, which he constantly affected."--"This, indeed, was his +professed character," replied I: "but he was deceived himself, and led +others into the same mistake. It is true, whoever supposes that to speak +in the _Attic_ taste, is to avoid every awkward, every harsh, every +vicious expression, has, in this sense, an undoubted right to refuse his +approbation to every thing which is not strictly _Attic_. For he must +naturally detest whatever is insipid, disgusting, or invernacular; while +he considers a correctness and propriety of language as the religion, and +good-manners of an Orator:--and every one who pretends to speak in public +should adopt the same opinion. But if he bestows the name of Atticism on a +half-starved, a dry, and a niggardly turn of expression, provided it is +neat, correct, and genteel, I cannot say, indeed, that he bestows it +improperly; as the Attic Orators, however, had many qualities of a more +important nature, I would advise him to be careful that he does not +overlook their different kinds and degrees of merit, and their great +extent and variety of character. The Attic Speakers, he will tell me, are +the models upon which he wishes to form his Eloquence. But which of them +does he mean to fix upon? for they are not all of the same cast. Who, for +instance, could be more unlike each other than Demosthenes and Lysias? or +than Demosthenes and Hyperides? Or who more different from either of them, +than Aeschines? Which of them, then, do you propose to imitate? If only +_one_, this will be a tacit implication, that none of the rest were true +masters of Atticism: if _all_, how can you possibly succeed, when their +characters are so opposite? Let me further ask you, whether Demetrius +Phalereus spoke in the Attic style? In my opinion, his Orations have the +very smell of Athens. But he is certainly more florid than either +Hyperides or Lysias; partly from the natural turn of his genius, and +partly by choice. There were likewise two others, at the time we are +speaking of, whose characters were equally dissimilar; and yet both of +them were truly _Attic_. The first (Charisius) was the author of a number +of speeches, which he composed for his friends, professedly in imitation +of Lysias:--and the other (Demochares, the nephew of Demosthenes) wrote +several Orations, and a regular History of what was transacted in Athens +under his own observation; not so much, indeed, in the style of an +Historian, as of an Orator. Hegesias took the former for his model, and +had so vain a conceit of his own taste for Atticism, that he considered +his predecessors, who were really masters of it, as mere rustics in +comparison of himself. But what can be more insipid, more frivolous, or +more puerile, than that very concinnity of expression which he actually +acquired?"--"_But still we wish to resemble the Attic Speakers_."--"Do so, +by all means. But were not those, then, true Attic Speakers, we have just +been mentioning?"--"_Nobody denies it; and these are the men we +imitate._"--"But how? when they are so very different, not only from each +other, but from all the rest of their contemporaries?"--"_True; but +Thucydides is our leading pattern_."--"This too I can allow, if you design +to compose histories, instead of pleading causes. For Thucydides was both +an exact, and a stately historian: but he never intended to write models +for conducting a judicial process. I will even go so far as to add, that I +have often commended the speeches which he has inserted into his history +in great numbers; though I must frankly own, that I neither _could_ +imitate them, if I _would,_ nor indeed _would,_ if I _could;_ like a man +who would neither choose his wine so new as to have been turned off in the +preceding vintage, nor so excessively old as to date its age from the +consulship of Opimius or Anicius."--"_The latter_, you'll say, _bears the +highest price_." "Very probable; but when it has too much age, it has lost +that delicious flavour which pleases the palate, and, in my opinion, is +scarcely tolerable."--"_Would you choose, then, when you have a mind to +regale yourself, to apply to a fresh, unripened cask?_" "By no means; but +still there is a certain age, when good wine arrives at its utmost +perfection. In the same manner, I would recommend neither a raw, +unmellowed style, which, (if I may so express myself) has been newly drawn +off from the vat; nor the rough, and antiquated language of the grave and +manly Thucydides. For even _he_, if he had lived a few years later, would +have acquired a much softer and mellower turn of expression."--"_Let us, +then, imitate Demosthenes_."--"Good Gods! to what else do I direct all my +endeavours, and my wishes! But it is, perhaps, my misfortune not to +succeed. These _Atticisers_, however, acquire with ease the paltry +character they aim at; not once recollecting that it is not only recorded +in history, but must have been the natural consequence of his superior +fame, that when Demosthenes was to speak in public, all Greece flocked in +crowds to hear him. But when our _Attic_ gentry venture to speak, they are +presently deserted not only by the little throng around them who have no +interest in the dispute, (which alone is a mortifying proof of their +insignificance) but even by their associates and fellow-advocates. If to +speak, therefore, in a dry and lifeless manner, is the true criterion of +Atticism, they are heartily welcome to enjoy the credit of it: but if they +wish to put their abilities to the trial, let them attend the Comitia, or +a judicial process of real importance. The open Forum demands a fuller, +and more elevated tone: and _he_ is the Orator for me, who is so +universally admired that when he is to plead an interesting cause, all the +benches are filled beforehand, the tribunal crowded, the clerks and +notaries busy in adjusting their seats, the populace thronging about the +rostra, and the judge brisk, and vigilant;--_he_, who has such a +commanding air, that when he rises up to speak, the whole audience is +hushed into a profound silence, which is soon interrupted by their +repeated plaudits, and acclamations, or by those successive bursts of +laughter, or violent transports of passion, which he knows how to excite +at his pleasure; so that even a distant observer, though unacquainted with +the subject he is speaking upon, can easily discover that his hearers are +pleased with him, and that a _Roscius_ is performing his part on the +stage. Whoever has the happiness to be thus followed and applauded is, +beyond dispute, an _Attic_ speaker: for such was Pericles,--such was +Hyperides, and Aeschines,--and such, in the most eminent degree, was the +great Demosthenes! If indeed, these connoisseurs, who have so much dislike +to every thing bold and ornamental, only mean to say that an accurate, a +judicious, and a neat, and compact, but unembellished style, is really an +_Attic_ one, they are not mistaken. For in an art of such wonderful extent +and variety as that of speaking, even this subtile and confined character +may claim a place: so that the conclusion will be, that it is very +possible to speak in the _Attic_ taste, without deserving the name of an +Orator; but that all in general who are truly eloquent, are likewise +_Attic_ Speakers.--It is time, however, to return to Hortensius."--" +Indeed, I think so," cried Brutus: "though I must acknowledge that this +long digression of yours has entertained me very agreeably." + +"But I made some remarks," said Atticus, "which I had several times a mind +to mention; only I was loath to interrupt you. As your discourse, however, +seems to be drawing towards an end, I think I may venture to out with +them."--"By all means," replied I.--"I readily grant, then," said he, +"that there is something very humourous and elegant in that continued +_Irony_, which Socrates employs to so much advantage in the dialogues of +Plato, Xenophon, and Aeschines. For when a dispute commences on the nature +of wisdom, he professes, with a great deal of humour and ingenuity, to +have no pretensions to it himself; while, with a kind of concealed +raillery, he ascribes the highest degree of it to those who had the +arrogance to lay an open claim to it. Thus, in Plato, he extols +Protagoras, Hippias, Prodicus, Gorgias, and several others, to the skies: +but represents himself as a mere ignorant. This in _him_ was peculiarly +becoming; nor can I agree with Epicurus, who thinks it censurable. But in +a professed History, (for such, in fact, is the account you have been +giving us of the Roman Orators) I shall leave you to judge, whether an +application of the _Irony_ is not equally reprehensible, as it would be in +giving a judicial evidence."--"Pray, what are you driving at," said I,-- +"for I cannot comprehend you."--"I mean," replied he, "in the first place, +that the commendations which you have bestowed upon some of our Orators, +have a tendency to mislead the opinion of those who are unacquainted with +their true characters. There were likewise several parts of your account, +at which I could scarcely forbear laughing: as, for instance, when you +compared old Cato to Lysias. He was, indeed, a great, and a very +extraordinary man. Nobody, I believe, will say to the contrary. But shall +we call him an Orator? Shall we pronounce him the rival of Lysias, who was +the most finished character of the kind? If we mean to jest, this +comparison of your's would form a pretty _Irony_: but if we are talking in +real earnest, we should pay the same scrupulous regard to truth, as if we +were giving evidence upon oath. As a Citizen, a Senator, a General, and, +in short, a man who was distinguished by his prudence, his activity, and +every other virtue, your favourite Cato has my highest approbation. I can +likewise applaud his speeches, considering the time he lived in. They +exhibit the out-lines of a great genius; but such, however, as are +evidently rude and imperfect. In the same manner, when you represented his +_Antiquities_ as replete with all the graces of Oratory, and compared Cato +with Philistus and Thucydides, did you really imagine, that you could +persuade me and Brutus to believe you? or would you seriously degrade +those, whom none of the Greeks themselves have been able to equal, into a +comparison with a stiff country, gentleman, who scarcely suspected that +there was any such thing in being, as a copious and ornamental style? You +have likewise said much in commendation of Galba;--if as the best Speaker +of his age, I can so far agree with you, for such was the character he +bore:--but if you meant to recommend him as an _Orator_, produce his +Orations (for they are still extant) and then tell me honestly, whether +you would wish your friend Brutus here to speak as _he_? Lepidus too was +the author of several Speeches, which have received your approbation; in +which I can partly join with you, if you consider them only as specimens +of our ancient Eloquence. The same might be said of Africanus and Laelius, +than whose language (you tell us) nothing in the world can be sweeter: +nay, you have mentioned it with a kind of veneration, and endeavoured to +dazzle our judgment by the great character they bore, and the uncommon +elegance of their manners. Divest it of these adventitious Graces, and +this sweet language of theirs will appear so homely, as to be scarcely +worth noticing. Carbo too was mentioned as one of our capital Orators; and +for this only reason,--that in speaking, as in all other professions, +whatever is the best of its kind, for the time being, how deficient soever +in reality, is always admired and applauded. What I have said of Carbo, is +equally true of the Gracchi: though, in some particulars, the character +you have given them was no more than they deserved. But to say nothing of +the rest of your Orators, let us proceed to Antonius and Crassus, your two +paragons of Eloquence, whom I have heard myself, and who were certainly +very able Speakers. To the extraordinary commendation you have bestowed +upon them, I can readily give my assent; but not, however, in such an +unlimited manner as to persuade myself that you have received as much +improvement from the Speech in support of the Servilian Law, as Lysippus +said he had done by studying the famous [Footnote: _Doryphorus_. A Spear- +man.] statue of Polycletus. What you have said on _this_ occasion I +consider as an absolute _Irony:_ but I shall not inform you why I think +so, lest you should imagine I design to flatter you. I shall therefore +pass over the many fine encomiums you have bestowed upon _these_; and what +you have said of Cotta and Sulpicius, and but very lately of your pupil +Caelius. I acknowledge, however, that we may call them Orators: but as to +the nature and extent of their merit, let your own judgment decide. It is +scarcely worth observing, that you have had the additional good-nature to +crowd so many daubers into your list, that there are some, I believe, who +will be ready to wish they had died long ago, that you might have had an +opportunity to insert _their_ names among the rest."--"You have opened a +wide field of enquiry," said I, "and started a subject which deserves a +separate discussion; but we must defer it to a more convenient time. For, +to settle it, a great variety of authors must be examined, and especially +_Cato_: which could not fail to convince you, that nothing was wanting to +complete his pieces, but those rich and glowing colours which had not then +been invented. As to the above Oration of Crassus, he himself, perhaps, +could have written better, if he had been willing to take the trouble; but +nobody else, I believe, could have mended it. You have no reason, +therefore, to think I spoke _ironically_, when I mentioned it as the guide +and _tutoress_ of my Eloquence: for though you seem to have a higher +opinion of my capacity, in its present state, you must remember that, in +our youth, we could find nothing better to imitate among the Romans. And +as to my admitting so _many_ into my list of Orators, I only did it (as I +have already observed) to shew how few have succeeded in a profession, in +which all were desirous to excel. I therefore insist upon it that you do +not consider _me_ in the present case, as an _Ironist_; though we are +informed by C. Fannius, in his History, that _Africanus_ was a very +excellent one."--"As you please about _that_," cried Atticus: "though, by +the bye, I did not imagine it would have been any disgrace to you, to be +what Africanus and Socrates have been before you."--"We may settle _this_ +another time," interrupted Brutus: "but will you be so obliging," said he, +(addressing himself to _me_) "as to give us a critical analysis of some of +the old speeches you have mentioned?"--"Very willingly," replied I; "but +it must be at Cuma, or Tusculum, when opportunity offers: for we are near +neighbours, you know, in both places. At present, let us return to +_Hortensius_, from whom we have digressed a second time." + +"Hortensius, then, who began to speak in public when he was very young, +was soon employed even in causes of the greatest moment: and though he +first appeared in the time of Cotta and Sulpicius, (who were only ten +years older) and when Crassus and Antonius, and afterwards Philip and +Julius, were in the height of their reputation, he was thought worthy to +be compared with either of them in point of Eloquence. He had such an +excellent memory as I never knew in any person; so that what he had +composed in private, he was able to repeat, without notes, in the very +same words he had made use of at first. He employed this natural advantage +with so much readiness, that he not only recollected whatever he had +written or premeditated himself, but remembered every thing that had been +said by his opponents, without the help of a prompter. He was likewise +inflamed with such a passionate fondness for the profession, that I never +saw any one, who took more pains to improve himself; for he would not +suffer a day to elapse, without either speaking in the Forum, or composing +something at home; and very often he did both in the same day. He had, +besides, a turn of expression which was very far from being low and +unelevated; and possessed two other accomplishments, in which no one could +equal him,--an uncommon clearness and accuracy in stating the points he +was to speak to; and a neat and easy manner of collecting the substance of +what had been said by his antagonist, and by himself. He had likewise an +elegant choice of words, an agreeable flow in his periods, and a copious +Elocution, which he was partly indebted for to a fine natural capacity, +and partly acquired by the most laborious rhetorical exercises. In short, +he had a most retentive view of his subject, and always divided and +parcelled it out with the greatest exactness; and he very seldom +overlooked any thing which the case could suggest, that was proper either +to support his _own_ allegations, or to refute those of his opponent. +Lastly, he had a sweet and sonorous voice; and his gesture had rather more +art in it, and was more exactly managed, than is requisite to an Orator. + +"While _he_ was in the height of his glory, Crassus died, Cotta was +banished, our public trials were intermitted by the Marsic war, and I +myself made my first appearance in the Forum. Hortensius joined the army, +and served the first campaign as a volunteer, and the second as a military +Tribune: Sulpicius was made a lieutenant general; and Antonius was absent +on a similar account. The only trial we had, was that upon the Varian Law; +the rest, as I have just observed, having been intermitted by the war. We +had scarcely any body left at the bar but L. Memmius, and Q. Pompeius, who +spoke mostly on their own affairs; and, though far from being Orators of +the first distinction, were yet tolerable ones, (if we may credit +Philippus, who was himself a man of some Eloquence) and in supporting an +evidence, displayed all the poignancy of a prosecutor, with a moderate +freedom of Elocution. The rest, who were esteemed our capital Speakers, +were then in the magistracy, and I had the benefit of hearing their +harangues almost every day. C. Curio was chosen a Tribune of the people; +though he left off speaking after being once deserted by his whole +audience. To him I may add Q. Metellus Celer, who, though certainly no +Orator, was far from being destitute of utterance: but Q. Varius, C. +Carbo, and Cn. Pomponius, were men of real Elocution, and might almost be +said to have lived upon the Rostra. C. Julius too, who was then a Curule +Aedile, was daily employed in making Speeches to the people, which were +composed with great neatness and accuracy. But while I attended the Forum +with this eager curiosity, my first disappointment was the banishment of +Cotta: after which I continued to hear the rest with the same assiduity as +before; and though I daily spent the remainder of my time in reading, +writing, and private declamation, I cannot say that I much relished my +confinement to these preparatory exercises. The next year Q. Varius was +condemned, and banished, by his own law: and I, that I might acquire a +competent knowledge of the principles of jurisprudence, then attached +myself to Q. Scaevola, the son of Publius, who, though he did not choose +to undertake the charge of a pupil, yet by freely giving his advice to +those who consulted him, he answered every purpose of instruction to such +as took the trouble to apply to him. In the succeeding year, in which +Sylla and Pompey were Consuls, as Sulpicius, who was elected a Tribune of +the people, had occasion to speak in public almost every day, I had an +opportunity to acquaint myself thoroughly with his manner of speaking. At +this time Philo, a philosopher of the first name _in the Academy_, with +many of the principal Athenians, having deserted their native home, and +fled to Rome, from the fury of Mithridates, I immediately became his +scholar, and was exceedingly taken with his philosophy; and, besides the, +pleasure I received from the great variety and sublimity of his matter, I +was still more inclined to confine, my attention to that study; because +there was reason to apprehend that our laws and judicial proceedings would +be wholly overturned by the continuance of the public disorders. In the +same year Sulpicius lost his life; and Q. Catulus, M. Antonius, and C. +Julius, three Orators, who were partly cotemporary with each other, were +most inhumanly put to death. Then also I attended the lectures of Molo the +Rhodian, who was newly come to Rome, and was both an excellent Pleader, +and an able Teacher of the Art. I have mentioned these particulars, which, +perhaps, may appear foreign to our purpose, that _you_, my Brutus, (for +Atticus is already acquainted with them) may be able to mark my progress, +and observe how closely I trod upon the heels of Hortensius. + +"The three following years the city was free from the tumult of arms; but +either by the death, the voluntary retirement, or the flight of our ablest +Orators (for even M. Crassus, and the two Lentuli, who were then in the +bloom of youth, had all left us) Hortensius, of course, was the first +Speaker in the Forum. Antistius too was daily rising into reputation,-- +Piso pleaded pretty often,--Pomponius not so frequently,--Carbo very +seldom,--and Philippus only once or twice. In the mean while I pursued my +studies of every kind, day and night, with unremitting application. I +lodged and boarded at my own house [where he lately died] Diodotus the +Stoic; whom I employed as my preceptor in various other parts of learning, +but particularly in Logic, which may be considered as a close and +contracted species of Eloquence; and without which, you yourself have +declared it impossible to acquire that full and perfect Eloquence, which +they suppose to be an open and dilated kind of Logic. Yet with all my +attention to Diodotus, and the various arts he was master of, I never +suffered even a single day to escape me, without some exercise of the +oratorial kind. I constantly declaimed in private with M. Piso, Q. +Pompeius, or some other of my acquaintance; pretty often in Latin, but +much oftener in Greek; because the Greek furnishes a greater variety of +ornaments, and an opportunity of imitating and introducing them into the +Latin; and because the Greek masters, who were far the best, could not +correct and improve us, unless we declaimed in that language. This time +was distinguished by a violent struggle to restore the liberty of the +Republic:--the barbarous slaughter of the three Orators, Scaevola, Carbo, +and Antistius;--the return of Cotta, Curio, Crassus, Pompey, and the +Lentuli;--the re-establishment of the laws and courts of judicature;--and +the intire restoration of the Commonwealth: but we lost Pomponius, +Censorinus, and Murena, from the roll of Orators. + +"I now began, for the _first_ time, to undertake the management of causes, +both private and public; not, as most did, with a view to learn my +profession, but to make a trial of the abilities which I had taken so much +pains to acquire. I had then a second opportunity of attending the +instructions of Molo; who came to Rome, while Sylla was Dictator, to +sollicit the payment of what was due to his countrymen, for their services +in the Mithridatic war. My defence of Sext. Roscius, which was the first +cause I pleaded, met with such a favourable reception, that, from that +moment, I was looked upon as an advocate of the first class, and equal to +the greatest and most important causes: and after this I pleaded many +others, which I pre-composed with all the care and accuracy I was master +of. + +"But as you seem desirous not so much to be acquainted with any incidental +marks of my character, or the first sallies of my youth, as to know me +thoroughly, I shall mention some particulars, which otherwise might have +seemed unnecessary. At this time my body was exceedingly weak and +emaciated; my neck long, and slender; a shape and habit, which I thought +to be liable to great risk of life, if engaged in any violent fatigue, or +labour of the lungs. And it gave the greater alarm to those who had a +regard for me, that I used to speak without any remission or variation, +with the utmost stretch of my voice, and a total agitation of my body. +When my friends, therefore, and physicians, advised me to meddle no more +with forensic causes, I resolved to run any hazard, rather than quit the +hopes of glory, which I had proposed to myself from pleading: but when I +considered, that by managing my voice, and changing my way of speaking, I +might both avoid all future danger of that kind, and speak with greater +ease, I took a resolution of travelling into Asia, merely for an +opportunity to correct my manner of speaking. So that after I had been two +years at the Bar, and acquired some reputation in the Forum, I left Rome. +When I came to Athens, I spent six months with Antiochus, the principal +and most judicious Philosopher of _the old Academy_; and under this able +master, I renewed those philosophical studies which I had laboriously +cultivated and improved from my earliest youth. At the same time, however, +I continued my _rhetorical Exercises_ under Demetrius the Syrian, an +experienced and reputable master of the Art of Speaking. + +"After leaving Athens, I traversed every part of Asia, where I was +voluntarily attended by the principal Orators of the country with whom I +renewed my rhetorical Exercises. The chief of them was Menippus of +Stratonica, the most eloquent of all the Asiatics: and if to be neither +tedious nor impertinent is the characteristic of an Attic Orator, he may +be justly ranked in that class. Dionysius also of Magnesia, Aeschilus of +Cnidos, and Xenocles of Adramyttus, who were esteemed the first +Rhetoricians of Asia, were continually with me. Not contented with these, +I went to Rhodes, and applied myself again to Molo, whom I had heard +before at Rome; and who was both an experienced pleader, and a fine +writer, and particularly judicious in remarking the faults of his +scholars, as well as in his method of teaching and improving them. His +principal trouble with me, was to restrain the luxuriancy of a juvenile +imagination, always ready to overflow its banks, within its due and proper +channel. Thus, after an excursion of two years, I returned to Italy, not +only much improved, but almost changed into a new man. The vehemence of my +voice and action was considerably abated; the excessive ardour of my +language was corrected; my lungs were strengthened; and my whole +constitution confirmed and settled. + +"Two Orators then reigned in the Forum; (I mean Cotta and Hortensius) +whose glory fired my emulation. Cotta's way of speaking was calm and easy, +and distinguished by the flowing elegance and propriety of his language. +The other was splendid, warm, and animated; not such as you, my Brutus, +have seen him when he had shed the blossom of his eloquence, but far more +lively and pathetic both in his style and action. As Hortensius, +therefore, was nearer to me in age, and his manner more agreeable to the +natural ardour of my temper, I considered him as the proper object of my +competition. For I observed that when they were both engaged in the same +cause, (as for instance, when they defended M. Canuleius, and Cn. +Dolabella, a man of consular dignity) though Cotta was generally employed +to open the defence, the most important parts of it were left to the +management of Hortensius. For a crowded audience, and a clamorous Forum, +require an Orator who is lively, animated, full of action, and able to +exert his voice to the highest pitch. The first year, therefore, after my +return from Asia, I undertook several capital causes; and in the interim I +put up as a candidate for the Quaestorship, Cotta for the Consulate, and +Hortensius for the Aedileship. After I was chosen Quaestor, I passed a +year in Sicily, the province assigned to me by lot: Cotta went as Consul +into Gaul: and Hortensius, whose new office required his presence at Rome, +was left of course the undisputed sovereign of the Forum. In the +succeeding year, when I returned from Sicily, my oratorial talents, such +as they were, displayed themselves in their full perfection and maturity. + +"I have been saying too much, perhaps, concerning myself: but my design in +it was not to make a parade of my eloquence and ability, which I have no +temptation to do, but only to specify the pains and labour which I have +taken to improve it. After spending the five succeeding years in pleading +a variety of causes, and with the ablest Advocates of the time, I was +declared an Aedile, and undertook the patronage of the Sicilians against +Hortensius, who was then one of the Consuls elect. But as the subject of +our conversation not only requires an historical detail of Orators, but +such preceptive remarks as may be necessary to elucidate their characters; +it will not be improper to make some observations of this kind upon that +of Hortensius. After his appointment to the consulship (very probably, +because he saw none of consular dignity who were able to rival him, and +despised the competition of others of inferior rank) he began to remit +that intense application which he had hitherto persevered in from his +childhood; and having settled himself in very affluent circumstances, he +chose to live for the future what he thought an _easy_ life, but which, in +truth, was rather an indolent one. In the three succeeding years, the +beauty of his colouring was so much impaired, as to be very perceptible to +a skilful connoisseur, though not to a common observer. After that, he +grew every day more unlike himself than before, not only in other parts of +Eloquence, but by a gradual decay of the former celerity and elegant +texture of his language. I, at the same time, spared no pains to improve +and enlarge my talents, such as they were, by every exercise that was +proper for the purpose, but particularly by that of writing. Not to +mention several other advantages I derived from it, I shall only observe, +that about this time, and but a very few years after my Aedileship, I was +declared the first Praetor, by the unanimous suffrages of my fellow- +citizens. For, by my diligence and assiduity as a Pleader, and my accurate +way of speaking, which was rather superior to the ordinary style of the +Bar, the novelty of my Eloquence had engaged the attention, and secured +the good wishes of the public. But I will say nothing of myself: I will +confine my discourse to our other Speakers, among whom there is not one +who has gained more than a common acquaintance with those parts of +literature, which feed the springs of Eloquence:--not one who has been +thoroughly nurtured at the breast of Philosophy, which is the mother of +every excellence either in deed or speech:--not one who has acquired an +accurate knowledge of the Civil Law, which is so necessary for the +management even of private causes, and to direct the judgment of an +Orator:--not one who is a complete master of the Roman History, which +would enable us, on many occasions, to appeal to the venerable evidence of +the dead:--not one who can entangle his opponent in such a neat and +humourous manner, as to relax the severity of the Judges into a smile or +an open laugh:--not one who knows how to dilate and expand his subject, by +reducing it from the limited considerations of time, and person, to some +general and indefinite topic;--not one who knows how to enliven it by an +agreeable digression: not one who can rouse the indignation of the Judge, +or extort from him the tear of compassion;--or who can influence and bend +his soul (which is confessedly the capital perfection of an Orator) in +such a manner as shall best suit his purpose. + +"When Hortensius, therefore, the once eloquent and admired Hortensius, had +almost vanished from the Forum, my appointment to the Consulship, which +happened about six years after his own promotion to that office, revived +his dying emulation; for he was unwilling that after I had equalled him in +rank and dignity, I should become his superior in any other respect. But +in the twelve succeeding years, by a mutual deference to each other's +abilities, we united our efforts at the Bar in the most amicable manner: +and my Consulship, which at first had given a short alarm to his jealousy, +afterward cemented our friendship, by the generous candor with which he +applauded my conduct. But our emulous efforts were exerted in the most +conspicuous manner, just before the commencement of that unhappy period, +when Eloquence herself was confounded and terrified by the din of arms +into a sudden and a total silence: for after Pompey had proposed and +carried a law, which allowed even the party accused but three hours to +make his defence, I appeared, (though comparatively as a mere _noviciate_ +by this new regulation) in a number of causes which, in fact, were become +perfectly the same, or very nearly so; most of which, my Brutus, you was +present to hear, as having been my partner and fellow-advocate in many of +them, though you pleaded several by yourself; and Hortensius, though he +died a short time afterwards, bore his share in these limited efforts. He +began to plead about ten years before the time of your birth; and in his +sixty-fourth year, but a very few days before his death, he was engaged +with you in the defence of Appius, your father-in-law. As to our +respective talents, the Orations we have published will enable posterity +to form a proper judgment of them. But if we mean to inquire, why +Hortensius was more admired for his Eloquence in the younger part of his +life, than in his latter years, we shall find it owing to the following +causes. The first was, that an _Asiatic_ style is more allowable in a +young man than in an old one. Of this there are two different kinds. + +"The former is sententious and sprightly, and abounds in those turns of +sentiment which are not so much distinguished by their weight and solidity +as by their neatness and elegance; of this cast was Timaeus the Historian, +and the two Orators so much talked of in our younger days, Hierocles the +Alabandean, and his brother Menecles, but particularly the latter; both +whose Orations may be reckoned master-pieces of the kind. The other sort +is not so remarkable for the plenty and richness of its sentiments, as for +its rapid volubility of expression, which at present is the ruling taste +in Asia; but, besides it's uncommon fluency, it is recommended by a choice +of words which are peculiarly delicate and ornamental:--of this kind were +Aeschylus the Cnidian, and my cotemporary Aeschines the Milesian; for they +had an admirable command of language, with very little elegance of +sentiment. These showy kinds of eloquence are agreeable enough in young +people; but they are entirely destitute of that gravity and composure +which befits a riper age. As Hortensius therefore excelled in both, he was +heard with applause in the earlier part of his life. For he had all that +fertility and graceful variety of sentiment which distinguished the +character of Menecles: but, as in Menecles, so in him, there were many +turns of sentiment which were more delicate and entertaining than really +useful, or indeed sometimes convenient. His language also was brilliant +and rapid, and yet perfectly neat and accurate; but by no means agreeable +to men of riper years. I have often seen it received by Philippus with the +utmost derision, and, upon some occasions, with a contemptuous +indignation: but the younger part of the audience admired it, and the +populace were highly pleased with it. In his youth, therefore, he met the +warmest approbation of the public, and maintained his post with ease as +the first Orator in the Forum. For the style he chose to speak in, though +it has little weight, or authority, appeared very suitable to his age: and +as it discovered in him the most visible marks of genius and application, +and was recommended by the numerous cadence of his periods, he was heard +with universal applause. But when the honours he afterwards rose to, and +the dignity of his years required something more serious and composed, he +still continued to appear in the same character, though it no longer +became him: and as he had, for some considerable time, intermitted those +exercises, and relaxed that laborious attention which had once +distinguished him, though his former neatness of expression, and +luxuriancy of sentiment still remained, they were stripped of those +brilliant ornaments they had been used to wear. For this reason, perhaps, +my Brutus, he appeared less pleasing to you than he would have done, if +you had been old enough to hear him, when he was fired with emulation and +flourished in the full bloom of his Eloquence. + +"I am perfectly sensible," said Brutus, "of the justice of your remarks; +and yet I have always looked upon Hortensius as a great Orator, but +especially when he pleaded for Messala, in the time of your absence."--"I +have often heard of it," replied I, "and his Oration, which was afterwards +published, they say, in the very same words in which he delivered it, is +no way inferior to the character you give it. Upon the whole, then, his +reputation flourished from the time of Crassus and Scaevola (reckoning +from the Consulship of the former) to the Consulship of Paullus and +Marcellus: and I held out in the same career of glory from the +Dictatorship of Sylla, to the period I have last, mentioned. Thus the +Eloquence of Hortensius was extinguished by his _own_ death, and mine by +that of the Commonwealth."--"Ominate more favourably, I beg of you," +cried Brutus.--"As favourably as you please," said I, "and that not so +much upon my own account, as your's. But _his_ death was truly fortunate, +who did not live to behold the miseries, which he had long foreseen. For +we often lamented, between ourselves, the misfortunes which hung over the +State, when we discovered the seeds of a civil war in the insatiable +ambition of a few private Citizens, and saw every hope of an accommodation +excluded by the rashness and precipitancy of our public counsels. But the +felicity which always marked his life, seems to have exempted him, by a +seasonable death, from the calamities that followed. But, as after the +decease of Hortensius, we seem to have been left, my Brutus, as the sole +guardians of an _orphan_ Eloquence, let us cherish her, within our own +walls at least, with a generous fidelity: let us discourage the addresses +of her worthless, and impertinent suitors; let us preserve her pure and +unblemished in all her virgin charms, and secure her, to the utmost of our +ability, from the lawless violence of every armed ruffian. I must own, +however, though I am heartily grieved that I entered so late upon the road +of life, as to be overtaken by a gloomy night of public distress, before I +had finished my journey; that I am not a little relieved by the tender +consolation which you administered to me in your very agreeable letters;-- +in which you tell me I ought to recollect my courage, since my past +transactions are such as will speak for me when I am silent, and survive +my death,--and such as, if the Gods permit, will bear an ample testimony +to the prudence and integrity of my public counsels, by the final +restoration of the Republic:--or, if otherwise, by burying me in the +ruins of my country. But when I look upon _you_, my Brutus, it fills me +with anguish to reflect that, in the vigour of your youth, and when you +was making the most rapid progress in the road to fame, your career was +suddenly stopped by the fatal overthrow of the Commonwealth. This unhappy +circumstance has stung me to the heart; and not _me_ only; but my worthy +friend here, who has the same affection for you, and the same esteem for +your merit which I have. We have the warmest wishes for your happiness, +and heartily pray that you may reap the rewards of your excellent virtues, +and live to find a Republic in which you will be able, not only to revive, +but even to add to the fame of your illustrious ancestors. For the Forum +was your birth-right, your native theatre of action; and you was the only +person that entered it, who had not only formed his Elocution by a +rigorous course of private practice, but enriched his Oratory with the +furniture of philosophical Science, and thus united the highest virtue to +the most consummate Eloquence. Your situation, therefore, wounds us with +the double anxiety, that _you_ are deprived of the _Republic_, and the +Republic of _you_. But still continue, my Brutus, (notwithstanding the +career of your genius has been checked by the rude shock of our public +distresses) continue to pursue your favourite studies, and endeavour (what +you have almost, or rather intirely effected already) to distinguish +yourself from the promiscuous crowd of Pleaders with which I have loaded +the little history I have been giving you. For it would ill befit you, +(richly furnished as you are with those liberal Arts, which, unable to +acquire at home, you imported from that celebrated city which has always +been revered as the seat of learning) to pass after all as an ordinary +Pleader. For to what purposes have you studied under Pammenes, the most +eloquent man in Greece; or what advantage have you derived from the +discipline of _the old_ Academy, and it's hereditary master Aristus (my +guest, and very intimate acquaintance) if you still rank yourself in the +common class of Orators? Have we not seen that a whole age could scarcely +furnish two Speakers who really excelled in their profession? Among a +crowd of cotemporaries, Galba, for instance, was the only Orator of +distinction: for old Cato (we are informed) was obliged to yield to his +superior merit, as were likewise his two juniors Lepidus, and Carbo. But, +in a public Harangue, the style of his successors the Gracchi was far more +easy and lively: and yet, even in their time, the Roman Eloquence had not +reached its perfection. Afterwards came Antonius, and Crassus; and then +Cotta, Sulpicius, Hortensius, and--but I say no more: I can only add, that +if I had been so fortunate, &c, &c,"--[_Caetera defunt._] + + + + +THE ORATOR, +BY MARCUS TULLIUS CICERO; +ADDRESSED TO MARCUS BRUTUS; +And now first translated from the Original Latin. + + + "Song charms the Sense, but Eloquence the Soul." + MILTON. + + + + +THE ORATOR. + + +Which, my Brutus, would be the most difficult talk,--to decline answering +a request which you have so often repeated, or to gratify it to your +satisfaction,--I have long been at a loss to determine. I should be +extremely sorry to deny any thing to a friend for whom I have the warmest +esteem, and who, I am sensible, has an equal affection for me;-- +especially, as he has only desired me to undertake a subject which may +justly claim my attention. But to delineate a character, which it would be +very difficult, I will not say to _acquire_, but even to _comprehend_ in +its full extent, I thought was too bold an undertaking for him who reveres +the censure of the wife and learned. For considering the great diversity +of manner among the ablest Speakers, how exceedingly difficult must it be +to determine which is best, and give a finished model of Eloquence? This, +however, in compliance with your repeated solicitations, I shall now +attempt;--not so much from any hopes of succeeding, as from a strong +inclination to make the trial. For I had rather, by yielding to your +wishes, give you room to complain of my insufficiency; than, by a +peremptory denial, tempt you to question my friendship. + +You desire to know, then, (and you have often repeated your request) what +kind of Eloquence I most approve, and can look upon to be so highly +finished, as to require no farther improvement. But should I be able to +answer your expectations, and display, in his full perfection, the Orator +you enquire after; I am afraid I shall retard the industry of many, who, +enfeebled by despair, will no longer attempt what they think themselves +incapable of attaining. It is but reasonable, however, that all those who +covet what is excellent, and which cannot be acquired without the greatest +application, should exert their utmost. But if any one is deficient in +capacity, and destitute of that admirable force of genius which Nature +bestows upon her favourites, or has been denied the advantages of a +liberal education, _let him make the progress he is able_. For while we +are driving to overtake the foremost, it is no disgrace to be found among +the _second_ class, or even the _third_. Thus, for instance, among the +poets, we respect the merit not only of a _Homer_ (that I may confine +myself to the Greeks) or of _Archilochus, Sophocles_, or _Pindar_, but of +many others who occupied the second, or even a lower place. In Philosophy +also the diffusive majesty of Plato has not deterred _Aristotle_ from +entering the list; nor has _Aristotle_ himself, with all his wonderful +knowledge and fertility of thought, disheartened the endeavours of others. +Nay, men of an elevated genius have not only disdained to be intimidated +from the pursuit of literary fame;--but the very artists and mechanics +have never relinquished their profession, because they were unable to +equal the beauty of that _Iasylus_ which we have seen at Rhodes, or of the +celebrated _Venus_ in the island of _Coos_:--nor has the noble image of +Olympian _Jove_, or the famous statue of the Man at Arms, deterred others +from making trial of their abilities, and exerting their skill to the +utmost. Accordingly, such a large number of them has appeared, and each +has performed so well in his own way, that we cannot help being pleased +with their productions, notwithstanding our admiration at the nobler +efforts of the great masters of the chissel. + +But among the Orators, I mean those of Greece, it is astonishing how much +one of them has surpassed the rest:--and yet, though there was a +_Demosthenes_, there were even _then_ many other Orators of considerable +merit;--and such there were before he made his appearance, nor have they +been wanting since. There is, therefore, no reason why those who have +devoted themselves to the study of Eloquence, should suffer their hopes to +languish, or their industry to flag. For, in the first place, even that +which is most excellent is not to be despaired of;--and, in all worthy +attempts, that which is next to what is best is great and noble. + +But in sketching out the character of a compleat Orator, it is possible I +may exhibit such a one as hath never _yet_ existed. For I am not to point +out the _Speaker_, but to delineate the _Eloquence_ than which nothing can +be more perfect of the kind:--an Eloquence which hath blazed forth through +a whole Harangue but seldom, and, it may be, never; but only here and +there like a transient gleam, though in some Orators more frequently, and +in others, perhaps, more sparingly. + +My opinion, then, is,--that there is no human production of any kind, so +compleatly beautiful, than which there is not a _something_ still more +beautiful, from which the other is copied like a portrait from real life, +and which can be discerned neither by our eyes nor ears, nor any of our +bodily senses, but is visible only to thought and imagination. Though the +statues, therefore, of Phidias, and the other images above-mentioned, are +all so wonderfully charming, that nothing can be found which is more +excellent of the kind; we may still, however, _suppose_ a something which +is more exquisite, and more compleat. For it must not be thought that the +ingenious artist, when he was sketching out the form of a Jupiter, or a +Minerva, borrowed the likeness from any particular object;--but a certain +admirable semblance of beauty was present to his mind, which he viewed and +dwelt upon, and by which his skill and his hand were guided. As, +therefore, in mere bodily shape and figure there is a kind of perfection, +to whose ideal appearance every production which falls under the notice of +the eye is referred by imitation; so the semblance of what is perfect in +Oratory may become visible to the mind, and the ear may labour to catch a +likeness. These primary forms of thing are by Plato (the father of science +and good language) called _Ideas_; and he tells us they have neither +beginning nor end, but are co-eval with reason and intelligence; while +every thing besides has a derived, and a transitory existence, and passes +away and decays, so as to cease in a short time to be the thing it was. +Whatever, therefore, may be discussed by reason and method, should be +constantly reduced to the primary form or semblance of it's respective +genus. + +I am sensible that this introduction, as being derived not from the +principles of Eloquence, but from the deepest recesses of Philosophy, will +excite the censure, or at least the wonder of many, who will think it both +unfashionable and intricate. For they will either be at a loss to discover +it's connection with my subject, (though they will soon be convinced by +what follows, that, if it appears to be far-fetched, it is not so without +reason;)--or they will blame me, perhaps, for deserting the beaten track, +and striking out into a new one. But I am satisfied that I often appear to +advance novelties, when I offer sentiments which are, indeed, of a much +earlier date, but happen to be generally unknown: and I frankly +acknowledge that I came forth an Orator, (if indeed I am one, or whatever +else I may be deemed) not from the school of the Rhetoricians, but from +the spacious walks of the Academy. For these are the theatres of +diversified and extensive arguments which were first impressed with the +foot-steps of Plato; and his Dissertations, with those of other +Philosophers, will be found of the greatest utility to an Orator, both for +his exercise and improvement; because all the fertility, and, as it were, +the materials of Eloquence, are to be derived from thence;--but not, +however, sufficiently prepared for the business of the Forum, which, as +themselves have frequently boasted, they abandoned to the _rustic Muses_ +of the vulgar! Thus the Eloquence of the Forum, despised and rejected by +the Philosophers, was bereaved of her greatest advantages:--but, +nevertheless, being arrayed in all the brilliance of language and +sentiment, she made a figure among the populace, nor feared the censure of +the judicious few. By this means, the learned became destitute of a +popular Eloquence, and the Orators of polite learning. + +We may, therefore, consider it as a capital maxim, (the truth of which +will be more easily understood in the sequel) that the eloquent Speaker we +are enquiring after, cannot be formed without the assistance of +Philosophy. I do not mean that this alone is sufficient; but only (for it +is sometimes necessary to compare great things to small) that it will +contribute to improve him in the same manner as the _Palaestra_ [Footnote: +The _Palaestra_ was a place set apart for public exercises, such as +wrestling, running, fencing, &c. the frequent performance of which +contributed much to a graceful carriage of the body, which is a necessary +accomplishment in a good Actor.] does an Actor; because without +Philosophy, no man can speak fully and copiously upon a variety of +important subjects which come under the notice of an Orator. Accordingly, +in the _Phaedrus_ of Plato, it is observed by Socrates that the great +_Pericles_ excelled all the Speakers of his time, because he had been a +hearer of _Anaxagoras_ the Naturalist, from whom he supposes that he not +only borrowed many excellent and sublime ideas, but a certain richness and +fertility of language, and (what in Eloquence is of the utmost +consequence) the various arts either of soothing or alarming each +particular passion. The same might be said of _Demosthenes_, whose letters +will satisfy us, how assiduously he attended the Lectures of Plato. For +without the instruction of Philosophy, we can neither discover what is the +_Genus_ or the _Species_ to which any thing belongs, nor explain the +nature of it by a just definition, or an accurate analysis of its parts;-- +nor can we distinguish between what is true and false, or foresee the +consequences, point out the inconsistencies, and dissolve the ambiguities +which may lie in the case before us. But as to Natural Philosophy (the +knowledge of which will supply us with the richest treasures of +Elocution;)--and as to life, and it's various duties, and the great +principles of morality,--what is it possible either to express or +understand aright, without a large acquaintance with these? To such +various and important accomplishments we must add the innumerable +ornaments of language, which, at the time above mentioned, were the only +weapons which the Masters of Rhetoric could furnish. This is the reason +why that genuine, and perfect Eloquence we are speaking of, has been yet +attained by no one; because the Art of _Reasoning_ has been supposed to be +one thing, and that of _Speaking_ another; and we have had recourse to +different Instructors for the knowledge of things and words. + +Antonius, [Footnote: A celebrated Orator, and grandfather to M. Antonius +The Triumvir.] therefore, to whom our ancestors adjudged the palm of +Eloquence, and who had much natural penetration and sagacity, has observed +in the only book he published, "_that he had seen many good Speakers, but +not a single Orator_." The full and perfect semblance of Eloquence had so +thoroughly possessed his mind, and was so completely visible there, though +no where exemplified in practice, that this consummate Genius, (for such, +indeed, he was) observing many defects in both himself and others, could +discover no one who merited the name of _eloquent_. But if he considered +neither himself, nor Lucius Crassus, as a genuine Orator, he must have +formed in his mind a sublime idea of Eloquence, under which, because there +was nothing wanting to compleat it, he could not comprehend those Speakers +who were any ways deficient. Let us then, my Brutus, (if we are able) +trace out the Orator whom Antonius never saw, and who, it may be, has +never yet existed; for though we have not the skill to copy his likeness +in real practice, (a talk which, in the opinion of the person above- +mentioned, would be almost too arduous for one of the Gods,) we may be +able, perhaps, to give some account of what he _ought_ to be. + +Good Speaking, then, may be divided into three characters, in each of +which there are some who have made an eminent figure: but to be equally +excellent in all (which is what we require) has been the happiness of few. + +The _lofty_ and _majestic_ Speaker, who distinguishes himself by the +energy of his sentiments, and the dignity of his expression, is +impetuous,--diversified,--copious,--and weighty,--and abundantly qualified +to alarm and sway the passions;--which some effect by a harsh, and a +rough, gloomy way of speaking, without any harmony or measure; and others, +by a smooth, a regular, and a well-proportioned style. + +On the other hand, the _simple_ and _easy_ Speaker is remarkably dexterous +and keen, and aiming at nothing but our information, makes every thing he +discourses upon, rather clear and open than great and striking, and +polishes it with the utmost neatness and accuracy. But some of this kind +of Speakers, who are distinguished by their peculiar artificie, are +designedly unpolished, and appear rude and unskilful, that they may have +the better opportunity of deceiving us:--while others, with the same +poverty of style, are far more elegant and agreeable,--that is, they are +pleasant and facetious, and sometimes even florid, with here and there an +easy ornament. + +But there is likewise a _middle_ kind of Oratory, between the two above- +mentioned, which neither has the keenness of the latter, nor hurls the +thunder of the former; but is a mixture of both, without excelling in +either, though at the same time it has something of each, or (perhaps, +more properly) is equally destitute of the true merit of both. This +species of Eloquence flows along in a uniform course, having nothing to +recommend it, but it's peculiar smoothness and equability; though at the +same time, it intermingles a number of decorations, like the tufts of +flowers in a garland, and embellishes a discourse from beginning to end +with the moderate and less striking ornaments of language and sentiment. + +Those who have attained to any degree of perfection in either of the above +characters, have been distinguished as eminent Orators: but the question +is whether any of them have compassed what we are seeking after, and +succeeded equally in all. For there have been several who could speak +nervously and pompously, and yet, upon occasion, could express themselves +with the greates address, and simplicity. I wish I could refer to such an +Orator, or at least to one who nearly resembles him, among the Romans; for +it would certainly have been more to our credit to be able to refer to +proper examples of our own, and not be necessitated to have recourse to +the Greeks. But though in another treatis of mine, which bears the name of +_Brutus_, [Footnote: A very excellent Treatise in the form of a Dialogue. +It contains a critical and very instructive account of all the noted +Orators of _Greece_ and _Rome_ and might be called, with great propriety, +_the History of Eloquence_. Though it is perhaps the most entertaining of +all Cicero's performances, the Public have never been obliged before with +a translation of it into English; which, I hope, will sufficiently plead +my excuse for preforming to undertake it.] I have said much in favour of +the Romans, partly to excite their emulation, and, in some measure, from a +partial fondness for my country; yet I must always remember to give the +preference to _Demosthenes_, who alone has adapted his genius to that +perfect species of Eloquence of which I can readily form an idea, but +which I have never yet seen exemplified in practice. Than _him_, there has +never hitherto existed a more nervous, and at the same time, a more subtle +Speaker, or one more cool and temperate. I must, therefore, caution those +whose ignorant discourse is become so common, and who wish to pass for +_Attic_ Speakers, or at least to express themselves in the _Attic_ taste, +--I must caution them to take _him_ for their pattern, than whom it is +impossible that Athens herself should be more completely Attic: and, as to +genuine Atticism, that them learn what it means, and measure the force of +Eloquence, not by their own weakness and incapacity, but by his wonderful +energy and strength. For, at present, a person bestows his commendation +upon just so much as he thinks himself capable of imitating. I therefore +flatter myself that it will not be foreign to my purpose, to instruct +those who have a laudable emulation, but are not thoroughly settled in +their judgment, wherein the merit of an Attic Orator consists. + +The taste of the Audience, then, has always governed and directed the +Eloquence of the Speaker: for all who wish to be applauded, consult the +character, and the inclinations of those who hear them, and carefully form +and accommodate themselves to their particular humours and dispositions. +Thus in Caria, Phrygia, and Mysia, because the inhabitants have no relish +for true elegance and politeness, the Orators have adopted (as most +agreeable to the ears of their audience) a luxuriant, and, if I may so +express myself, a corpulent style; which their neighbours the Rhodians, +who are only parted from them by a narrow straight, have never approved, +and much less the Greeks; but the Athenians have entirely banished it; for +their taste has always been so just and accurate that they could not +listen to any thing but what was perfectly correct and elegant. An Orator, +therefore, to compliment their delicacy, was forced to be always upon his +guard against a faulty or a distasteful expression. + +Accordingly, _he_, whom we have just mentioned as surpassing the rest, has +been careful in his Oration for Ctesiphon, (which is the best he ever +composed) to set out very cooly and modestly: when he proceeds to argue +the point of law, he grows more poignant and pressing; and as he advances +in his defence, he takes still greater liberties; till, at last, having +warmed the passions of his Judges, he exults at his pleasure through the +reamining part of his discourse. But even in _him_, thus carefully +weighing and poising his every word _Aeschines_ [Footnote: _Aeschines_ was +a cotemporary, and a professed rival of Demosthenes. He carried his +animosity so far as to commence a litigious suit against him, at a time +when the reputation of the latter was at the lowest ebb. But being +overpowered by the Eloquence of Demosthenes, he was condemned to perpetual +banishment.] could find several expressions to turn into ridicule:--for +giving a loose to his raillery, he calls them harsh, and detestable, and +too shocking to be endured; and styling the author of them a very +_monster_, he tauntingly asks him whether such expressions could be +considered as _words_ or not rather as absolute _frights_ and _prodigies_. +So that to AEschines not even _Demosthenes_ himself was perfectly _Attic_; +for it is an easy matter to catch a _glowing_ expression, (if I may be +allowed to call it so) and expose it to ridicule when the fire of +attention is extinguished. Demosthenes, therefore, when he endeavours to +excuse himself, condescends to jest, and denies that the fortune of Greece +was in the least affected by the singularity of a particular expression, +or by his moving his hand either this way or that. + +With what patience, then, would a Mysian or a Phrygian have been heard at +Athens, when even Demosthenes himself was reproached as a nuisance? But +should the former have begun his whining sing-song, after the manner of +the Asiatics, who would have endured it? or rather, who would not have +ordered him to be instantly torn from the Rostrum? Those, therefore, who +can accommodate themselves to the nice and critical ears of an Athenian +audience, are the only persons who should pretend to Atticism. + +But though Atticism may be divided into several kinds, these mimic +Athenians suspect but one. They imagine that to discourse plainly, and +without any ornament, provided it be done correctly, and clearly, is the +only genuine Atticism. In confining it to this alone, they are certainly +mistaken; though when they tell us that this is really Attic, they are so +far in the right. For if the only true Atticism is what they suppose to +be, not even _Pericles_ was an Attic Speaker, though he was universally +allowed to bear away the palm of Eloquence; nor, if he had wholly attached +himself to this plain and simple kind of language, would he ever have been +said by the Poet Aristophanes _to thunder and lighten, and throw all +Greece into a ferment_. + +Be it allowed, then, that Lysias, that graceful and most polite of +Speakers, was truly Attic: for who can deny it? But let it also be +remembered that Lysias claims the merit of Atticism, not so much for his +simplicity and want of ornament, as because he has nothing which is either +faulty or impertinent. But to speak floridly, nervously, and copiously, +this also is true Atticism:--otherwise, neither Aeschines nor even +Demosthenes himself were Attic Speakers. + +There are others who affect to be called _Thucydideans_,--a strange and +novel race of Triflers! For those who attach themselves to Lysias, have a +real Pleader for their pattern;--not indeed a stately, and striking +Pleader, but yet a dextrous and very elegant one, who might appear in the +Forum with reputation. + +Thucydides, on the contrary, is a mere Historian, who ('tis true) +describes wars, and battles with great dignity and precision; but he can +supply us with nothing which is proper for the Forum. For his very +speeches have so many obscure and intricate periods, that they are +scarcely intelligible; which in a public discourse is the greatest fault +of which an Orator can be guilty. But who, when the use of corn has been +discovered, would be so mad as to feed upon acorns? Or could the Athenians +improve their diet, and bodily food, and be incapable of cultivating their +language? Or, lastly, which of the Greek Orators has copied the style of +Thucydides? [Footnote: Demosthenes indeed took the pains to transcribe the +History of Thucydides several times. But he did this, no so much to copy +the _form_ as the energy of his language.] "True," they reply, "but +Thucydides was universally admired." And so, indeed, he was; but only as a +sensible, an exact, and a grave Historian;--not for his address in public +debates, but for his excellence in describing wars and battles. +Accordingly, he was never mentioned as an Orator; nor would his name have +been known to posterity, if he had not composed his History, +notwithstanding the dignity of his birth, and the honourable share he held +in the Government. But none of these Pretenders have copied his energy; +and yet when they have uttered a few mutilated and broken periods (which +they might easily have done without a master to imitate) we must rever +them, truly, as so many genuine _Thucydideses_. I have likewise met with a +few who were professed imitators of Xenophon; whose language, indeed, is +sweeter than honey, but totally unqualified to withstand the clamours of +the Forum. + +Let us return then to the Orator we are seeking after, and furnish him +with those powers of Elocution, which Antonius could not discover in any +one: an arduous task, my Brutus, and full of difficulty:--yet nothing, I +believe, is impossible to him whose breast is fired with the generous +flame of friendship! But I affectionately admire (and have always admired) +your genius, your inclinations, and your manners. Nay, I am daily more +inflamed and ravished, not only with a desire (which, I assure you, is a +violent one) to renew our friendly intercourses, our social repasts, and +your improving conversation, but by the wonderful fame of your incredible +virtues, which, though different in kind, are readily united by your +superior wisdom and good-sense. For what is so remote from severity of +manners as gentleness and affability? and yet who more venerable than +yourself, or who more agreeable? What can be more difficult than to decide +a number of suits, so as to be equally esteemed and beloved by the parties +on both sides? You, however, possess the admirable talent of sending away +perfectly easy and contented even those against whom your are forced to +give judgment: thus bringing it to bear that, while you do nothing from a +partial favour to any man, whatever you do is favourably received. Hence +it happens, that the only country upon earth, which is not involved in the +present confusion, is the province of Gaul; where you are now enjoying +yourself in a happy tranquillity, while you are universally respected at +home, and live in the hearts of the flower and strength of your fellow- +citizens. It is equally amazing, though you are always engaged in the most +important offices of Government, that your studies are never intermitted; +and that you are constantly either composing something of your own, or +finding employment for me! Accordingly I began this Essay, at your +request, as soon as I had finished my _Cato_; which last also I should +never have attempted (especially at a time when the enemies of virtue were +so numerous) if I had not considered it as a crime to disobey my friend, +when he only urged me to revive the memory of a man whom I always loved +and honoured in his life-time. But I have now ventured upon a task which +you have frequently pressed upon me, and I as often refused: for, if +possible, I would share the fault between us, that if I should prove +unequal to the subject, you may have the blame of loading me with a burden +which is beyond my strength, and I the censure of presuming to undertake +it:--though after all, the single merit of gratifying such a friend as +Brutus, will sufficiently atone for any defects I may fall into. + +But in every accomplishment which may become the object of pursuit, it is +excessively difficult to delineate the form (or, as the Greeks call it, +the _character_ [Footnote: [Greek: charachtaer].]) of what is _best_; +because some suppose it to consist in one thing, and some in another. +Thus, for instance, "I am for _Ennius_," says one; "because he confines +himself to the style of conversation:"--"and I," says another, "give the +preference to _Pacuvius_, because his verses are embellished and well- +wrought; whereas Ennius is rather too "negligent." In the same manner we +may suppose a third to be an admirer of Attius; for, as among the Greeks, +so it happens with us, "_different men have different opinions_;"--nor is +it easy to determine which is best. Thus also in painting, some are +pleased with a rough, a wild, and a dark and cloudy style; while others +prefer that which is clear, and lively, and well covered with light. How +then shall we strike out a general _rule_ or _model_, when there are +several manners, and each of them has a certain perfection of its own? But +this difficulty has not deterred me from the undertaking; nor have I +altered my opinion that in all things there is a _something_ which +comprehends the highest excellence of the kind, and which, though not +generally discernible, is sufficiently conspicuous to him, who is skilled +in the subject. + +"But as there are several kinds of Eloquence which differ considerably +from each other, and therefore cannot be reduced to one common form;--for +this reason, as to mere laudatory Orations, Essays, Histories, and such +suasory performances as the Panegyric of Isocrates, and the speeches of +many others who were called _Sophists_;--and, in short, as to every thing +which is unconnected with the Forum, and the whole of that species of +discourse which the Greeks call the _demonstrative_ [Footnote: The +_demonstrative_ species of Eloquence is that which was solely employed +either in _praising_ or _dispraising_. Besides this, there are two +others, viz. the _deliberative_, and the _judicial_; the former was +employed in political debates, where it's whole business was either +to _persuade_ or _dissuade_; and the latter, in judicial suits and +controversies, where the Speaker was either to _accuse_ or _defend_. +But, on many occasions, they were all three intermingled in the same +discourse.];--the form, or leading character of these I shall pass over; +though I am far from considering it as a mere trifle, or a subject of +no consequence; on the contrary, we may regard it as the nurse and +tutoress of the Orator we are now delineating. For _here_, a fluency +of expression is confessedly nourished and cultivated; and the easy +construction, and harmonious cadence of our language is more openly +attended to. _Here_, likewise, we both allow and recommend a studious +elegance of diction, and a continued flow of melodious and well-turned +periods;--and _here_, we may labour visibly, and without concealing +our art, to contrast word to word, and to compare similar, and oppose +contrary circumstances, and make several sentences (or parts of a +sentence) conclude alike, and terminate with the same cadence; +--ornaments, which in real pleadings, are to be used more sparingly, and +with less appearance of art. Isocrates, therefore, confesses in his +_Panathenaicus_, that these were beauties which he industriously pursued; +for he composed it not for victory in a suit at law (where such a +confession must have greatly injured his cause) but merely to gratify the +ear. + +"It is recorded that the first persons who practised this species of +composition [Footnote: The _composition_ here mentioned consisted of three +parts, The _first_ regarded the structure; that is, the _connection_ of +our words, and required that the last syllable of every preceding, and the +first of every succeeding word should be so aptly united as to produce an +agreeable sound; which was effected by avoiding a collision of vowels or +of inamicable consonants. It likewise required that those words should be +constantly made choice of, whose separate sounds were most harmonious and +most agreeable to the sense. The _second_ part consisted in the use of +particular forms of expression, such as contrasts and antithesises, which +have an appearance of order and regularity in their very texture. The +_third_ and last regarded that species of harmony which results not so +much from the sound, as from the time and quantity of the several +syllables in a sentence. This was called _number_, and sometimes _rhyme_; +and was in fact a kind of _prosaic metre_, which was carefully attended to +by the ancients in every part of a sentence, but more particularly at the +beginning and end of it. In this part they usually included the _period_, +or the rules for determining the length of their sentences. I thought it +necessary to give this short account of their composition, because our +author very frequently alludes to it, before he proceeds to explain it at +large.] were _Thrasymachus_ the Chalcedonian, and _Gorgias_ the Leontine; +and that these were followed by _Theodorus_ the Byzantine, and a number of +others, whom Socrates, in the Phaedrus of Plato, calls [Greek: +logodaidalos] _Speech-wrights_; many of whole discourses are sufficiently +neat and entertaining; but, being the first attempts of the kind, were too +minute and puerile, and had too poetical an air, and too much colouring. +On this account, the merit of _Herodotus_, and _Thucydides_ is the more +conspicuous: for though they lived at the time we are speaking of, they +carefully avoided those studied decorations, or rather futilities. The +former rolls along like a deep, still river without any rocks or shoals to +interrupt it's course; and the other describes wars and battles, as if he +was founding a charge on the trumpet; so that history (to use the words +of _Theophrastus_) caught the first alarm from these, and began to express +herself with greater dignity and spirit. + +"After these came _Socrates_, whom I have always recommended as the most +accomplished writer we have in the way I am speaking of; though sometimes, +my Brutus, you have objected to it with a great deal of pleasantry and +erudition. But when you are better informed for what it is I recommend +him, you will then think of him perhaps as favourably as I do. +Thrasymachus and Gorgias (who are said to have been the first who +cultivated the art of prosaic harmony) appeared to him to be too minutely +exact; and Thucydides, he thought, was as much too loose and rugged, and +not sufficiently smooth, and full-mouthed; and from hence he took the hint +to give a scope to his sentences by a more copious and unconfined flow of +language, and to fill up their breaks and intervals with the softer and +more agreeable numbers. By teaching this to the most celebrated Speakers, +and Composers of the age, his house came at last to be honoured as the +_School of Eloquence_. Wherefore as I bore the censure of others with +indifference, when I had the good fortune to be applauded by Cato; thus +Isocrates, with the approbation of Plato, may slight the judgment of +inferior critics. For in the last page of the Phaedrus, we find _Socrates_ +thus expressing himself;--'Now, indeed, my dear Phaedrus,' said he, +'Isocrates is but a youth: but I will discover to you what I think of +him.'--'And what is that?' replied the other.--'He appears to me,' said +the Philosopher, 'to have too elevated a genius to be placed on a level +with the arid speeches of Lysias. Besides, he has a stronger turn for +virtue; so that I shall not wonder, as he advances in years, if in the +species of Eloquence to which he now applies himself, he should exceed +all, who have hitherto pursued it, like so many infants. Or, if this +should not content him, I shall not be astonished to behold him with a +godlike ardour pursuing higher and more important studies; for I plainly +see that he has a natural bent to Philosophy!'" + +Thus Socrates presaged of him when he was but a youth. But Plato recorded +this eulogium when he was older; and he recorded it, though he was one of +his equals and cotemporaries, and a professed enemy to the whole tribe of +Rhetoricians! _Him_ he admires, and _him_ alone! So that such who despise +Isocrates, must suffer me to err with Socrates and Plato. + +The manner of speaking, then, which is observed in the _demonstrative_ or +ornamental species of Eloquence, and which I have before remarked, was +peculiar to the Sophists, is sweet, harmonious, and flowing, full of +pointed sentiments, and arrayed in all the brilliance of language. But it +is much fitter for the parade than the field; and being, therefore, +consigned to the Palaestra, and the schools, has been long banished from +the Forum. As Eloquence, however, after she had been fed and nourished +with this, acquires a fresher complexion, and a firmer constitution; it +would not be amiss, I thought, to trace our Orator from his very _cradle_. + +But these things are only for shew and amusement: whereas it is our +business to take the field in earnest, and prepare for action. As there +are three particulars, then, to be attended to by an Orator,--viz. _what_ +he is to say, in _what order_, and _how_; we shall consider what is most +excellent in each; but after a different manner from what is followed in +delivering a system of the Art. For we are not to furnish a set of +precepts (this not being the province we have undertaken) but to exhibit a +portrait of Eloquence in her full perfection: neither is it our business +to explain the methods by which we may acquire it, but only to shew what +opinion we ought to form of it. + +The two first articles are to be lightly touched over; for they have not +so much a remarkable as a necessary share in forming the character of a +compleat Orator, and are likewise common to _his_ with many other +professions;--and though, to invent, and judge with accuracy, what is +proper to be said, are important accomplishments, and the same as the soul +is to the body, yet they rather belong to _prudence_ than to Eloquence. In +what cause, however, can _prudence_ be idle? Our Orator, therefore, who is +to be all perfection, should be thoroughly acquainted with the sources of +argument and proof. For as every thing which can become the subject of +debate, must rest upon one or another of these particulars, viz.--whether +a fact has been really committed, or what name it ought to bear in law, or +whether it is agreeable or contrary to justice; and as the reality of a +fact must be determined by force of evidence, the true name of it by it's +definition, and the quality of it by the received notions of right and +wrong;--an Orator (not an ordinary one, but the finished Speaker we are +describing) will always turn off the controversy, as much as possible, +from particular persons and times, (for we may argue more at liberty +concerning general topics than about circumstances) in such a manner that +what is proved to be true _universally_, may necessarily appear to be so +in all _subordinate_ cases. The point in debate being thus abstracted from +particular persons and times, and brought to rest upon general principles, +is called a _thesis_. In _this_ the famous Aristotle carefully practised +his scholars;--not to argue with the formal precision of Philosophers, but +to canvass a point handsomely and readily on both sides, and with all the +copiousness so much admired in the Rhetoricians: and for this purpose he +delivered a set of _common places_ (for so he calls them) which were to +serve as so many marks or characters for the discovery of arguments, and +from which a discourse might be aptly framed on either side of a question. + +Our Orator then, (for I am not speaking of a mere school-declaimer, or a +noisy ranter in the Forum, but of a well-accomplished and a finished +Speaker)--our Orator, as there is such a copious variety of common-places, +will examine them all, and employ those which suit his purpose in as +general and indefinite a manner as his cause will permit, and carefully +trace and investigate them to their inmost sources. But he will use the +plenty before him with discretion, and weighing every thing with the +utmost accuracy, select what is best: for the stress of an argument does +not always, and in every cause, depend upon similar topics. He will, +therefore, exercise his judgment; and not only discover what _may_ be +said, but thoroughly examine the _force_ of it. For nothing is more +fertile than the powers of genius, and especially those which have been +blessed with the cultivation of science. But as a rich and fruitful soil +not only produces corn in abundance, but also weeds to choak and smother +it; so from the common-places we are speaking of, many arguments will +arise, which are either trivial, or foreign to our purpose, or entirely +useless. An Orator, therefore, should carefully examine each, that he may +be able to select with propriety. Otherwise, how can he enlarge upon those +which are most pertinent, and dwell upon such as more particularly affect +his cause? Or how can he soften a harsh circumstance, or conceal, and (if +possible) entirely suppress what would be deemed unanswerable, or steal +off the attention of the hearer to a different topic? Or how alledge +another argument in reply, which shall be still more plausible than that +of his antagonist? + +But after he has thus _invented_ what is proper to be said, with what +accuracy must he _methodize_ it? For this is the second of the three +articles above-mentioned. Accordingly, he will give the portal of his +Harangue a graceful appearance, and make the entrance to his cause as neat +and splendid as the importance of it will permit. When he has thus made +himself master of the hearer's good wishes at the first onset, he will +endeavour to invalidate what makes against him; and having, by this means, +cleared his way, his strongest arguments will appear some of them in the +front, and others at the close of his discourse; and as to those of more +trifling consequence, he will occasionally introduce [Footnote: In the +Original it is _inculcabit_, he will _tread them in_, (like the sand or +loose dust in a new pavement) to support and strengthen the whole.] them +here and there, where he judges them likely to be most serviceable. Thus, +then, we have given a cursory view of what he ought to be, in the two +first departments of Oratory. But, as we before observed, these, though +very important in their consequences, require less art and application. + +After he has thus invented what is proper to be said, and in what order, +the greatest difficulty is still behind;--namely to consider _how_ he is +to say it, and _in what manner_. For the observation of our favourite +_Carneades_ is well-known,--"That _Clitomachus_ had a perpetual sameness +of sentiment, and Charmidas a tiresome uniformity of expression." But if +it is a circumstance of so much moment in Philosophy, _in what manner_ we +express ourselves, where the matter, and not the language, is principally +regarded; what must we think of public debates, which are wholly ruled and +swayed by the powers of Elocution? Accordingly, my Brutus, I am sensible +from your letters, that you mean to inquire what are my notions of a +finished Speaker, not so much with respect to his Invention and +Disposition, as to his talents of _Elocution_:--a severe task! and the +most difficult you could have fixed upon! For as language is ever soft and +yielding, and so amazingly pliable that you may bend and form it at your +pleasure; so different natures and dispositions have given rise to +different kinds of Elocution. Some, for instance, who place the chief +merit of it in it's rapidity, are mightily pleased with a torrent of +words, and a volubility of expression. Others again are better pleased +with regular, and measured intervals, and frequent stops, and pauses. What +can be more opposite? and yet both have their proper excellence. Some also +confine their attention to the smoothness and equability of their periods, +and aim at a style which is perfectly neat and clear: while others affect +a harshness, and severity of diction, and to give a gloomy cast to their +language:--and as we have already observed that some endeavour to be +nervous and majestic, others neat and simple, and some to be smooth and +florid, it necessarily follows that there must be as many different kinds +of Orators, as there are of Eloquence. But as I have already enlarged the +talk you have imposed upon me;--(for though your enquiries related only to +Elocution, I have ventured a few hints on the arts of Invention and +Disposition;)--I shall now treat not only of _Elocution_, but of _action_. +By this means, every part of Oratory will be attended to: for as to +_memory_, which is common to this with many other arts, it is entirely out +of the question. + +The Art of Speaking then, so far as it regards only the _manner_ in which +our thoughts should be expressed, consists in _action_ and _Elocution_; +for action is the Eloquence of the body, and implies the proper management +of our _voice_ and _gesture_. As to the inflexions of the voice, they are +as numerous as the various passions it is capable of exciting. The +finished Orator, therefore, who is the subject of this Essay, in whatever +manner he would appear to be affected himself, and touch the heart of his +hearer, will employ a suitable and corresponding tone of voice:--a topic +which I could willingly enlarge upon, if delivering precepts was any part +of my present design, or of your request. I should likewise have treated +concerning _gesture_, of which the management of the countenance is a +material part: for it is scarcely credible of what great importance it is +to an Orator to recommend himself by these external accomplishments. For +even those who were far from being masters of good language, have many +times, by the sole dignity of their action, reaped the fruits of +Eloquence; while others who had the finest powers of Elocution, have too +often, by the mere awkwardness of their delivery, led people to imagine +that they were scarcely able to express themselves:--so that Demosthenes, +with sufficient reason, assigned the first place, and likewise the second +and third to _pronunciation_. For if Eloquence without this is nothing, +but this, even without Eloquence, has such a wonderful efficacy, it must +be allowed to bear the principal sway in the practice of Speaking. + +If an Orator, then, who is ambitious to win the palm of Eloquence, has any +thing to deliver which is warm and cutting, let his voice be strong and +quick;--if what is calm and gentle, let it be mild and easy;--if what is +grave and sedate, let it be cool and settled;--and if what is mournful and +affecting, let his accents be plaintive and flexible. For the voice may be +raised or depressed, and extended or contracted to an astonishing degree; +thus in Music (for instance) it's three tones, the _mean_, the _acute_, +and the _grave_, may be so managed by art, as to produce a pleasing and an +infinite variety of sounds. Nay, even in Speaking, there may be a +concealed kind of music:--not like the whining epilogue of a Phrygian or a +Carian declaimer, but such as was intended by _Aeschines_, and +_Demosthenes_, when the one upbraids and reproaches the other with the +artificial modulations of his voice. _Demosthenes_, however, says most +upon this head, and often speaks of his accuser as having a sweet and +clear pronunciation. There is another circumstance, which may farther +enforce our attention to the agreeable management of the voice; for Nature +herself, as if she meant to harmonize the speech of man, has placed an +accent on every word, and one accent only, which never lies farther than +the third syllable from the last. Why, therefore, should we hesitate to +follow her example, and to do our best to gratify the ear? A good voice, +indeed, though a desirable accomplishment, is not in our power to +acquire:--but to exercise, and improve it, is certainly in the power of +every person. + +The Orator, then, who means to be the prince of his profession, will +change and vary his voice with the most delicate propriety; and by +sometimes raising, and sometimes depressing it, pursue it gradually +through all it's different tones, and modulations. He will likewise +regulate his _gesture_, so as to avoid even a single motion which is +either superfluous or impertinent. His posture will be erect and manly:-- +he will move from his ground but seldom, and not even then too +precipitately; and his advances will be few and moderate. He will practise +no languishing, no effeminate airs of the head, no finical playing of the +fingers, no measured movement of the joints. The chief part of his gesture +will consist in the firm and graceful sway of his body, and in extending +his arm when his arguments are pressing, and drawing it again when his +vehemence abates. But as to the _countenance_, which next to the voice has +the greatest efficacy, what dignity and gracefulness is it not capable of +supporting! and when you have been careful that it may neither be +unmeaning, nor ostentatious, there is still much to be left to the +expression of the _eyes_. For if the countenance is the _image_ of the +mind, the eyes are it's _interpreters_, whose degree of pleasantry or +sadness must be proportioned to the importance of our subject. + +But we are to exhibit the portrait of a finished Orator, whose chief +excellence must be supposed, from his very name, to consist in his +_Elocution_; while his other qualifications (though equally complete) are +less conspicuous. For a mere inventor, a mere digester, or a mere actor, +are titles never made use of to comprize the whole character; but an +Orator derives his name, both in Greek and Latin, from the single talent +of Elocution. As to his other qualifications, every man of sense may claim +a share of them: but the full powers of language are exerted by himself +alone. Some of the philosophers, indeed, have expressed themselves in a +very handsome manner: for _Theophrastus_ derived his name from the +divinity of his style; _Aristotle_ rivalled the glory of _Isocrates_; and +the Muses themselves are said to have spoken from the lips of _Xenophon_; +and, to say no more, the great _Plato_ is acknowledged in majesty and +sweetness to have far exceeded all who ever wrote or spoke. But their +language has neither the nerves nor the sting which is required in the +Orator's, when he harangues the crowded Forum. They speak only to the +learned, whose passions they rather choose to compose than disturb; and +they discourse about matters of calm and untumultuous speculation, merely +as teachers, and not like eager antagonists: though even _here_, when they +endeavour to amuse and delight us, they are thought by some to exceed the +limits of their province. It will be easy, therefore, to distinguish this +species of Elocution from the Eloquence we are attempting to delineate. +For the language of philosophy is gentle and composed, and entirely +calculated for the shady walks of the Academy;--not armed with those +forcible sentiments, and rapid turns of expression, which are suited to +move the populace, nor measured by exact numbers and regular periods, but +easy, free, and unconfined. It has nothing resentful belonging to it, +nothing invidious, nothing fierce and flaming, nothing exaggerated, +nothing marvellous, nothing artful and designing; but resembles a chaste, +a bashful, and an unpolluted virgin. We may, therefore, consider it as a +kind of polite conversation, rather than a species of Oratory. + +As to the _Sophists_, whom I have already mentioned, the resemblance ought +to be more accurately distinguished: for they industriously pursue the +same flowers which are used by an Orator in the Forum. But they differ in +this,--that, as their principal aim is not to disturb the passions, but +rather to allay them, and not so much to persuade as to please,--they +attempt the latter more openly, and more frequently than we do. They seek +for agreeable sentiments, rather than probable ones; they use more +frequent digressions, intermingle tales and fables, employ more shewy +metaphors, and work them into their discourses with as much fancy and +variety as a painter does his colours; and they abound in contrasts and +antitheses, and in similar and corresponding cadences. + +Nearly allied to these is _History_, which conducts her narratives with +elegance and ease, and now and then sketches out a country, or a battle. +She likewise diversifies her story with short speeches, and florid +harangues: but in these, only neatness and fluency is to be expected, and +not the vehemence and poignant severity of an Orator [Footnote: In the +Original it is,--_sed in his tracta quaedam et fluens expetitur, nan haec +contorta, et acris Oratorio_; upon which Dr. Ward has made the following +remark:--"Sentences, with respect to their form or composition, are +distinguished into two sorts, called by Cicero _tracta_, strait or direct, +and _contorta_, bent or winding. By the former are meant such, whose +members follow each other in a direct order, without any inflexion; and by +the latter, those which strictly speaking are called periods."]. + +There is much the same difference between Eloquence and _Poetry_; for the +Poets likewise have started the question, What it is which distinguishes +them from the Orators? It was formerly supposed to be their _number_ and +_metre_: but numbers are now as familiar to the Orator, as to the Poet; +for whatever falls under the regulation of the ear, though it bears no +resemblance to verse (which in Oratory would be a capital fault) is called +_number_, and by the Greeks _rhyme_. [Footnote: [Greek: Ruthmos]] In the +opinion of some, therefore, the style of _Plato_ and _Democritus_, on +account of it's majestic flow, and the splendor of it's ornaments, though +it is far from being verse, has a nearer resemblance to poetry than the +style of the Comedians, who, excepting their metre, have nothing different +from the style of conversation. Metre, however, is far from being the +principal merit of the Poets; though it is certainly no small +recommendation, that, while they pursue all the beauties of Eloquence, the +harmony of their numbers is far more regular and exact. But, though the +language of Poetry is equally grand and ornamental with that of an Orator, +she undoubtedly takes greater liberties both in making and compounding +word; and frequently administers to the pleasure of her hearers, more by +the pomp and lustre of her expressions, than by the weight and dignity of +her sentiments. Though judgment, therefore, and a proper choice of words, +is alike common to both, yet their difference in other respects is +sufficiently discernible: but if it affords any matter of doubt (as to +some, perhaps, it may) the discussion of it is no way necessary to our +present purpose. + +We are, therefore, to delineate the Orator who differs equally from the +Eloquence of the Philosopher, the Sophist, the Historian, and the Poet. +He, then, is truly eloquent, (for after _him_ we must search, by the +direction of Antonius) who in the Forum, and in public debates, can so +speak, as to _prove_, _delight_, and _force the passions_. To _prove_, is +a matter of necessity:--to _delight_, is indispensably requisite to engage +the attention:--and to _force the passions_, is the surest means of +victory; for this contributes more effectually than both the others to get +a cause decided to our wishes. But as the duties of an Orator, so the +kinds of Elocution are three. The neat and accurate is used in _proving;_ +the moderately florid in _delighting_ apd the vehement and impetuous in +_forcing_ _the passions,_ in which alone all the power of Eloquence +consists. Great, therefore, must be the judgment, and wonderful the +talents of the man, who can properly conduct, and, as it were, temper this +threefold variety: for he will at once determine what is suitable to every +case; and be always able to express himself as the nature of his subject +may require. + +Discretion, therefore, is the basis of Eloquence, as well as of every +other accomplishment. For, as in the conduct of life, so in the practice +of Speaking, nothing is more difficult than to maintain a propriety of +character. This is called by the Greeks [Greek: to prepon], _the +becoming,_ but we shall call it _decorum;_--a subject which has been +excellently and very copiously canvassed, and richly merits our attention. +An unacquaintance with this has been the source of innumerable errors, not +only in the business of life, but in Poetry and Eloquence. An Orator, +therefore, should examine what is becoming, as well in the turn of his +language, as in that of his sentiments. For not every condition, not every +rank, not every character, nor every age, or place, or time, nor every +hearer is to be treated with the same invariable train either of sentiment +or expression:--but we should always consider in every part of a public +Oration, as well as of life, what will be most becoming,--a circumstance +which naturally depends on the nature of the subject, and the respective +characters of the Speaker and Hearer. Philosophers, therefore, have +carefully discussed this extensive and important topic in the doctrine of +Ethics, (though not, indeed, when they treat of right and wrong, because +those are invariably the fame:)--nor is it less attended to by the Critics +in their poetical Essays, or by men of Eloquence in every species and +every part of their public debates. For what would be more out of +character, than to use a lofty style, and ransack every topic of argument, +when we are speaking only of a petty trespass in some inferior court? Or, +on the other hand, to descend to any puerile subtilties, and speak with +the indifference and simplicity of a frivolous narrative, when we are +lashing treason and rebellion? + +_Here_, the indecorum would arise from the very nature and quality of the +subject: but others are equally guilty of it, by not adapting their +discourse either to their own characters, or to that of their hearers, +and, in some cafes, to that of their antagonists; and they extend the +fault not only to their sentiments, but to the turn of their expression. +It is true, indeed, that the force of language is a mere nothing, when it +is not supported by a proper solidity of sentiment: but it is also equally +true that the same thing will be either approved or rejected, according as +it is this or that way expressed. In all cases, therefore, we cannot be +too careful in examining the _how far_? for though every thing has it's +proper mean, yet an _excess_ is always more offensive and disgusting than +a proportionable _defect_. _Apelles_, therefore, justly censures some of +his cotemporary artists, because they never knew when they had performed +enough. + +This, my Brutus, as your long acquaintance with it must necessarily inform +you, is a copious subject, and would require an extensive volume to +discuss. But it is sufficient to our present purpose to observe, that in +all our words and actions, as well the smallest as the greatest, there is +a something which will appear either becoming or unbecoming, and that +almost every one is sensible of it's confluence. But what is becoming, and +what _ought to be_, are very different considerations, and belong to a +different topic:--for the _ought to be_ points out the perfection of duty, +which should be attended to upon all occasions, and by all persons: but +the _becoming_ denotes that which is merely _proper_, and suited to time +and character, which is of great importance not only in our actions and +language, but in our very looks, our gesture, and our walk; and that which +is contrary to it will always be _unbecoming_, and disagreeable. If the +Poet, therefore, carefully guards against any impropriety of the kind, and +is always condemned as guilty of a fault, when he puts the language of a +worthy man into the mouth of a ruffian, or that of a wife man into the +mouth of a fool:--if, moreover, the artist who painted the sacrifice of +_Iphigenia_, [Footnote: Agamemnon, one of the Grecian chiefs, having by +accident slain a deer belonging to Diana, the Goddess was so enraged at +this profanation of her honours, that she kept him wind-bound at Aulis +with the whole fleet. Under this heavy disaster, having recourse to the +Oracle, (their usual refuge in such cases) they were informed that the +only atonement which the angry Goddess would accept, was the sacrifice of +one of the offender's children. Ulysses having, by a stratagem, withdrawn +_Iphigenia_ from her mother for that purpose, the unhappy Virgin was +brought to the altar. But, as the story goes, the Goddess relenting at her +hard fate, substituted a deer in her stead, and conveyed her away to serve +her as a Priestess. It must be farther remarked that _Menelaus_ was the +Virgin's uncle, and Calchas the Priest who was to officiate at this horrid +sacrifice.] could see that _Chalcas_ should appear greatly concerned, +_Ulysses_ still more so, and _Menelaus_ bathed in tears, but that the head +of Agamemnon (the virgin's father) should be covered with his robe, to +intimate a degree of anguish which no pencil could express: lastly, if a +mere actor on the stage is ever cautious to keep up the character he +appears in, what must be done by the Orator? But as this is a matter of +such importance, let him consider at his leisure, what is proper to be +done in particular causes, and in their several parts and divisions:--for +it is sufficiently evident, not only that the different parts of an +Oration, but that entire causes ought to be managed, some in one manner, +and some in another. + +We must now proceed to delineate the form and character of each of the +three species of Eloquence above-mentioned; a great and an arduous talk, +as I have already observed more than once; But we should have considered +the difficulty of the voyage before we embarked: for now we have ventured +to set sail, we must run boldly before the wind, whether we reach our port +or not. + +The first character, then, to be described, is the Orator who, according +to some, is the only one that has any just pretensions to _Atticism_. He +is distinguished by his modest simplicity; and as he imitates the language +of conversation, he differs from those who are strangers to Eloquence, +rather in reality than in appearance. For this reason, those who hear him, +though totally unskilled in the art of Speaking, are apt to persuade +themselves that they can readily discourse in the same manner [Footnote: +There is a pretty remark to the same purpose in the fifteenth number of +_The Guardian_, which, as it may serve to illustrate the observation of +Cicero, I shall beg leave to insert. + +"From what I have advanced, it appears how difficult it is to write +_easily_. But when easy writings fall into the hands of an ordinary +reader, they appear to him so natural and unlaboured, that he immediately +resolves to write, and fancies that all he has to do is to take no pains. +Thus he thinks indeed simply, but the thoughts not being chosen with +judgment, are not beautiful. He, it is true, expresses himself plainly, +but flatly withal. Again, if a man of vivacity takes it into his head to +write this way, what self-denial must he undergo, when bright points of +wit occur to his fancy? How difficult will he find it to reject florid +phrases, and pretty embellishments of style? So true it is, that +simplicity of all things is the hardest to be copied, and case to be +acquired with the greatest labour."];--and the unaffected simplicity of +his language appears very imitable to an ignorant observer; though nothing +will be found less so by him who makes the trial. For, if I may so express +myself, though his veins are not over-stocked with blood, his juices must +be found and good; and though he is not possessed of any extraordinary +strength, he must have a healthy constitution. For this purpose, we must +first release him from the shackles of _number_; for there is (you know) a +kind of _number_ to be observed by an Orator, which we shall treat of in +the sequel:--but this is to be used in a different species of Eloquence, +and to be relinquished in the present. His language, therefore, must be +free and unconfined, but not loose and irregular, that he may appear to +walk at ease, without reeling or tottering. He will not be at the pains to +cement word to word with a scrupulous exactness: for those breaks which +are made by a collision of vowels, have now and then an agreeable effect, +and betray the not unpleasing negligence of a man who is more felicitous +about things than words. But though he is not to labour at a measured +flow, and a masterly arrangement of his words, he must be careful in other +respects. For even these limited and unaspiring talents are not to be +employed carelessly, but with a kind of industrious negligence: for as +some females are most becoming in a dishabille, so this artless kind of +Eloquence has her charms, though she appears in an undress. There is +something in both which renders them agreeable, without striking the eye. +Here, therefore, all the glitter of ornament, like that of jewels and +diamonds, must be laid aside; nor must we apply even the crisping-iron to +adjust the hair. There must be no colouring, no artful washes to heighten +the complexion: but elegance and neatness must be our only aim. Our style +muft be pure, and correct;--we must speak with clearness and perspicuity; +--and be always attentive to appear in character. There is one thing, +however, which must never be omitted, and which is reckoned by +Theophrastus to be one of the chief beauties of composition;--I mean that +sweet and flowing ornament, a plentiful intermixture of lively sentiments, +which seem to result from a natural fund of good sense, and are peculiarly +graceful in the Orator we are now describing. But he will be very moderate +in using the _furniture_ of Eloquence: for (if I may be allowed such an +expression) there is a species of furniture belonging to us, which +consists in the various ornaments of sentiment and language. The ornaments +of language are two-fold; the one sort relates to words as they stand +singly, and the other as they are connected together. A _single_ word (I +speak of those which are _proper_, and in common use) is then said to be +well chosen, when it founds agreeably, and is the best which could have +been taken to express our meaning. Among borrowed and _translatitious_ +[Footnote: Words which are transferred from their primitive meaning to a +metaphorical one.] words, (or those which are not used in their proper +sense) we may reckon the metaphor, the metonymy, and the rest of the +tropes; as also compounded and new-made words, and such as are obsolete +and out of date; but obsolete words should rather be considered as proper +ones, with this only difference, that we seldom make use of them. As to +words in connection, these also may be considered as ornamental, when they +have a certain gracefulness which would be destroyed by changing their +order, though the meaning would still remain the same. For as to the +ornaments of sentiment, which lose nothing of their beauty, by varying the +position of the words,--these, indeed, are very numerous, though only a +few of them are remarkably striking. + +The Orator, then, who is distinguished by the simplicity of his manner, +provided he is correct and elegant, will be sparing in the use of new +words; easy and modest in his metaphors; and very cautious in the use of +words which are antiquated;--and as to the other ornaments of language and +sentiment, here also he will be equally plain and reserved. But in the use +of metaphors, he will, perhaps, take greater liberties; because these are +frequently introduced in conversation, not only by Gentlemen, but even by +rustics, and peasants: for we often hear them say that the vine _shoots +out_ it's buds, that the fields are _thirsty_, the corn _lively_, and the +grain _rich_ and flourishing. Such expressions, indeed, are rather bold: +but the resemblance between the metaphor and the object is either +remarkably obvious; or else, when the latter has no proper name to express +it, the metaphor is so far from appearing to be laboured, that we seem to +use it merely to explain our meaning. This, therefore, is an ornament in +which our artless Orator may indulge himself more freely; but not so +openly as in the more diffusive and lofty species of Eloquence. For that +_indecorum_, which is best understood by comparing it with its opposite +quality, will even here be viable when a metaphor is too conspicuous;--or +when this simple and dispassionate sort of language is interrupted by a +bold ornament, which would have been proper enough in a different kind of +Elocution. + +As to that sort of ornament which regards the position of words, and +embellishes it with those studied graces, which are considered by the +Greeks as so many _attitudes_ of language, and are therefore called +_figures_, (a name which is likewise extended to the flowers of +sentiment;)--the Orator before us, who may justly be regarded as an +_Attic_ Speaker, provided the title is not confined to him, will make use +even of _this_, though with great caution and moderation. He will conduct +himself as if he was setting out an entertainment, and while he carefully +avoids a splendid magnificence, he will not only be plain and frugal, but +neat and elegant, and make his choice accordingly. For there is a kind of +genteel parsimony, by which his character is distinguished from that of +others. He will, therefore, avoid the more conspicuous ornaments above- +mentioned, such as the contracting word to word,--the concluding the +several members of a sentence with the same cadence, or confining them to +the same measure,--and all the studied prettiness which are formed by the +change of a letter, or an artful play of found;--that, if possible, there +may not be the slightest appearance, or even suspicion, of a design to +please. As to those repetitions which require an earnest and forcible +exertion of the voice, these also would be equally out of character in +this lower species of Eloquence; but he may use the other ornaments of +Elocution at his pleasure, provided he checks and interrupts the flow of +his language, and softens it off by using familiar expressions, and such +metaphors as are plain and obvious. Nay, even as to the figures of +sentiment, he may sometimes indulge himself in those which are not +remarkably bold and striking. Thus, for instance, we must not allow him to +introduce the Republic as speaking, nor to fetch up the dead from their +graves, nor to crowd a multitude of ideas into the same period. These +efforts demand a firmer constitution, and should be neither required nor +expected from the simple Orator before us; for as in his voice, so +likewise in his language, he should be ever easy and composed. But there +are many of the nobler ornaments which may be admitted even here, though +always in a plainer and more artless habit than in any other species of +Eloquence; for such is the character we have assigned him. His gesture +also will be neither pompous, nor theatrical, but consist in a moderate +and easy sway of the body, and derive much of it's efficacy from the +countenance,--not a stiff and affected countenance, but such a one as +handsomely corresponds with his sentiments. + +This kind of Oratory will likewise be frequently enlivened by those turns +of wit and pleasantry, which in Speaking have a much greater effect than +is imagined. There are two sorts of them; the one consisting in smart +sayings and quick repartees, and the other in what is called _humour_. Our +Orator will make use of both;--of the latter in his narratives, to make +them lively and entertaining;--and of the other, either in giving or +retorting a stroke of ridicule, of which there are several kinds; but at +present it is not our business to specify them. It will not be amiss, +however, to observe by way of caution, that the powers of _ridicule_ are +not to be employed too often, lest we sink into scurrility;--nor in loose +and indecent language, lest we degenerate into wantonness and buffoonery; +--nor with the least degree of petulance and abuse, lest we appear +audacious and ill-bred;--nor levelled against the unfortunate, lest we +incur the censure of inhumanity;--nor against atrocious crimes, lest we +raise a laugh where we ought to excite abhorrence;--nor, in the last +place, should they be used unseasonably, or when the characters either of +the Speaker, or the Hearer, and the circumstances of time and place forbid +it;--otherwise we should grossly fail in that decorum of which we have +already said so much. We should likewise avoid all affected witticisms, +which appear not to be thrown out occasionally, but to be dragged from the +closet; for such are generally cold and insipid. It is also improper to +jest upon our friends, or upon persons of quality, or to give any strokes +of wit which may appear ill-natured, or malicious. We should aim only at +our enemies; and even at these, not upon every occasion, or without any +distinction of character, or with the same invariable turn of ridicule. +Under these restrictions our artless Orator will play off his wit and +humour, as I have never seen it done by any of the modern pretenders to +Atticism, though they cannot deny that this is entirely in the Attic +taste. + +Such, then, is the idea which I have formed of a _simple and an easy +Speaker_, who is likewise a very masterly one, and a genuine Athenian; for +whatever is smart and pertinent is unquestionably _Attic_, though some of +the Attic Speakers were not remarkable for their wit. _Lysias_, indeed, +and _Hyperides_ were sufficiently so; and _Demades_, it is said, was more +so than all the others. Demosthenes, however, is thought by many to have +but little merit of the kind; but to me nothing can be more genteel than +he is; though, perhaps, he was rather smart than humourous. The one +requires a quicker genius, but the other more art and address. + +But there is a second character, which is more diffusive, and somewhat +stronger than the simple and artless, one we have been describing,--though +considerably inferior to that copious and all-commanding Eloquence we +shall notice in the sequel. In this, though there is but a moderate +exertion of the nerves and sinews of Oratory, there is abundance of melody +and sweetness. It is much fuller and richer than the close and accurate +style above-mentioned; but less elevated than the pompous and diffusive. +In _this_ all the ornaments of language may be employed without reserve; +and _here_ the flow of our numbers is ever soft and harmonious. Many of +the Greeks have pursued it with success: but, in my opinion, they must all +yield the palm to _Demetrius Phalereus_, whose Eloquence is ever mild and +placid, and bespangled with a most elegant variety of metaphors and other +tropes, like so many _stars_. By _metaphors_, as I have frequently +observed, I mean expressions which, either for the sake of ornament, or +through the natural poverty of our language, are removed and as it were +_transplanted_ from their proper objects to others, by way of similitude. +As to _tropes_ in general, they are particular forms of expression, in +which the proper name of a thing is supplied by another, which conveys the +same meaning, but is borrowed from its adjuncts or effects: for, though, +in this case, there is a kind of metaphor, (because the word is shifted +from its primary object) yet the remove is performed by _Ennius_ in a +different manner, when he says metaphorically,--"_You bereave the citadel +and the city of their offspring_,"--from what it would have been, if he +had put the citadel alone for the whole state: and thus again, when he +tells us that,--"_rugged Africa was shaken by a dreadful tumult_,"--he +puts Africa for the inhabitants. The Rhetoricians call this an +_Hypallage_, because one word is substituted for another: but the +Grammarians call it a _Metonymy_, because the words are shifted and +interchanged. Aristotle, however, subjoins it to the metaphor, as he +likewise does the _Abuse_ or _Catachresis_; by which, for instance, we say +a _narrow, contracted soul_, instead of a _mean_ one, and thus steal an +expression which has a kindred meaning with the proper one, either for the +sake of ornament or decency. When several metaphors are connected together +in a regular chain, the form of speaking is varied. The Greeks call this +an _Allegory_, which indeed is proper enough if we only attend to the +etymology; but if we mean to refer it to its particular _genus_ or kind, +he has done better who comprehends the whole under the general name of +metaphors. These, however, are frequently used by _Phalereus_, and have a +soft and pleasing effect: but though he abounds in the metaphor, he also +makes use of the other tropes with as much freedom as any writer whatever. + +This species of Eloquence (I mean the _middling_, or temperate) is +likewise embellished with all the brilliant figures of language, and many +of the figures of sentiment. By this, moreover, the most extensive and +refined topics of science are handsomely unfolded, and all the weapons of +argument are employed without violence. But what need have I to say more? +Such Speakers are the common offspring of Philosophy; and were the +nervous, and more striking Orator to keep out of sight, these alone would +fully answer our wishes. For they are masters of a brilliant, a florid, a +picturesque, and a well-wrought Elocution, which is interwoven with all +the beautiful embroidery both of language and sentiment. This character +first streamed from the limpid fountains of the _Sophists_ into the Forum; +but being afterwards despised by the more simple and refined kind of +Speakers, and disdainfully rejected by the nervous and weighty; it was +compelled to subside into the peaceful and unaspiring mediocrity we are +speaking of. + +The _third character_ is the extensive,--the copious,--the nervous,--the +majestic Orator, who possesses the powers of Elocution in their full +extent. _This_ is the man whose enchanting and diffusive language is so +much admired by listening nations, that they have tamely suffered +Eloquence to rule the world;--but an Eloquence whose course is rapid and +sonorous!--an Eloquence which every one gazes at, and admires, and +despairs to equal! This is the Eloquence that bends and sways the +passions!--_this_ the Eloquence that alarms or sooths them at her +pleasure! This is the Eloquence that sometimes tears up all before it like +a whirlwind; and, at other times, steals imperceptibly upon the senses, +and probes to the bottom of the heart!--the Eloquence which ingrafts +opinions that are new, and eradicates the old; but yet is widely different +from the two characters of Speaking before-mentioned. + +He who exerts himself in the simple and accurate character, and speaks +neatly and smartly without aiming any higher!--_he_, by this alone, if +carried to perfection, becomes a great, if not the greatest of Orators; +nor does he walk upon slippery ground, so that if he has but learned to +tread firm, he is in no danger of falling. Also the middle kind of Orator, +who is distinguished by his equability, provided he only draws up his +forces to advantage, fears not the perilous and doubtful hazards of a +public Harangue; and, though sometimes he may not succeed to his wishes, +yet he is never exposed to an absolute defeat; for as he never soars, his +fall must be inconsiderable. But the Orator, whom we regard as the prince +of his profession,--the nervous,--the fierce,--the flaming Orator, if he +is born for this alone, and only practices and applies himself to this, +without tempering his copiousness with the two inferior characters of +Eloquence, is of all others the most contemptible. For the plain and +simple Orator, as speaking acutely and expertly, has an appearance of +wisdom and good-sense; and the middle kind of Orator is sufficiently +recommended by his sweetness:--but the copious and diffusive Speaker, if +he has no other qualification, will scarcely appear to be in his senses. +For he who can say nothing calmly,--nothing gently--nothing methodically, +--nothing clearly, distinctly, or humourously, (though a number of causes +should be so managed throughout, and others in one or more of their +parts:)--he, moreover, who proceeds to amplify and exaggerate without +preparing the attention of his audience, will appear to rave before men of +understanding, and to vapour like a person intoxicated before the sober +and sedate. + +Thus then, my Brutus, we have at last discovered the finished Orator we +are seeking for: but we have caught him in imagination only;--for if I +could have seized him with my hands, not all his Eloquence should persuade +me to release him. We have at length, however, discovered the eloquent +Speaker, whom Antonius never saw.--But who, then, is he?--I will comprize +his character in a few words, and afterwards unfold it more at large.--He, +then, is an Orator indeed! who can speak upon trivial subjects with +simplicity and art, upon weighty ones with energy and pathos, and upon +those of middling import with calmness and moderation. You will tell me, +perhaps, that such a Speaker has never existed. Be it so:--for I am now +discoursing not upon what I _have_ seen, but upon what I could _wish_ to +see; and must therefore recur to that primary semblance or ideal form of +Plato which I have mentioned before, and which, though it cannot be seen +with our bodily eyes, may be comprehended by the powers of imagination. +For I am not seeking after a living Orator, or after any thing which is +mortal and perishing, but after that which confers a right to the title of +_eloquent_; in other words, I am seeking after Eloquence herself, who can +be discerned only by the eye of the mind. + +He then is truly an _Orator_, (I again repeat it,) who can speak upon +trivial subjects with simplicity, upon indifferent ones with moderation, +and upon weighty subjects with energy and pathos. [Footnote: Our Author is +now going to indulge himself in the _Egotism_,--a figure, which, upon many +occasions, he uses as freely as any of the figures of Rhetoric. How the +Reader will relish it, I know not; but it is evident from what follows, +and from another passage of the same kind further on, that Cicero had as +great a veneration for his own talents as any man living. His merit, +however, was so uncommon both as a Statesman, a Philosopher, and an +Orator, and he has obliged posterity with so many useful and amazing +productions of genius, that we ought in gratitude to forgive the vanity of +the _man_. Although he has ornamented the socket in which he has _set_ his +character, with an extravagant (and I had almost said ridiculous) +profusion of self-applause, it must be remembered that the diamond it +contains is a gem of inestimable value.] The cause I pleaded for Caecina +related entirely to the bare letter of the Interdict: here, therefore, I +explained what was intricate by a definition,--spoke in praise of the +Civil Law,--and dissolved the ambiguities which embarrassed the meaning of +the Statute.--In recommending the Manilian Law, I was to blazon the +character of _Pompey_, and therefore indulged myself in all that variety +of ornament which is peculiar to the second species of Eloquence. In the +cause of Rabirius, as the honour of the Republic was at stake, I blazed +forth in every species of amplification. But these characters are +sometimes to be intermingled and diversified. Which of them, therefore, is +not to be met with in my seven Invectives against _Verres_? or in the +cause of _Habitus_? or in that of _Cornelius_? or indeed in most of my +Defences? I would have specified the particular examples, did I not +believe them to be sufficiently known; or, at least, very easy to be +discovered by those who will take the trouble to seek for them. For there +is nothing which can recommend an Orator in the different characters of +speaking, but what has been exemplified in my Orations,--if not to +perfection, yet at least it has been attempted, and faintly delineated. I +have not, indeed, the vanity to think I have arrived at the summit; but I +can easily discern what Eloquence ought to be. For I am not to speak of +myself, but to attend to my subject; and so far am I from admiring my own +productions, that, on the contrary, I am so nice and difficult, as not to +be entirely satisfied with Demosthenes himself, who, though he rises with +superior eminence in every species of Eloquence, does not always fill my +ear;--so eager is it, and so insatiable, as to be ever coveting what is +boundless and immense. But as, by the assistance of _Pammenes_, who is +very fond of that Orator, you made yourself thoroughly acquainted with him +when you was at _Athens_, and to this day scarcely ever part with him from +your hands, and yet frequently condescend to peruse what has been written +by _me_; you must certainly have taken notice that he hath _done_ much, +and that I have _attempted_ much,--that he has been _happy_ enough, and I +_willing_ enough to speak, upon every occasion, as the nature of the +subject required. But he, beyond dispute, was a consummate Orator; for he +not only succeeded several eminent Speakers, but had many such for his +cotemporaries:--and I also, if I could have reached the perfection I aimed +at, should have made no despicable figure in a city, where (according to +Antonius) the voice of genuine Eloquence was never heard. + +But if to Antonius neither Crassus, nor even himself, appeared to be +_eloquent_, we may presume that neither Cotta, Sulpicius, nor Hortensius +would have succeeded any better. For _Cotta_ had no expansion, _Sulpicius_ +no temper, and _Hortensius_ too little dignity. But the two former (I mean +Crassus and Antonius) had a capacity which was better adapted to every +species of Oratory. I had, therefore, to address myself to the ears of a +city which had never been filled by that multifarious and extensive +Eloquence we are discoursing of; and I first allured them (let me have +been what you please, or what ever were my talents) to an incredible +desire of hearing the finished Speaker who is the subject of the present +Essay. For with what acclamations did I deliver that passage in my youth +concerning the punishment of parricides [Footnote: Those unnatural and +infamous wretches, among the Romans, were sown into a leathern sack, and +thus thrown into the sea; to intimate that they were unworthy of having +the lead communication with the common elements of water, earth, and +air.], though I was afterwards sensible it was too warm and extravagant? +--"What is so common, said I, as air to the living, earth to the dead, the +sea to floating corpses, and the shore to those who are caft upon it by +the waves! But these wretches, as long as life remains, so live as not to +breathe the air of heaven;--they so perish, that their limbs are not +suffered to touch the earth;--they are so tossed to and fro' by the waves, +as never to be warned by them;--and when they are cast on the shore, their +dead, carcases cannot rest upon the surface of the rocks!" All this, as +coming from a youth, was much applauded, not for it's ripeness and +solidity, but for the hopes it gave the Public of my future improvement. +From the same capacity came those riper expressions,--"She was the spouse +of her son-in-law, the step-mother of her own offspring? and the mistress +of her daughter's husband [Footnote: This passage occurs in the peroration +of his Defence of Cluentius]." + +But I did not always indulge myself in this excessive ardour of +expression, or speak every thing in the same manner: for even that +youthful redundance which was so visible in the defence of _Roscius_, had +many passages which were plain and simple, and some which were, tolerably +humourous. But the Orations in defence of _Habitus_, and _Cornelius_, and +indeed many others; (for no single Orator, even among the peaceful and +speculative Athenians, has composed such a number as I have;)--these, I +say, have all that variety which I so much approve. For have _Homer_ and +_Ennius_, and the rest of the Poets, but especially the tragic writers, +not expressed themselves at all times with the same elevation, but +frequently varied their manner, and sometimes lowered it to the style of +conversation; and shall I oblige myself never to descend from that highest +energy of language? Bit why do I mention the Poets whose talents are +divine! The very actors on the stage, who have most excelled in their +profession, have not only succeeded in very different characters, though +still in the same province; but a comedian has often acted tragedies, and +a tragedian comedies so as to give us universal satisfaction. Wherefore, +then, should not _I_ also exert my efforts? But when I say _myself_, my +worthy Brutus I mean _you_: for as to _me_, I have already done all, I was +capable of doing. Would _you_, then, plead every cause in the same manner? +Or is there any sort of causes which your genius would decline? Or even in +the same cause, would you always express yourself in the same strain, and +without any variety? Your favourite _Demosthenes_, whose brazen statue I +lately beheld among your own, and your family images, when I had the +pleasure to visit you at Tusculanum,--Demosthenes, I say, was nothing +inferior to _Lysias_ in simplicity; to _Hyperides_ in smartness and +poignancy, or to _Aeschines_ in the smoothness and splendor of his +language. There are many of his Orations which are entirely of the close +and simple character, as that against _Lepsines_; many which are all +nervous, and striking, as those against _Philip_; and many which are of a +mixed character, as that against _Aeschines_, concerning the false +embassy, and another against the same person in defence of _Ctesiphon_. At +other times he strikes into the _mean_ at his pleasure, and quitting the +nervous character, descends to this with all the ease imaginable. But he +raises the acclamations of his audience, and his Oratory is then most +weighty and powerful, when he applies himself to the _nervous_. + +But as our enquiries relate to the art, and not to the artist, let us +leave _him_ for the present, and consider the nature and the properties of +the object before us,--that is, of _Eloquence_. We must keep in mind, +however, what I have already hinted,--that we are not required to deliver +a system of precepts, but to write as judges and critics, rather than +teachers. But I have expatiated so largely upon the subject, because I +foresee that you (who are, indeed, much better versed in it, than I who +pretend to inform you) will not be my only reader; but that my little +essay, though not much perhaps to my credit, will be made public, and with +your name prefixed to it. + +I am of opinion, therefore, that a finished Orator should not only possess +the talent (which, indeed, is peculiar, to himself) of speaking copiously +and diffusively: but that he should also borrow the assistance of it's +nearest neighbour, the art of Logic. For though public speaking is one +thing, and disputing another; and though there is a visible difference +between a private controversy, and a public Harangue; yet both the one and +the other come under the notion of reasoning. But mere discourse and +argument belongs to the Logician, and the art of Speaking gracefully and +ornamentally is the prerogative of the Orator. _Zeno_, the father of the +_Stoics_, used to illustrate the difference between the two by holding up +his hand;--for when he clenched his fingers, and presented a close fist,-- +"_that_," he said, "was an emblem of Logic:"--but when he spread them out +again, and displayed his open hand,--"this," said he, "resembles +Eloquence." But Aristotle observed before him, in the introduction to his +Rhetoric, that it is an art which has a near resemblance to that of +Logic;--and that the only difference between them is, that the method of +reasoning in the former is more diffusive, and in the latter more close +and contracted. + +I, therefore, advise that our finished Orator make himself master of every +thing in the art of Logic, which is applicable to his profession:--an art +(as your thorough knowledge of it has already informed you) which is +taught after two methods. For Aristotle himself has delivered a variety of +precepts concerning the art of Reasoning:--and besides these, the +_Dialecticians_ (as they are called) have produced many intricate and +thorny speculations of their own. I am, therefore, of opinion, that he who +is ambitious to be applauded for his Eloquence, should not be wholly +unacquainted with this branch of Erudition; but that he ought (at least) +to be properly instructed either in the old method, or in that of +_Chrysippus_. In the first place, he should understand the force, the +extension, and the different species of words as they stand singly, or +connected into sentences. He should likewise be acquainted with the +various modes and forms in which any conception of the mind may be +expressed--the methods of distinguishing a true proposition from a false +one;--the different conclusions which result from different premises;--the +true consequences and opposites to any given proposition;--and, if an +argument is embarrassed by ambiguities, how to unravel each of them by an +accurate distinction. These particulars, I say, should be well understood +by an Orator, because they are such as frequently occur: but as they are +naturally rugged and unpleasing, they should be relieved in practice by an +easy brilliance of expression. + +But as in every topic which is discussed by reason and method, we should +first settle what it is we are to discourse upon,--(for unless the parties +in a dispute are agreed about the subject of it, they can neither reason +with propriety, nor bring the argument to an issue;)--it will frequently +be necessary to explain our notions of it, and, when the matter is +intricate, to lay it open by a _definition_;--for a _definition_ is only a +sentence, or explanation, which specifies, in as few words as possible, +the nature of the object we propose to consider. After the _genus_, or +kind, has been sufficiently determined, we must then proceed (you know) to +examine into it's different species, or subordinate parts, that our whole +discourse may be properly distributed among them. Our Orator, then, should +be qualified to make a just definition;--though not in such a close and +contracted form, as in the critical debates of the Academy, but more +explicitly and copiously, and as will be best adapted to the common way of +thinking, and the capacity of the vulgar. He is likewise, as often as +occasion requires, to divide the genus into it's proper species, so as to +be neither defective, nor redundant. But _how_ and _when_ this should be +done, is not our present business to consider: because, as I observed +before, I am not to assume the part of a teacher, but only of a critic and +a judge. + +But he ought to acquaint himself not only with the art of Logic, but with +all the common and most useful branches of Morality. For without a +competent knowledge of these, nothing can be advanced and unfolded with +any spirit and energy, or with becoming dignity and freedom, either +concerning religion,--death,--filial piety,--the love of our country,-- +things good or evil,--the several virtues and vices,--the nature of moral +obligation,--grief or pleasure, and the other emotions of the mind,--or +the various errors and frailties of humanity,--and a variety of important +topics which are often closely connected with forensic causes; though +_here_(it is true) they must be touched upon more slightly and +superficially. I am now speaking of the _materials_ of Eloquence, and not +of the _art_ itself:--for an Orator should always be furnished with a +plentiful stock of sentiments,--(I mean such as may claim the attention of +the learned, as well as of the vulgar)--before he concerns himself about +the language and the manner in which he ought to express himself. + +That he may make a still more respectable and elevated figure (as we have +already observed of _Pericles_) he should not be unacquainted with the +principles of Natural Philosophy. For when he descends, as it were, from +the starry heavens, to the little concerns of humanity, he will both think +and speak with greater dignity and splendor. But after acquainting himself +with those divine and nobler objects of contemplation, I would have him +attend to human concerns. In particular, let him make himself master of +the _Civil Law_, which is of daily, and indeed necessary use in every kind +of causes. For what can be more scandalous, than to undertake the +management of judicial suits and controversies, without a proper knowledge +of the laws, and of the principles of Equity and Jurisprudence? He +should also be well versed in History and the venerable records of +Antiquity, but particularly those of his own country: not neglecting, +however, to peruse the annals of other powerful nations, and illustrious +monarchs;--a toil which has been considerably shortened by our friend +_Atticus_, who (though he has carefully specified the time of every +event, and omitted no transaction of consequence) has comprized the +history of seven hundred years in a single volume. To be unacquainted with +what has passed in the world, before we came into it ourselves, is to be +always children. For what is the age of a single mortal, unless it is +connected, by the aid of History, with the times of our ancestors? +Besides, the relation of past occurrences, and the producing pertinent and +striking examples, is not only very entertaining, but adds a great deal of +dignity and weight to what we say. + +Thus furnished and equipped our Orator may undertake the management of +causes. But, in the first place, he should be well acquainted with their +different kinds. He should know, for instance, that every judicial +controversy must turn either upon a matter of _fact_, or upon the meaning +of some particular expression. As to the former, this must always relate +either to the _reality_ of a fast, the _equity_ of it, or the _name_ it +bears in law. As to forms of expression, these may become the subject of +controversy, when they are either _ambiguous_, or _contradictory_. For +when the _spirit_ of a law appears to be at variance with the _letter_ of +it, this must cause an ambiguity which commonly arises from some of the +preceding terms; so that in this case (for such is the nature of an +ambiguity) the law will appear to have a double meaning. + +As the kinds of causes are so few, the rules for the invention of +arguments must be few also. The topics, or common places from which those +arguments are derived, are twofold,--the one _inherent_ in the subject, +and the other _assumptive_. A skilful management of the former contributes +most to, give weight to a discourse, and strike the attention of the +hearer: because they are easy, and familiar to the understanding. + +What farther remains (within the province of the Art) but that we should +begin our discourses so as to conciliate the hearer's good-will, or raise +his expectation, or prepare him to receive what follows?--to state the +case before us so concisely, and yet so plausibly and clearly, as that the +substance of it may be easily comprehended?--to support our own proofs, +and refute those of our antagonist, not in a confused and disorderly +manner, but so that every inference may be fairly deducible from the +premises?--and, in the last place, to conclude the whole with a peroration +either to inflame or allay the passions of the audience? How each of these +parts should be conducted is a subject too intricate and extensive for our +present consideration: for they are not always to be managed in the same +manner. + +But as I am not seeking a pupil to instruct, but an Orator who is to be +the model of his profession, _he_ must have the preference who can always +discern what is proper and becoming. For Eloquence should, above all, +things, have that kind of discretion which makes her a _perfect mistress +of time and character_: because we are not to speak upon every occasion, +or before every audience, or against every opponent, or in defence of +every client, and to every Judge, in the same invariable manner. He, +therefore, is the man of genuine Eloquence, who can adapt his language to +what is most suitable to each. By doing this, he will be sure to say every +thing as it ought to be said. He will neither speak drily upon copious +subjects, nor without dignity and spirit upon things of importance; but +his language will always be proportioned, and equal to his subject. His +introduction will be modest,--not flaming with all the glare of +expression, but composed of quick and lively turns of sentiment, either to +wound the cause of his antagonist, or recommend his own. His narratives +will be clear and plausible,--not delivered with the grave formality of an +Historian, but in the style of polite conversation. If his cause be +slight, the thread of his argument, both in proving and refuting, will be +so likewise, and he will so conduct it in every part, that his language +may rise and expand itself, as the dignity of his subject encreases. But +when his cause will admit a full exertion of the powers of Eloquence, he +will then display himself more openly;--he will then rule, and bend the +passions, and direct them, at his pleasure,--that is, as the nature of his +cause and the circumstances of the time shall require. + +But his powers of ornament will be chiefly exerted upon two occasions; I +mean that striking kind of ornament, from which Eloquence derives her +greatest glory. For though every part of an Oration should have so much +merit, as not to contain a single word but what is either weighty or +elegant; there are two very interesting parts which are susceptible of the +greatest variety of ornament. The one is the discussion of an indefinite +question, or general truth, which by the Greeks (as I have before +observed) is called a _thesis_: and the other is employed in amplifying +and exaggerating, which they call an _auxesis_. Though the latter, indeed, +should diffuse itself more or less through the whole body of a discourse, +it's powers will be more conspicuous in the use and improvement of the +_common places_:--which are so called, as being alike _common_ to a number +of causes, though (in the application of them) they are constantly +appropriated to a single one. But as to the other part, which regards +universal truths, or indefinite questions, this frequently extends through +a whole cause:--for the leading point in debate, or that which the +controversy hinges upon, is always most conveniently discussed when it can +be reduced to a general question, and considered as an universal +proposition:--unless, indeed, when the mere truth of a matter of fact: is +the object: of disquisition: for then the case must be wholly conjectural. +We are not, however, to argue like the _Peripatetics_ (who have a neat +method of controversy which they derive from _Aristotle_) but more +nervously and pressingly; and general sentiments must be so applied to +particular cases, as to leave us room to say many extenuating things in +behalf of the Defendant, and many severe ones against the Plaintiff. But +in heightening or softening a circumstance, the powers of language are +unlimited, and may be properly exerted, even in the middle of an argument, +as often as any thing presents itself which may be either exaggerated, or +extenuated; but, in, controul. + +There are two parts, however, which must not be omitted;--for when these +are judiciously conducted, the sorce of Eloquence will be amazing. The one +is a certain _propriety of manner_ (called the _ethic_ by the Greeks) +which readily adapts itself to different dispositions and humours, and to +every station of life:--and the other is the pathetic, which rouses and +alarms the passions, and may be considered as the _scepter_ of Eloquence. +The former is mild and insinuating, and entirely calculated to conciliate +the good-will of the hearer: but the latter is all energy and fire, and +snatches a cause by open violence;--and when it's course is rapid and +unrestrained, the shock is irresistible. I [footnote: Here follows the +second passage above-referred to, in which there is a long string of +_Egotisms_. But as they furnish some very instructive hints, the Reader +will peruse them with more pleasure than pain] myself have possessed a +tolerable share of this, or, it may be, a trifling one:--but as I always +spoke with uncommon warmth and impetuosity, I have frequently forced my +antagonist to relinquish the field. _Hortensius_, an eminent Speaker, once +declined to answer me, though in defence of an intimate friend. +_Cataline_, a most audacious traitor, being publicly accused by me in the +Senate-house, was struck dumb with shame: and _Curio_, the father, when he +attempted to reply to me in a weighty and important cause which concerned +the honour of his family, sat suddenly down, and complained that I had +_bewitched_ him out of his memory. As to moving the pity of my audience, +it will be unnecessary to mention this. I have frequently attempted it +with good success, and when several of us have pleaded on the same side, +this part of the defence was always resigned to me; in which my supposed +excellence was not owing to the superiority of my genius, but to the real +concern I felt for the distresses of my client. But what in this respect +have been my talents (for I have had no reason to complain of them) may be +easily discovered in my Orations:--though a book, indeed, must lose much +of the spirit which makes a speech delivered in public appear to greater +advantage than when it is perused in the closet. + +But we are to raise not only the pity of our judges, (which I have +endeavoured so passionately, that I once took up an infant in my arms +while I was speaking;--and, at another time, calling up the nobleman in +whose defence I spoke, and holding up a little child of his before the +whole assembly, I filled the Forum with my cries and lamentations:)--but +it is also necessary to rouse the judge's indignation, to appease it, to +excite his jealousy, his benevolence, his contempt, his wonder, his +abhorrence, his love, his desire, his aversion, his hope, his fear, his +joy, and his grief:--in all which variety, you may find examples, in many +accusatory speeches, of rousing the harsher passions; and my Defences will +furnish instances enough of the methods of working upon the gentler. For +there is no method either of alarming or soothing the passions, but what +has been attempted by _me_. I would say I have carried it to perfection, +if I either thought so, or was not afraid that (in this case) even truth +itself might incur the charge of arrogance. But (as I have before +observed) I have been so much transported, not by the force of my genius, +but by the real fervor of my heart, that I was unable to restrain myself: +--and, indeed, no language will inflame the mind of the hearer, unless the +Speaker himself first catches the ardor, and glows with the importance of +his subject. I would refer to examples of my own, unless you had seen them +already; and to those of other Speakers among the Romans, if I could +produce any, or among the Greeks, if I judged it proper. But _Crassus_ +will only furnish us with a few, and those not of the forensic kind:-- +_Antonius, Cotta_, and _Sulpicius_ with none:--and as to _Hortensius_, he +spoke much better than he wrote. We may, therefore, easily judge how +amazing must be the force of a talent, of which we have so few examples:-- +but if we are resolved to seek for them, we must have recourse to +_Demosthenes_, in whom we find almost a continued succession of them, in +that part of his Oration for _Ctesiphon_, where he enlarges on his own +actions, his measures, and his good services to the State, For that +Oration, I must own, approaches so near to the primary form or semblance +of Eloquence which exists in my mind, that a more complete and exalted +pattern is scarcely desirable. But still, there will remain a general +model or character, the true nature and excellence of which may be easily +collected from the hints I have already offered. + +We have slightly touched upon the ornaments +of language, both in single words, and in words as they stand connected +with each other;--in which our Orator will so indulge himself, that not a +single expression may escape him, but what is either elegant or weighty. +But he will most abound in the _metaphor_; which, by an aptness of +similitude, conveys and transports the mind from object to object, and +hurries it backwards and forwards through a pleasing variety of images;--a +motion which, in its own nature, (as being full of life and action) can +never fail to be highly delightful. As to the other ornaments of language +which regard words as they are connected with each other, an Oration will +derive much of its lustre from these. They are like the decorations in the +Theatre, or the Forum, which not only embellish, but surprize. [Footnote: +In the following Abstract of the Figures of _Language_ and _Sentiment_, I +have often paraphrased upon my author, to make him intelligible to the +English reader;--a liberty which I have likewise taken in several other +places, where I judged it necessary.] For such also is the effect of the +various _figures_ or decorations of language;--such as the doubling or +repetition of the same word;--the repeating it with a slight variation; +--the beginning or concluding several sentences in the same manner, or +both at once;--the making a word, which concludes a preceding sentence, to +begin the following;--the concluding a sentence with the same expression +which began it;--the repeating the same word with a different meaning; +--the using several corresponding words in the same case, or with the same +termination;--the contrasting opposite expressions;--the using words whose +meaning rises in gradation;--the leaving out the conjunctive particles to +shew our earnestness;--the passing by, or suddenly dropping a circumstance +we were going to mention, and assigning a reason for so doing; +--[Footnote: We have an instance of this, considered as a figure of +language, in the following line of Virgil; + Quos ego--, sed praestat motos componere fluctus. + Aeneid. I. + Whom I--, but let me still the raging waves. +This may likewise serve as an example of the figure which is next +mentioned.] the pretending to correct or reprove ourselves, that we may +seem to speak without artifice or partiality;--the breaking out into a +sudden exclamation, to express our wonder, our abhorrence, or our grief;-- +and the using the same noun in different cases. + +But the figures of _sentiment_ are more weighty and powerful; and there +are some who place the highest merit of _Demosthenes_ in the frequent use +he makes of them. For be his subject what it will, almost all his +sentences have a figurative air: and, indeed, a plentiful intermixture of +this sort of figures is the very life and soul of a popular Eloquence. But +as you are thoroughly acquainted with these, my Brutus, what occasion is +there to explain and exemplify them? The bare mention of them will be +sufficient.--Our Orator, then, will sometimes exhibit an idea in different +points of view, and when he has started a good argument, he will dwell +upon it with an honest exultation;--he will extenuate what is +unfavourable, and have frequent recourse to raillery;--he will sometimes +deviate from his plan, and seem to alter his first purpose:--he will +inform his audience beforehand, what are the principal points upon which +he intends to rest his cause;--he will collect and point out the force of +the arguments he has already discussed; he will check an ardent +expression, or boldly reiterate what he has said;--he will close a lively +paragraph with some weighty and convincing sentiment;--he will press upon +his adversary by repeated interrogations;--he will reason with himself, +and answer questions of his own proposing;--he will throw out expressions +which he designs to be otherwise understood than they seem to mean;--he +will pretend to doubt what is most proper to be said, and in what order;-- +he will divide an action, &c. into its several parts and circumstances, to +render it more striking;--he will pretend to pass over and relinquish a +circumstance which might have been urged to advantage;--he will secure +himself against the known prejudices of his audience;--he will turn the +very circumstance which is alledged against him to the prejudice of his +antagonist;--he will frequently appeal to his hearers, and sometimes to +his opponent;--he will represent the very language and manners of the +persons he is speaking of;--he will introduce irrational and even +inanimate beings, as addressing themselves to his audience;--he will (to +serve some necessary purpose) steal off their attention from the point in +debate;--he will frequently move them to mirth and laughter;--he will +answer every thing which he foresees will be objected;--he will compare +similar incidents,--refer to past examples,--and by way of amplification +assign their distinguishing qualities to opposite characters and +circumstances;--he will check an impertinent plea which may interrupt his +argument;--he will pretend not to mention what he might have urged to good +purpose;--he will caution his hearers against the various artifices and +subterfuges which may be employed to deceive them;--he will sometimes +appear to speak with an honest, but unguarded freedom;--he will avow his +resentment;--he will entreat;--he will earnestly supplicate;--he will +apologize;--he will seem for a moment to forget himself;--he will express +his hearty good wishes for the deserving, and vent his execrations against +notorious villainy;--and now and then he will descend imperceptibly to the +most tender and insinuating familiarities. There are likewise Other +beauties of composition which he will not fail to pursue;--such as brevity +where the subject requires it;--a lively and pathetic description of +important occurrences;--a passionate exaggeration of remarkable +circumstances;--an earnestness of expression which implies more than is +said;--a well-timed variety of humour;--and a happy imitation of different +characters and dispositions. Assisted and adorned by such figures as +these, which are very numerous, the force of Eloquence will appear in its +brightest lustre. But even these, unless they are properly formed and +regulated, by a skilful disposition of their constituent words, will never +attain the merit we require;--a subject which I shall be obliged to treat +of in the sequel, though I am restrained partly by the circumstances +already mentioned, but much more so by the following. For I am sensible +not only that there are some invidious people, to whom every improvement +appears vain and superfluous; but that even those, who are well-wishers to +my reputation, may think it beneath the dignity of a man whose public +services have been so honourably distinguished by the Senate, and the +whole body of the Roman people, to employ my pen so largely upon the art +of Speaking. [Footnote: The long apology which our author is now going to +make for bestowing his time in composing a treatise of Oratory, is in fact +a very artful as well as an elegant digression; to relieve the dryness and +intricacy of the abstract he has just given us of the figures of rhetoric, +and of the subsequent account of the rules of prosaic harmony. He has also +enlivened that account (which is a very long one) in the same manner, by +interspersing it, at convenient distances, with fine examples, agreeable +companions, and short historical digressions to elucidate the subject.] + +If, however, I was to return no other answer to the latter, but that I was +unwilling to deny any thing to the request of Brutus, the apology must be +unexceptionable; because I am only aiming at the satisfaction of an +intimate friend, and a worthy man, who desires nothing of me but what is +just and honourable. + +But was I even to profess (what I wish I was capable of) that I mean to +give the necessary precepts, and point out the road to Eloquence to those +who are desirous to qualify themselves for the Forum, what man of sense +could blame me for it? For who ever doubted that in the decision of +political matters, and in time of peace, Eloquence has always borne the +sway in the Roman state, while Jurisprudence has possessed only the second +post of honour? For whereas the former is a constant source of authority +and reputation, and enables us to defend ourselves and our friends in the +most effectual manner;--the other only furnishes us with formal rules for +indictments, pleas, protests, &c. in conducting which she is frequently +obliged to sue for the assistance of Eloquence;--but if the latter +condescends to oppose her, she is scarcely able to maintain her ground, +and defend her own territories. If therefore to teach the Civil Law has +always been reckoned a very honourable employment, and the houses of the +most eminent men of that profession, have been crowded with disciples; who +can be reasonably censured for exciting our youth to the study of +Eloquence, and furnishing them with all the assistance in his power? If it +is a fault to speak gracefully, let Eloquence be for ever banished from +the state. But if, on the contrary, it reflects an honour, not only upon +the man who possesses it, but upon the country which gave him birth, how +can it be a disgrace to _learn_, what it is so glorious to _know_? Or why +should it not be a credit to _teach_ what it is the highest honour to +have _learned_? + +But, in one case, they will tell me, the practice has been sanctified by +custom, and in the other it has not. This I grant: but We may easily +account for both. As to the gentlemen of the law, it was sufficient to +hear them, when they decided upon such cases as were laid before them in +the course of business;--so that when they taught, they did not set apart +any particular time for that purpose, but the same answers satisfied their +clients and their pupils. On the other hand, as our Speakers of eminence +spent their time, while at home, in examining and digesting their causes, +and while in the Forum in pleading them, and the remainder of it in a +seasonable relaxation, what opportunity had they for teaching and +instructing others? I might venture to add that most of our Orators have +been more distinguishied by their _genius_, than by their _learning_; and +for that reason were much better qualified to be _Speakers_ than +_Teachers_; which it is possible may be the reverse of my case.--"True," +say they; "but teaching is an employment which is far from being +recommended by its dignity." And so indeed it is, if we teach like mere +pedagogues. But if we only direct, encourage, examine, and inform our +pupils; and sometimes accompany them in reading or hearing the +performances of the most eminent Speakers;--if by these means we are able +to contribute to their improvement, what should hinder us from +communicating a few instructions, as opportunity offers? Shall we deem it +an honourable employment, as indeed with us it is, to teach the form of a +legal process, or an excommunication from the rites and privileges of our +religion; and shall it not be equally honourable to teach the methods by +which those privileges may be defended and secured?--"Perhaps it may," +they will reply; "but even those who know scarcely any thing of the law +are ambitious to be thought masters of it; whereas those who are well +furnished with the powers of Eloquence pretend to be wholly unacquainted +with them; because they are sensible that useful knowledge is a valuable +recommendation, whereas an artful tongue is suspected by every one." But +is it possible, then, to exert the powers of Eloquence without discovering +them? Or is an Orator really thought to be no Orator, because he disclaims +the title? Or is it likely that, in a great and noble art, the world will +judge it a scandal to _teach_ what it is the greatest honour to _learn_? +Others, indeed, may have been more reserved; but, for my part, I have +always owned my profession. For how could I do otherwise, when, in my +youth, I left my native land, and crossed the sea, with no other view but +to improve myself in this kind of knowledge; and, when afterwards my house +was crowded with the ablest professors, and my very style betrayed some +traces of a liberal education? Nay, when my own writings were in every +body's hands, with what face could I pretend that I had not studied? Or +what excuse could I have for submitting my abilities to the judgment of +the public, if I had been apprehensive that they would think I had studied +to no purpose? [Footnote: This sentence in the original runs thus;--_Quid +erat cur probarem_ (i.e. scripta nostra), _nisi quod parum fortasse +profeceram_?--"Wherefore did I approve of them," (that is, of my writings, +so far as to make them public) "but because I had," (in my own opinion) +"made a progress, though perhaps a small one, in useful literature?" This, +at least, is the only meaning I am able to affix to it; and I flatter +myself, that the translation I have given of it, will be found to +correspond with the general sense of my author.] But the points we have +already discussed are susceptible of greater dignity and elevation, than +those which remain to be considered. For we are next to treat of the +arrangement of our words; and, indeed, I might have said, of the art of +numbering and measuring our very syllables; which, though it may, in +reality, be a matter of as much consequence as I judge it to be, cannot +however be supposed to have such a striking appearance in precept as in +practice. This, indeed, might be said of every other branch of useful +knowledge; but it is more remarkably true with respect to this. For the +actual growth and improving height of all the sublimer arts, like that of +trees, affords a pleasing prospect; whereas the roots and stems are +scarcely beheld with indifference: and yet the former cannot subsist +without the latter. But whether I am restrained from dissembling the +pleasure I take in the subject, by the honest advice of the Poet, who +says, + + "Blush not to own the art you love to practise." + +or whether this treatise has been extorted from me by the importunity of +my friend, it was proper to obviate the censures to which it will probably +expose me. And yet, even supposing that I am mistaken in my sentiments, +who would shew himself so much of a savage, as to refuse me his indulgence +(now all my forensic employments and public business are at an end) for +not resigning myself to that stupid inactivity which is contrary to my +nature, or to that unavailing sorrow which I do my best to overcome, +rather than devote myself to my favourite studies? These first conducted +me into the Forum and the Senate-House, and they are now the chief +comforts of my retirement. I have, however, applied myself not only to +such speculations as form the subject of the present Essay, but to others +more sublime and interesting; and if I am able to discuss them in a proper +manner, my private studies will be no disparagement to my forensic +employments. + +But it is time to return to our subject.--Our words, then, should be so +disposed that every following one may be aptly connected with the +preceding, so as to make an agreeable sound;--or that the mere form and +_concinnity_ of our language may give our sentences their proper measure +and dimensions;--or, lastly, that our periods may have a numerous and +measured cadence. + +The first thing, then, to be attended to, is the _structure_ of our +language, or the agreeable connection of one word with another; which, +though it certainly requires care, ought not to be practised with a +laborious nicety. For this would be an endless and puerile attempt, and is +justly ridiculed by _Lucilius_, when he introduces _Scaevola_ thus +reflecting upon _Albucius_: + + "As in the checquer'd pavement ev'ry square + Is nicely fitted by the mason's care: + So all thy words are plac'd with curious art, + And ev'ry syllable performs its part." + +But though we are not to be minutely exact in the _structure_ of our +language, a moderate share of practice will habituate us to every thing of +this nature which is necessary. For as the eye in _reading_, so the mind +in _speaking_, will readily discern what ought to follow,--that, in +connecting our words, there may neither be a chasm, nor a disagreeable +harshness. The most lively and interesting sentiments, if they are harshly +expressed, will offend the ear, that delicate and fastidious judge of +rhetorical harmony. This circumstance, therefore, is so carefully attended +to in the Roman language, that there is scarcely a rustic among us who is +not averse to a collision of vowels,--a defect which, in the opinion of +some, was too scrupulously avoided by _Theopompus_, though his master +_Isocrates_ was equally cautious. But _Thucydides_ was not so exact; nor +was Plato, (though a much better writer)--not only in his _Dialogues_, in +which it was necessary to maintain an easy negligence, to resemble the +style of conversation, but in the famous _Panegyric_, in which (according +to the custom of the Athenians) he celebrated the praises of those who +fell in battle, and which was so greatly esteemed, that it is publicly +repeated every year. In that Oration a collision of vowels occurs very +frequently; though _Demosthenes_ generally avoids it as a fault. + +But let the Greeks determine for themselves: we Romans are not allowed to +interrupt the connection of our words. Even the rude and unpolished +Orations of _Cato_ are a proof of this; as are likewise all our poets, +except in particular instances, in which they were obliged to admit a few +breaks, to preserve their metre. Thus we find in _Naevius_, + + "_Vos_ QUI ACCOLITIS _histrum_ FLUVIUM ATQUE ALGIDUM." + +And in another place, + + "_Quam nunquam vobis_ GRAII ATQUE _Barbari_." + +But _Ennius_ admits it only once, when he says, + + "_Scipio invicte_;" + +and likewise I myself in + + "_Hoc motu radiantis_ ETESIAE IN _Vada Ponti_." + +This, however, would seldom be suffered among us, though the Greeks often +commend it as a beauty. + +But why do I speak of a collision of vowels? for, omitting this, we have +frequently _contracted_ our words for the sake of brevity; as in _multi' +modis, vas' argenteis, palm' et crinibus, tecti' fractis_, &c. We have +sometimes also contracted our proper _names_, to give them a smoother +sound: for as we have changed _Duellum_ into _Bellum_, and _duis_ into +_bis_, so _Duellius_, who defeated the Carthagenians at sea, was called +_Bellius_, though all his ancestors were named _Duellii_. We likewise +abbreviate our words, not only for convenience, but to please and gratify +the ear. For how otherwise came _axilla_ to be changed into _ala_, but by +the omission of an unweildy consonant, which the elegant pronunciation of +our language has likewise banished from the words _maxillae, taxillae, +vexillum_, and _paxillum_? + +Upon the same principle, two or more words have been contracted into one, +as _sodes_ for _si audes_, _sis_ for _si vis_, _capsis_ for _cape si vis_, +_ain'_ for _aisne_, _nequire_ for _non quire_, _malle_ for _magis velle_, +and _nolle_ for _non velle_; and we often say _dein'_ and _exin'_ for +_deinde_ and _exinde_. It is equally evident why we never say _cum nobis_, +but _nobiscum_; though we do not scruple to say _cum illis_;--_viz._ +because, in the former case, the union of the consonants _m_ and _n_ would +produce a jarring sound: and we also say _mecum_ and _tecum_, and not _cum +me_ and _cum te_, to correspond with _nobiscum_ and _vobiscum_. But some, +who would correct antiquity rather too late, object to these contractions: +for, instead of _prob_ DEUM _atque hominum fidem_, they say _Deorum_. They +are not aware, I suppose, that custom has sanctified the licence. The same +Poet, therefore, who, almost without a precedent, has said _patris mei +MEUM FACTUM pudet_, instead of _meorum factorum_,--and _textitur exitium +examen rapit_ for _exitiorum_, does not choose to say _liberum_, as we +generally do in the expressions _cupidos liberum_, and _in liberum loco_, +but, as the literary virtuosos above-mentioned would have it, + + _neque tuum unquam in gremium extollas_ + LIBERORUM _ex te genus_, + +and, + + _namque Aesculapi_ LIBERORUM. + +But the author before quoted says in his Chryses, not only + + _Cives, antiqui amici majorum_ MEUM, + +which was common enough--, but more harshly still, + + CONSILIUM, AUGURIUM, _atque_ EXTUM _interpretes_; + +and in another place, + + _Postquam_ PRODIGIUM HORRIFERUM PORTENTUM _pavos_. + +a licence which is not customary in all neuters indifferently: for I +should not be so willing to say armum _judicium_, as _armorum_; though in +the same writer we meet with _nihilne ad te de judicio_ armum _accidit_? +And yet (as we find it in the public registers) I would venture to say +_fabrum_, and _procum_, and not _fabrorum_ and _procorum_. But I would +never say duorum virorum _judicium_, or _trium_ virorum _capitalium_, or +_decem_ virorum _litibus judicandis_. In Accius, however, we meet with + + _Video sepulchra duo_ duorum _corporum_; + +though in another place he says, + + _Mulier una_ duum virum. + +I know, indeed, which is most conformable to the rules of grammar: but yet +I sometimes express myself as the freedom of our language allows me, as +when I say at pleasure, either _prob deum_, or _prob deorum_;--and, at +other times, as I am obliged by custom, as when I say _trium_ virum for +_virorum_, or sestertium nummum for _nummorum_: because in the latter case +the mode of expression is invariable. + +But what shall we say when these humourists forbid us to say _nosse_ and +_judicasse_ for _novisse_ and _judicavisse_; as if we did not know, as +well as themselves, that, in these instances, the verb at full length is +most agreeable to the laws of grammar, though custom has given the +preference to the contracted verb? Terence, therefore, has made use of +both, as when he says, _eho tu cognatum tuum non noras_? and afterwards, + + _Stilphonem, inquam, noveras_? + +Thus also, _fiet_ is a perfect verb, and _fit_ a contracted one; and +accordingly we find in the same Comedian, + + _Quam cara_ SINTQUE _post carendo intelligunt_, + +and + + _Quamque attinendi magni dominatus_ SIENT. + +In the same manner I have no objection to _scripsere alii rem_, though I +am sensible that _scripserunt_ is more grammatical; because I submit with +pleasure to the indulgent laws of custom which delights to gratify the +ear. _Idem campus habet_, says Ennius; and in another place, _in templis +isdem_; _eisdem_, indeed, would have been more grammatical, but not +sufficiently harmonious; and _iisdem_ would have sounded still worse. + +But we are allowed by custom even to dispense with the rules of etymology +to improve the sweetness of our language; and I would therefore rather +say, _pomeridianas Quadrigas_, than _postmeridianas_; and _mehercule_, +than _mehercules_. For the same reason _non scire_ would now be deemed a +barbarism, becaule _nescire_ has a smoother sound; and we have likewise +substituted _meridiem_ for _medidiem_, because the latter was offensive to +the ear. Even the preposition _ab_, which so frequently occurs in our +compound verbs is preserved entire only in the formality of a Journal, +and, indeed, not always there: in every other sort of language it is +frequently altered. Thus we say _amovit_, _abegit_, and _abstulit_; so +that you can scarcely determine whether the primitive preposition should +be _ab_ or _abs_. We have likewise rejected even _abfugit_, and _abfer_, +and introduced _aufugit_ and _aufer_ in their stead;--thus forming a new +preposition, which is to be found in no other verb but these. _Noti_, +_navi_, and _nari_, have all been words in common use: but when they were +afterwards to be compounded with the preposition _in_, it was thought more +harmonious to say _ignoti_, _ignavi_, and _ignari_, than to adhere +strictly to the rules of etymology. We likewise say _ex usu_, and _e +Republica_; because, in the former case, the preposition is followed by a +vowel, and, in the latter, it would have sounded harshly without omitting +the consonant; as may also be observed in _exegit, edixit, refecit, +retulit_, and _reddidit_. + +Sometimes the preposition alters or otherwise affects the first letter of +the verb with which it happens to be compounded; as in _subegit, +summutavit_, and _sustutit_. At other times it changes one of the +subsequent letters; as when we say _insipientem_ for _insapientem_, +_iniquum_ for inaequum_, _tricipitem_ for _tricapitem_, and _concisum_ for +_concaesum_: and from hence some have ventured to say _pertisum_ for +_pertaesum_, which custom has never warranted. + +But what can be more delicate than our changing even the natural quantity +of our syllables to humour the ear? Thus in the adjectives _inclytus_, and +_inhumanus_, the first syllable after the preposition is short, whereas +_insanus_ and _infelix_ have it long; and, in general, those words whose +first letters are the same as in _sapiens_ and _felix_, have their first +syllable long in composition, but all others have the same syllable short, +as _composuit, consuevit, concrepuit, confecit_. Examine these liberties +by the strict rules of etymology, and they must certainly be condemned; +but refer them to the decision of the ear, and they will be instantly +approved.--What is the reason? Your ear will inform you they have an +easier sound; and every language must submit to gratify the ear. I myself, +because our ancestors never admitted the aspirate, unless where a syllable +began with a vowel, used to say _pulcros, Cetegos, triumpos_, and +_Cartaginem_: but some time afterwards, though not very soon, when this +grammatical accuracy was wrested from me by the censure of the ear, I +resigned the mode of language to the vulgar, and reserved the theory to +myself. But we still say, without any hesitation, _Orcivios, Matones, +Otones, coepiones, sepulcra, coronas_, and _lacrymas_, because the ear +allows it. _Ennius_ always uses _Burrum_, and never _Pyrrhum_; and the +ancient copies of the same author have + + _Vi patefecerunt BRUGES_, + +not _Phryges_; because the Greek vowel had not then been adopted, though +we now admit both that and the aspirate:--and, in fact, when we had +afterwards occasion to say _Phrygum_ and _Phrygibus_, it was rather absurd +to adopt the Greek letter without adopting their cases, [Footnote: This +passage, as it stands in the original, appears to me unintelligible: I +have therefore taken the liberty to give it a slight alteration.] or at +least not to confine it to the nominative; and yet (in the accusative) we +say _Phryges_, and _Pyrrhum_, to please the ear. Formerly it was esteemed +an elegancy, though it would now be considered as a rusticism, to omit the +_s_ in all words which terminate in _us_, except when they were followed +by a vowel; and the same elision which is so carefully avoided by the +modern Poets, was very far from being reckoned a fault among the ancient: +for they made no scruple to say, + + _Qui est OMNIBU' princeps_, + +not, as we do, OMNIBUS princeps; and, + + _Vita illa DIGNU' locoque_, + +not _dignus_. + +But if untaught custom has been so ingenious in the formation of agreeable +sounds, what may we not expect from the improvements of art and erudition? +I have, however, been much shorter upon this subject, than I should have +been if I had written upon it professedly: for a comparison of the natural +and customary laws of language would have opened a wide field for +speculation: but I have already enlarged upon it sufficiently, and more, +perhaps, than the nature of my design required. + +To proceed then;--as the choice of proper matter, and of suitable words to +express it, depends upon the judgment of the Speaker, but that of +agreeable sounds, and harmonious numbers, upon the decision of the ear; +and because the former is intended for information, and the latter for +pleasure; it is evident that reason must determine the rules of art in one +case, and mere sensation in the other. For we must either neglect the +gratification of those by whom we wish to be approved, or apply ourselves +to invent the most likely methods to promote it. + +There are two things which contribute to gratify the ear,--agreeable +_sounds_, and harmonious _numbers_. We shall treat of numbers in the +sequel, and at present confine ourselves to _sound_.--Those words, then, +as we have already observed, are to have the preference which sound +agreeably;--not such as are exquisitely melodious, like those of the +Poets, but such as can be found to our purpose in common language.--_Qua +Pontus Helles_ is rather beyond the mark:--but in + + _Auratos aries Colchorum_, + +the verse glitters with a moderate harmony of expression; whereas the +next, as ending with a letter which is remarkably flat, is unmusical, + + _Frugifera et ferta arva Alfiae tenet_, + +Let us, therefore, rather content ourselves with the agreeable mediocrity +of our own language, than emulate the splendor of the Greeks; unless we +are so bigotted to the latter as to hesitate to say with the poet, + + _Qua tempestate Paris Helenam, &c_. + +we might even imitate what follows, and avoid, as far as possible, the +smallest asperity of sound, + + _habeo istam ego PERTERRICREPAM_; + +or say, with the same author, in another passage, + + _versutiloquas MALITIAS_. + +But our words must have a proper _compass_, as well as be connected +together in an agreeable manner; for this, we have observed, is another +circumstance which falls under the notice of the ear. They are confined to +a proper compass, either by certain rules of composition, as by a kind of +natural pause, or by the use of particular forms of expression, which have +a peculiar _concinnity_ in their very texture; such as a succession of +several words which have the same termination, or the comparing similar, +and contrasting opposite circumstances, which will always terminate in a +measured cadence, though no immediate pains should be taken for that +purpose. Gorgias, it is said, was the first Orator who practised this +species of _concinnity_. The following passage in my Defence of _Milo_ is +an example. + +"Est enim, Judices, haec non _scripta_, fed _nata_ Lex; quam non +_didicimus, accepimus, legimus_, verum ex Natura ipsa _arripuimus, +hausimus, expressimus_; ad quam non _docti_, sed _facti_; non +_instituti_, sed _imbuti_ simus." + +"For this, my Lords, is a law not written upon tables, but impressed upon +our hearts;--a law which we have not learned, or heard, or read, but +eagerly caught and imbibed from the hand of Nature;--a law to which we +have not been train'd, but originally form'd; and with the principles of +which we have not been furnished by education, but tinctured and +impregnated from the moment of our birth." + +In these forms of expression every circumstance is so aptly referred to +some other circumstance, that the regular turn of them does not appear to +have been studied, but to result entirely from the sense. The same effect +is produced by contrasting opposite circumstances; as in the following +lines, where it not only forms a measured sentence, but a verse: + + _Eam, quam nihil accusas, damnas,_ + +Her, whom you ne'er accus'd, you now condemn; + +(in prose we should say _condemnas_) and again, + + _Bene quam meritam esse autumas, dicis male mereri_, + +Her merit, once confess'd, you now deny; and, + + _Id quod scis, prodest nihil; id quod nescis, obest_, + +From what you've learnt no real good accrues, +But ev'ry ill your ignorance pursues. + +Here you see the mere opposition of the terms produces a verse; but in +prosaic composition, the proper form of the last line would be, _quod scis +nihil prodest; quod nescis multum obest_. This contrasting of opposite +circumstances, which the Greeks call an Antithesis, will necessarily +produce what is styled _rhetorical metre_, even without our intending it. +The ancient Orators, a considerable time before it was practised and +recommended by _Isocrates_, were fond of using it; and particularly +_Gorgias_, whose measured cadences are generally owing to the mere +_concinnity_ of his language. I have frequently practised it myself; as, +for instance, in the following passage of my fourth Invective against +_Verres_: + +"Conferte _hanc Pacem_ cum _illo Bello_;--_hujus_ Praetoris _Adventum_, +cum _illius_ Imperatoris _Victoria_;--hujas _Cohortem impuram_, cum illius +_Exercitu invicto_;--hujus _Libidines_, cum illius _Continentia_;--ab illo +qui cepit _conditas_; ab hoc, qui constitutas accepit, _captas_ dicetis +Syracusas." + +"Compare this detestable _peace_ with that glorious _war_,--the _arrival_ +of this governor with the _victory_ of that commander,--his _ruffian +guards_, with the _invincible forces_ of the other;--the brutal luxury of +the former, with the modest temperance of the latter;--and you will say, +that Syracuse was really _founded_ by him who _stormed_ it, and _stormed_ +by him who received it already _founded_ to his hands."--So much, then, +for that kind of measure which results from particular forms of +expression, and which ought to be known by every Orator. + +We must now proceed to the third thing proposed,--that _numerous_ and +well-adjusted style; of the beauty of which, if any are so insensible as +not to feel it, I cannot imagine what kind of ears they have, or what +resemblance of a human Being! For my part, my ears are always fond of a +complete and full-measured flow of words, and perceive in an instant what +is either defective or redundant. But wherefore do I say _mine_? I have +frequently seen a whole assembly burst into raptures of applause at a +happy period: for the ear naturally expects that our sentences should be +properly tuned and measured. This, however, is an accomplishment which is +not to be met with among the ancients. But to compensate the want of it, +they had almost every other perfection: for they had a happy choice of +words, and abounded in pithy and agreeable sentiments, though they had not +the art of harmonizing and completing their periods. This, say some, is +the very thing we admire. But what if they should take it into their heads +to prefer the ancient _peinture_, with all its poverty of colouring, to +the rich and finished style of the moderns? The former, I suppose, must be +again adopted, to compliment their delicacy, and the latter rejected. But +these pretended connoisseurs regard nothing but the mere _name_ of +antiquity. It must, indeed, be owned that antiquity has an equal claim to +authority in matters of imitation, as grey hairs in the precedence of age. +I myself have as great a veneration for it as any man: nor do I so much +upbraid antiquity with her defects, as admire the beauties she was +mistress of:--especially as I judge the latter to be of far greater +consequence than the former. For there is certainly more real merit in a +masterly choice of words and sentiments, in which the ancients are allowed +to excell, than in those measured periods with which they were totally +unacquainted. This species of composition was not known among the Romans +till lately: but the ancients, I believe, would readily have adopted it, +if it had then been discovered: and we accordingly find, that it is now +made use of by all Orators of reputation. "But when _number_, or (as the +Greeks call it) prosaic _metre_, is professedly introduced into judicial +and forensic discourses, the very name, say they, has a suspicious sound: +for people will conclude that there is too much artifice employed to sooth +and captivate their ears, when the Speaker is so over-exact as to attend +to the harmony of his periods." Relying upon the force of this objection, +these pretenders are perpetually grating our ears with their broken and +mutilated sentences; and censure those, without mercy, who have the +presumption to utter an agreeable and a well-turned period. If, indeed, it +was our design to spread a varnish over empty words and trifling +sentiments, the censure would be just: but when the matter is good, and +the words are proper and expressive, what reason can be assigned why we +should prefer a limping and imperfect period to one which terminates and +keeps pace with the sense? For this invidious and persecuted _metre_ aims +at nothing more than to adapt the compass of our words to that of our +thoughts; which is sometimes done even by the ancients,--though generally, +I believe, by mere accident, and often by the natural delicacy of the ear; +and the very passages which are now most admired in them, commonly derive +their merit from the agreeable and measured flow of the language. + +This is an art which was in common use among the Greek Orators, about four +hundred years ago, though it has been but lately introduced among the +Romans. Ennius, therefore, when he ridicules the inharmonious numbers of +his predecessors, might be allowed to say, + + "_Such verses as the rustic Bards and Satyrs sung_:" + +But I must not take the same liberty; especially as I cannot say with him, + + _Before this bold adventurer_, &c. + +(meaning himself:) nor, as he afterwards exults to the same purpose, + + _I first have dar'd t'unfold_, &c. + +for I have both read and heard several who were almost complete masters of +the numerous and measured style I am speaking of: But many, who are still +absolute strangers to it, are not content to be exempted from the ridicule +they deserve, but claim a right to our warmest applause. I must own, +indeed, that I admire the venerable patterns, of which those persons +pretend to be the faithful imitators, notwithstanding the defects I +observe in them: but I can by no means commend the folly of those who copy +nothing but their blemishes, and have no pretensions even to the most +distant resemblance in what is truly excellent. + +But if their own ears are so indelicate and devoid of taste, will they pay +no deference to the judgment of others, who are universally celebrated for +their learning? I will not mention _Isocrates_, and his two scholars, +_Ephorus_ and _Naucrates_; though they may claim the honour of giving the +richest precepts of composition, and were themselves very eminent Orators. +But who was possessed of a more ample fund of erudition?--who more subtle +and acute?--or who furnished with quicker powers of invention, and a +greater strength of understanding, than _Aristotle_? I may add, who made a +warmer opposition to the rising fame of _Isocrates_? And yet _he_, though +he forbids us to versify in prose, recommends the use of _numbers_. His +hearer _Theodectes_ (whom he often mentions as a polished writer, and an +excellent artist) both approves and advises the same thing: and +_Theophrastus_ is still more copious and explicit. Who, then, can have +patience with those dull and conceited humourists, who dare to oppose +themselves to such venerable names as these? The only excuse that can be +made for them is, that they have never perused their writings, and are +therefore ignorant that they actually recommend the prosaic _metre_ we are +speaking of. If this is the case with them (and I cannot think otherwise) +will they reject the evidence of their own sensations? Is there nothing +which their ears will inform them is defective?--nothing which is harsh +and unpolished?--nothing imperfect?--nothing lame and mutilated?--nothing +redundant? In dramatic performances, a whole theatre will exclaim against +a verse which has only a syllable either too short or too long: and yet +the bulk of an audience are unacquainted with _feet_ and _numbers_, and +are totally ignorant what the fault is, and where it lies: but Nature +herself has taught the ear to measure the quantity of sound, and determine +the propriety of its various accents, whether grave, or acute. + +Do you desire, then, my Brutus, that we should discuss the subject more +fully than those writers who have already elucidated this, and the other +parts of rhetoric? Or shall we content ourselves with the instructions +which _they_ have provided for us? But wherefore do I offer such a +question, when your elegant letters have informed me, that this is the +chief object of your request? We shall proceed, therefore, to give an +account of the commencement, the origin, and the nature and use of +_prosaic numbers_. + +The admirers of Isocrates place the first invention of numbers among those +other improvements which do honour to his memory. For observing, say they, +that the Orators were heard with a kind of sullen attention, while the +Poets were listened to with pleasure, he applied himself to introduce a +species of metre into prose, which might have a pleasing effect upon the +ear, and prevent that satiety which will always arise from a continued +uniformity of sound. This, however, is partly true, and partly otherwise; +for though it must be owned that no person was better skilled in the +subject than _Isocrates_; yet the first honour of the invention belongs to +_Thrasymachus_, whose style (in all his writings which are extant) is +_numerous_ even to a fault. But _Gorgias_, as I have already remarked, was +the original inventor of those measured forms of expression which have a +kind of spontaneous harmony,--such as a regular succession of words with +the same termination, and the comparing similar, or contracting opposite +circumstances: though it is also notoriously true that he used them to +excess. This, however, is one of the three branches of composition above- +mentioned. But each of these authors was prior to _Isocrates_: so that the +preference can be due to _him_ only for his _moderate use_, and not for +the _invention_ of the art: for as he is certainly much easier in the turn +of his metaphors, and the choice of his words, so his numbers are more +composed and sedate. But _Gorgias_, he observed, was too eager, and +indulged himself in this measured play of words to a ridiculous excess. +He, therefore, endeavoured to moderate and correct it; but not till he had +first studied in his youth under the same _Gorgias_, who was then in +Thessaly, and in the last decline of life. Nay, as he advanced in years +(for he lived almost a hundred) he corrected _himself_, and gradually +relaxed the over-strict regularity of his numbers; as he particularly +informs us in the treatise which he dedicated to Philip of Macedon, in the +latter part of his life; for he there says, that he had thrown off that +servile attention to his numbers, to which he was before accustomed:--so +that he discovered and corrected his _own_ faults, as well as those of his +predecessors. + +Having thus specified the several authors and inventors, and the first +commencement of prosaic harmony, we must next enquire what was the natural +source and origin of it. But this lies so open to observation, that I am +astonished the ancients did not notice it: especially as they often, by +mere accident, threw out harmonious and measured sentences, which, when +they had struck the ears and the passions with so much force, as to make +it obvious that there was something particularly agreeable in what chance +alone had uttered, one would imagine that such a singular species of +ornament would have been immediately attended to, and that they would have +taken the pains to imitate what they found so pleasing in themselves. For +the ear, or at least the mind by the intervention of the ear, has a +natural capacity to measure the harmony of language: and we accordingly +feel that it instantly determines what is either too short or too long, +and always expects to be gratified with that which is complete and well- +proportioned. Some expressions it perceives to be imperfect, and +mutilated; and at these it is immediately offended, as if it was defrauded +of it's natural due. In others it discovers an immoderate length, and a +tedious superfluity of words; and with these it is still more disgusted +than with the former; for in this, as in most other cases, an excess is +always more offensive than a proportional defect. As versification, +therefore, and poetic competition was invented by the regulation of the +ear, and the successive observations of men of taste and judgment; so in +prose (though indeed long afterwards, but still, however, by the guidance +of nature) it was discovered that the career and compass of our language +should be adjusted and circumscribed within proper limits. + +So much for the source, or natural origin of prosaic harmony. We must next +proceed (for that was the third thing proposed) to enquire into the nature +of it, and determine it's essential principles;--a subject which exceeds +the limits of the present essay, and would be more properly discussed in a +professed and accurate system of the art. For we might here inquire what +is meant by prosaic _number_, wherein it consists, and from whence it +arises; as likewise whether it is simple and uniform, or admits of any +variety, and in what manner it is formed, for what purpose, and when and +where it should be employed, and how it contributes to gratify the ear. +But as in other subjects, so in this, there are two methods of +disquisition;--the one more copious and diffusive, and the other more +concise, and, I might also add, more easy and comprehensible. In the +former, the first question which would occur is, whether there is any such +thing as _prosaic number_: some are of opinion there is not; because no +fixed and certain rules have been yet assigned for it, as there long have +been for poetic numbers; and because the very persons, who contend for +it's existence, have hitherto been unable to determine it. Granting, +however, that prose is susceptible of numbers, it will next be enquired of +what kind they are;--whether they are to be selected from those of the +poets, or from a different species;--and, if from the former, which of +them may claim the preference; for some authors admit only one or two, and +some more, while others object to none. We might then proceed to enquire +(be the number of them to be admitted, more or less) whether they are +equally common to every kind of style; for the narrative, the persuasive, +and the didactic have each a manner peculiar to itself; or whether the +different species of Oratory should be accommodated with their different +numbers. If the same numbers are equally common to all subjects, we must +next enquire what those numbers are; and if they are to be differently +applied, we must examine wherein they differ, and for what reason they are +not to be used so openly in prose as in verse. It might likewise be a +matter of enquiry, whether a _numerous_ style is formed entirely by the +use of numbers, or not also in some measure by the harmonious juncture of +our words, and the application of certain figurative forms of expression; +--and, in the next place, whether each of these has not its peculiar +province, so that number may regard the time or _quantity_, composition +the _sound_, and figurative expression the _form_ and _polish_ of our +language,--and yet, in fact, composition be the source and fountain of all +the rest, and give rise both to the varieties of _number_, and to those +figurative and luminous dashes of expression, which by the Greeks, as I +have before observed, are called ([Greek: _schaemaia_],) _attitudes_ or +_figures_. But to me there appears to be a real distinction between what +is agreeable in _sound_, exact in _measure_, and ornamental in the mode of +_expression_; though the latter, it must be owned, is very closely +connected with _number_, as being for the most part sufficiently numerous +without any labour to make it so: but composition is apparently different +from both, as attending entirely either to the _majestic_ or _agreeable_ +sound of our words. Such then are the enquiries which relate to the +_nature_ of prosaic harmony. + +From what has been said it is easy to infer that prose is susceptible of +_number_. Our sensations tell us so: and it would be excessively unfair to +reject their evidence, because we cannot account for the fact. Even poetic +metre was not discovered by any effort of reason, but by mere natural +taste and sensation, which reason afterwards correcting, improved and +methodized what had been noticed by accident; and thus an attention to +nature, and an accurate observation of her various feelings and sensations +gave birth to art. But in verse the use of _number_ is more obvious; +though some particular species of it, without the assistance of music, +have the air of harmonious prose, and especially the lyric poetry, and +that even the best of the kind, which, if divested of the aid of music, +would be almost as plain and naked as common language. We have several +specimens of this nature in our own poets [Footnote: It must here be +remarked, that the Romans had no lyric poet before _Horace_, who did not +flourish till after the times of _Cicero_.]; such as the following line in +the tragedy of _Thyestes_, + + "_Quemnam te esse dicam? qui in tarda senectute_; + +"Whom shall I call thee? who in tardy age," &c.; + +which, unless when accompanied by the lyre, might easily be mistaken for +prose. But the iambic verses of the comic poets, to maintain a resemblance +to the style of conversation, are often so low and simple that you can +scarcely discover in them either number or metre; from whence it is +evident that it is more difficult to adapt numbers to prose than to verse. + +There are two things, however, which give a relish to our language,--well- +chosen words, and harmonious _numbers_. Words may be considered as the +_materials_ of language, and it is the business of _number_ to smooth and +polish them. But as in other cases, what was invented to serve our +necessities was always prior to that which was invented for pleasure; so, +in the present, a rude and simple style which was merely adapted to +express our thoughts, was discovered many centuries before the invention +of _numbers_, which are designed to please the ear. Accordingly +_Herodotus_, and both his and the preceding age had not the least idea of +prosaic _number_, nor produced any thing of the kind, unless at random, +and by mere accident:--and even the ancient masters of rhetoric (I mean +those of the earliest date) have not so much as mentioned it, though they +have left us a multitude of precepts upon the conduct and management of +our style. For what is easiest, and most necessary to be known, is, for +that reason, always first discovered. Metaphors, therefore, and new-made +and compounded words, were easily invented, because they were borrowed +from custom and conversation: but _number_ was not selected from our +domestic treasures, nor had the least intimacy or connection with common +language; and, of consequence, not being noticed and understood till every +other improvement had been made, it gave the finishing grace, and the last +touches to the style of Eloquence. + +As it may be remarked that one sort of language is interrupted by frequent +breaks and intermissions, while another is flowing and diffusive; it is +evident that the difference cannot result from the natural sounds of +different letters, but from the various combinations of long and short +syllables, with which our language, being differently blended and +intermingled, will be either dull and motionless, or lively and fluent; so +that every circumstance of this nature must be regulated by _number_. For +by the assistance of _numbers_, the _period_, which I have so often +mentioned before, pursues it's course with greater strength and freedom +till it comes to a natural pause. It is therefore plain that the style of +an Orator should be measured and harmonized by _numbers_, though entirely +free from verse; but whether these numbers should be the same as those of +the poets, or of a different species, is the next thing to be considered. +In my opinion there can be no sort of numbers but those of the poets; +because they have already specified all their different kinds with the +utmost precision; for every number may be comprized in the three following +varieties:--_viz_. a _foot_ (which is the measure we apply to numbers) +must be so divided, that one part of it will be either equal to the other, +or twice as long, or equal to three halves of it. Thus, in a _dactyl_ +(breve-macron-macron) (long-short-short) the first syllable, which is the +former part of the foot, is equal to the two others, in the _iambic_ +(macron-breve)(short-long) the last is double the first, and in the +_paeon_ (macron-macron-macron-breve, or breve-macron-macron-macron)(short- +short-short-long, or long-short-short-short) one of its parts, which is +the long syllable, is equal to two-thirds of the other. These are feet +which are unavoidably incident to language; and a proper arrangement of +them will produce a _numerous_ style. + +But it will here be enquired, What numbers should have the preference? To +which I answer, They must all occur promiscuously; as is evident from our +sometimes speaking verse without knowing it, which in prose is reckoned a +capital fault; but in the hurry of discourse we cannot always watch and +criticise ourselves. As to _senarian_ and _hipponactic_ [Footnote: Verses +chiefly composed of iambics] verses, it is scarcely possible to avoid +them; for a considerable part, even of our common language, is composed of +_iambics_. To these, however, the hearer is easily reconciled; because +custom has made them familiar to his ear. But through inattention we are +often betrayed into verses which are not so familiar;--a fault which may +easily be avoided by a course of habitual circumspection. _Hieronymus_, an +eminent Peripatetic, has collected out of the numerous writings of +Isocrates about thirty verses, most of them senarian, and some of them +anapest, which in prose have a more disagreeable effect than any others. +But he quotes them with a malicious partiality: for he cuts off the first +syllable of the first word in a sentence, and annexes to the last word the +first syllable of the following sentence; and thus he forms what is called +an _Aristophanean_ anapest, which it is neither possible nor necessary to +avoid entirely. But, this redoubtable critic, as I discovered upon a +closer inspection, has himself been betrayed into a senarian or iambic +verse in the very paragraph in which he censures the composition of +_Isocrates_. + +Upon the whole, it is sufficiently plain that prose is susceptible of +_numbers_, and that the numbers of an Orator must be the same as those of +a Poet. The next thing to be considered is, what are the numbers which are +most suitable to his character, and, for that reason, should occur more +frequently than the rest? Some prefer the _Iambic_ (macron-breve)(short- +long) as approaching the nearest to common language; for which reason, +they say, it is generally made use of in fables and comedies, on account +of it's resemblance to conversation; and because the dactyl, which is the +favourite number of hexameters, is more adapted to a pompous style. +_Ephorus_, on the other hand, declares for the paeon and the dactyl; and +rejects the spondee and the trochee (long short). For as the paeon +has three short syllables, and the dactyl two, he thinks their shortness +and celerity give a brisk and lively flow to our language; and that a +different effect would be produced by the trochee and the spondee, the one +consisting of short syllables, and the other of long ones;--so that by +using the former, the current of our words would become too rapid, and too +heavy by employing the latter, losing, in either case, that easy +moderation which best satisfies the ear. But both parties seem to be +equally mistaken: for those who exclude the paeon, are not aware that they +reject the sweetest and fullest number we have. Aristotle was far from +thinking as they do: he was of opinion that heroic numbers are too +sonorous for prose; and that, on the other hand, the iambic has too much +the resemblance of vulgar talk:--and, accordingly, he recommends the style +which is neither too low and common, nor too lofty and extravagant, but +retains such a just proportion of dignity, as to win the attention, and +excite the admiration of the hearer. He, therefore, calls the _trochee_ +(which has precisely the same quantity as the _choree_) _the rhetorical +jigg_ [Footnote: _Cordacem appellat_. The _cordax_ was a lascivious dance +very full of agitation.]; because the shortness and rapidity of it's +syllables are incompatible with the majesty of Eloquence. For this reason +he recommends the _paeon_, and says that every person makes use of it, +even without being sensible when he does so. He likewise observes that it +is a proper medium between the different feet above-mentioned:--the +proportion between the long and short syllables, in every foot, being +either sesquiplicate, duple, or equal. + +The authors, therefore, whom I mentioned before attended merely to the +easy flow of our language, without any regard to it's dignity. For the +iambic and the dactyl are chiefly used in poetry; so that to avoid +versifying in prose, we must shun, as much as possible, a continued +repetition of either; because the language of prose is of a different +cast, and absolutely incompatible with verse. As the paeon, therefore, is +of all other feet the most improper for poetry, it may, for that reason be +more readily admitted into prose. But as to _Ephorus_, he did not reflect +that even the _spondee_, which he rejects, is equal in time to his +favourite dactyl; because he supposed that feet were to be measured not by +the quantity, but the number of their syllables;--a mistake of which he is +equally guilty when he excludes the _trochee_, which, in time and +quantity, is precisely equal to the iambic; though it is undoubtedly +faulty at the end of a period, which always terminates more agreeably in a +long syllable than a short one. As to what Aristotle has said of the +_paeon_, the same has likewise been said by _Theophrastus_ and +_Theodectes_. + +But, for my part, I am rather of opinion that our language should be +intermingled and diversified with all the varieties of number; for should +we confine ourselves to any particular feet, it would be impossible to +escape the censure of the hearer; because our style should neither be so +exactly measured as that of the poets, nor entirely destitute of number, +like that of the common people. The former, as being too regular and +uniform, betrays an appearance of art; and the other, which is as much too +loose and undetermined, has the air of ordinary talk; so that we receive +no pleasure from the one, and are absolutely disgusted with the other. Our +style, therefore, as I have just observed, should be so blended and +diversified with different numbers, as to be neither too vague and +unrestrained, nor too openly numerous, but abound most in the paeon (so +much recommended by the excellent author above-mentioned) though still in +conjunction with many other feet which he entirely omits. + +But we must now consider what number like so many dashes of purple, should +tincture and enrich the rest, and to what species of style they are each +of them best adapted. The iambic, then, should be the leading number in +those subjects which require a plain and simple style;--the paeon in such +as require more compass and elevation; and the dactyl is equally +applicable to both. So that in a discourse of any length and variety, it +will be occasionally necessary to blend and intermingle them all. By this +means, our endeavours to modulate our periods, and captivate the ear, will +be most effectually concealed; especially, if we maintain a suitable +dignity both of language and sentiment. For the hearer will naturally +attend to these (I mean our words and sentiments) and to them alone +attribute the pleasure he receives; so that while he listens to these with +admiration, the harmony of our numbers will escape his notice: though it +must indeed be acknowledged that the former would have their charms +without the assistance of the latter. But the flow of our numbers is not +to be so exact (I mean in prose, for in poetry the case is different) as +that nothing may exceed the bounds of regularity; for this would be to +compose a poem. On the contrary, if our language neither limps nor +fluctuates, but keeps an even and a steady pace, it is sufficiently +_numerous_; and it accordingly derives the title, not from its consisting +entirely of numbers, but from its near approach to a numerous form. This +is the reason why it is more difficult to make elegant prose, than to make +verses; because there are fixed and invariable rules for the latter; +whereas nothing is determined in the former, but that the current of our +language should be neither immoderate nor defective, nor loose and +unconfined. It cannot be supposed, therefore, to admit of regular beats +and divisions, like a piece of music; but it is only necessary that the +general compass and arrangement of our words should be properly restrained +and limited,--a circumstance which must be left entirely to the decision +of the ear. + +Another question which occurs before us, is--whether an attention to our +numbers should be extended to every part of a sentence, or only to the +beginning and the end. Most authors are of opinion that it is only +necessary that our periods should end well, and have a numerous cadence. +It is true, indeed, that this ought to be principally attended to, but not +solely: for the whole compass of our periods ought likewise to be +regulated, and not totally neglected. As the ear, therefore, always +directs it's view to the close of a sentence, and there fixes it's +attention, it is by no means proper that this should be destitute of +_number_: but it must also be observed that a period, from it's first +commencement, should run freely on, so as to correspond to the conclusion; +and the whole advance from the beginning with such an easy flow, as to +make a natural, and a kind of voluntary pause. To those who have been +we'll practised in the art, and who have both written much; and often +attempted to discourse _extempore_ with the same accuracy which they +observe in their writings, this will be far less difficult than is +imagined. For every sentence is previously formed and circumscribed in the +mind of the Speaker, and is then immediately attended by the proper words +to express it, which the same mental faculty (than which there is nothing +more lively and expeditious) instantly dismisses, and sends off each to +its proper post: but, in different sentences, their particular order and +arrangement will be differently terminated; though, in every sentence, the +words both in the beginning and the middle of it, should have a constant +reference to the end. Our language, for instance, must sometimes advance +with rapidity, and at other times it's pace must be moderate and easy; so +that it will be necessary at the very beginning of a sentence, to resolve +upon the manner in which you would have it terminate; but we must avoid +the least appearance of poetry, both in our numbers, and in the other +ornaments of language; though it is true, indeed, that the labours of the +Orator must be conducted on the same principles as those of the Poet. For +in each we have the same materials to work upon, and a similar art of +managing them; the materials being words, and the art of managing them +relating, in both cases, to the manner in which they ought to be disposed. +The words also in each may be divided into three classes,--the +__metaphorical_,--the new-coined,--and the antique;--for at present we +have no concern with words _proper_:--and three parts may also be +distinguished in the art of disposing them; which, I have already +observed, are _juncture_, _concinnity_, and _number_. The poets make use +both of one and the other more frequently, and with greater liberty than +we do; for they employ the _tropes_ not only much oftener, but more boldly +and openly; and they introduce _antique_ words with a higher taste, and +new ones with less reserve. The same may be said in their numbers, in the +use of which they are subjected to invariable rules, which they are +scarcely ever allowed to transgress. The two arts, therefore, are to be +considered neither as wholly distinct, nor perfectly conjoined. This is +the reason why our numbers are not to be so conspicuous in prose as in +verse; and that in prose, what is called a _numerous_ style, does not +always become so by the use of numbers, but sometimes either by the +concinnity of our language, or the smooth juncture of our words. + +To conclude this head; If it should be enquired, "What are the numbers to +be used in prose?" I answer, "_All_; though some are certainly better, and +more adapted to it's character than others."--If "_Where_ is their proper +seat?"--"In the different quantity of our syllables:"--If "From whence +their _origin_?"--"From the sole pleasure of the ear:"--If "What the +method of blending and intermingling them?"--"This shall be explained in +the sequel, because it properly relates to the manner of using them, which +was the fourth and last article in my division of the subject." If it be +farther enquired, "For what purpose they are employed?" I answer,--"To +gratify the ear:"--If "_When_?" I reply, "At all times:"--If "In what part +of a sentence?" "Through the whole length of it:"--and if "What is the +circumstance which gives them a pleasing effect?" "The same as in poetical +compositions, whose metre is regulated by art, though the ear alone, +without the assistance of art, can determine it's limits by the natural +powers of sensation." Enough, therefore, has been said concerning the +nature and properties of _number_. The next article to be considered is +the manner in which our numbers should be employed,--a circumstance which +requires to be accurately discussed. + +Here it is usual to enquire, whether it is necessary to attend to our +numbers through the whole compass of a period, [Footnote: Our author here +informs us, that what the Greeks called [Greek: periodos], a _period_, was +distinguished among the Romans by the words _ambitus, circuitus, +comprehensio, continuatio_, and _circumscriptio_. As I thought this remark +would appear much better in the form of a note, than in the body of the +work, I have introduced it accordingly.] or only at the beginning or end +of it, or equally in both. In the next place, as _exact number_ seems to +be one thing, and that which is merely _numerous_ another, it might be +enquired wherein lies the difference. We might likewise consider whether +the members of a sentence should all indifferently be of the same length, +whatever be the numbers they are composed of;--or whether, on this +account, they should not be sometimes longer, and sometimes shorter;--and +when, and for what reasons, they should be made so, and of what numbers +they should be composed;--whether of several sorts, or only of one; and +whether of equal or unequal numbers;--and upon what occasions either the +one or the other of these are to be used;-and what numbers accord best +together, and in what order; or whether, in this respect, there is no +difference between them;--and (which has still a more immediate reference +to our subject) by what means our style may be rendered _numerous_. It +will likewise be necessary to specify the rise and origin of a +_periodical_ form of language, and what degree of compass should be +allowed to it. After this, we may consider the members or divisions of a +period, and enquire of how many kinds, and of what different lengths they +are; and, if they vary in these respects, _where_ and _when_ each +particular sort is to be employed: and, in the last place, the _use_ and +application of the whole is to be fully explained;--a very extensive +subject, and which is capable of being accommodated not only to one, but +to many different occasions. But without adverting to particulars, we may +discuss the subject at large in such a manner as to furnish a satisfactory +answer in all subordinate cases. + +Omitting, therefore, every other species of composition, we shall attend +to that which is peculiar to forensic causes. For in those performances +which are of a different kind, such as history, panegyric, and all +discourses which are merely ornamental, every sentence should be +constructed after the exact manner of _Isocrates_ and _Theopompus_; and +with that regular compass, and measured flow of language, that our words +may constantly run within the limits prescribed by art, and pursue a +uniform course, till the period is completed. We may, therefore, observe +that after the invention of this, _periodical_ form, no writer of any +account has made a discourse which was intended as a mere display of +ornament, and not for the service of the Forum, without _squaring_ his +language, (if I may so express myself) and confining every sentence of it +to the strictest laws of _number_. For as, in this case, the hearer has no +motive to alarm his suspicions against the artifice of the speaker, he +will rather think himself obliged to him than otherwise, for the pains he +takes to amuse and gratify his ear. But, in forensic causes, this accurate +species of composition is neither to be wholly adopted, nor entirely +rejected. For if we pursue it too closely, it will create a satiety, and +our attention to it will be discovered by the most illiterate observer. We +may add, it will check the pathos and force of action, restrain the +sensibility of the Speaker, and destroy all appearance of truth and open +dealing. But as it will sometimes be necessary to adopt it, we must +consider _when_, and _how long_, this ought to be done, and how many ways +it may be changed and varied. + +A _numerous_ style, then, may be properly employed, either when any thing +is to be commended in a free and ornamental manner, (as in my second +Invective against _Verres_, where I spoke in praise of _Sicily_, and in my +Speech before the Senate, in which I vindicated the honour of my +consulship;)--or; in the next place, when a narrative is to be delivered +which requires more dignity than pathos, (as in my fourth Invective, where +I described the Ceres of the Ennensians, the Diana of the Segestani, and +the situation of Syracuse.) It is likewise often allowable to speak in a +numerous and flowing style, when a material circumstance is to be +amplified. If I myself have not succeeded in this so well as might be +wished, I have at least attempted it very frequently; and it is still +visible in many of my Perorations, that I have exerted all the talents I +was master of for that purpose. But this will always have most efficacy, +when the Speaker has previously possessed himself of the hearer's +attention, and got the better of his judgment. For then he is no longer +apprehensive of any artifice to mislead him; but hears every thing with a +favourable ear, wishes the Orator to proceed, and, admiring the force of +his Eloquence, has no inclination to censure it. + +But this measured and numerous flow of language is never to be continued +too long, I will not say in the peroration, (of which the hearer himself +will always be a capable judge) but in any other part of a discourse: for, +except in the cases above-mentioned, in which I have shewn it is +allowable, our style must be wholly confined to those clauses or divisions +which we erroneously call _incisa_ and _membra_; but the Greeks, with more +propriety, the _comma_ and _colon_ [Footnote: The ancients apply these +terms to the sense, and not to any points of distinction. A very short +member, whether simple or compound, with them is a _comma_; and a longer, +a _colon_; for they have no such term as a _semicolon_. Besides, they call +a very short sentence, whether simple or compound, a _comma_; and one of +somewhat a greater length, a _colon_. And therefore, if a person expressed +himself either of these ways, in any considerable number of sentences +together, he was said to speak by _commas_, or _colons_. But a sentence +containing more words than will consist with either of these terms, they +call a simple _period_; the least compound period with them requiring the +length of two colons. + +Ward's Rhetoric, volume 1st, page 344.]. For it is impossible that the +names of things should be rightly applied, when the things themselves are +not sufficiently understood: and as we often make use of metaphorical +terms, either for the sake of ornament, or to supply the place of proper +ones, so in other arts, when we have occasion to mention any thing which +(through our unacquaintance with it) has not yet received a name, we are +obliged either to invent a new one, or to borrow it from something +similar. We shall soon consider what it is to speak in _commas_ and +_colons_, and the proper method of doing it: but we must first attend to +the various numbers by which the cadence of our periods should be +diversified. + +Our numbers will advance more rapidly by the use of short feet, and more +coolly and sedately by the use of long ones. The former are best adapted +to a warm and spirited style, and the latter to sober narratives and +explanations. But there are several numbers for concluding a period, one +of which (called the _dichoree_, or double _choree_, and consisting of a +long and a short syllable repeated alternately) is much in vogue with the +Asiatics; though among different people the same feet are distinguished by +different names. The _dichoree_, indeed, is not essentially bad for the +close of a sentence: but in prosaic numbers nothing can be more faulty +than a continued or frequent repetition of the same cadence: as the +_dichoree_, therefore, is a very sonorous number, we should be the more +sparing in the use of it, to prevent a satiety. _C. Carbo_, the son of +_Caius_, and a Tribune of the people, once said in a public trial in which +I was personally engaged,--"_O Marce Druse, Patrem appello_;" where you +may observe two _commas_, each consisting of two feet. He then made use of +the two following _colons_, each consisting of three feet,--"_Tu dicere +solebas, sacram esse Rempublicam:"--and afterwards of the period,-- +"_Quicunque eam violavissent, ab omnibus esse ei poenas persolutas_" which +ends with a _dichoree_; for it is immaterial whether the last syllable is +long or short. He added, "_Patris dictum sapiens, temeritas filii +comprobavit_" concluding here also with a _dichoree_; which was received +with such a general burst of applause, as perfectly astonished me. But was +not this the effect of _number_?--Only change the order of the words, and +say,--"_Comprobavit filii temeritas_" and the spirit of them will be lost, +though the word _temeritas_ consists of three short syllables and a long +one, which is the favourite number of Aristotle, from whom, however, I +here beg leave to dissent. The words and sentiments are indeed the fame in +both cases; and yet, in the latter, though the understanding is satisfied, +the ear is not. But these harmonious cadences are not to be repeated too +often: for, in the first place, our _numbers_ will be soon discovered,--in +the next, they will excite the hearer's disgust,--and, at last, be +heartily despised on account of the apparent facility with which they are +formed. + +But there are several other cadences which will have a numerous and +pleasing effect: for even the _cretic_, which consists of a long, a short, +and a long syllable, and it's companion the _paeon_, which is equal to it +in quantity, though it exceeds it in the number of syllables, is reckoned +a proper and a very useful ingredient in harmonious prose: especially as +the latter admits of two varieties, as consisting either of one long and +three short syllables, which will be lively enough at the beginning of a +sentence, but extremely flat at the end;--or of three short syllables and +a long one, which was highly approved of by the ancients at the _close_ of +a sentence, and which I would not wholly reject, though I give the +preference to others. Even the sober _spondee_ is not to be entirely +discarded; for though it consists of two long syllables, and for that +reason may seem rather dull and heavy, it has yet a firm and steady step, +which gives it an air of dignity, and especially in the _comma_ and the +_colon_; so that it sufficiently compensates for the slowness of it's +motion, by it's peculiar weight and solemnity. When I speak of feet at the +close of a period, I do not mean precisely the last. I would be +understood, at least, to include the foot which immediately precedes it; +and, in many cases, even the foot before _that_. The _iambic_, therefore, +which consists of a long syllable and a short one, and is equal in time, +though not in the number of it's syllables, to a _choree_, which has three +short ones; or even the _dactyl_, which consists of one long and two short +syllables, will unite agreeably enough with the last foot of a sentence, +when that foot is either a _choree_ or a _spondee_; for it is immaterial +which of them is employed. But the three feet I am mentioning, are neither +of them very proper for closing a period, (that is, to form the last foot +of it) unless when a _dactyl_ is substituted for a _cretic_, for you may +use either of them at pleasure; because, even in verse, it is of no +consequence whether the last syllable is long or short. He, therefore, who +recommended the _paeon_, as having the long syllable last, was certainly +guilty of an oversight; because the quantity of the last syllable is never +regarded. The _paeon_, however, as consisting of four syllables, is +reckoned by some to be only a _number_, and not a _foot_. But call it +which you please, it is in general, what all the ancients have represented +it, (such as _Aristotle, Theophrastus, Theodectes_, and _Euphorus_) the +fittest of all others both for the beginning and the middle of a period. +They are likewise of opinion, that it is equally proper at the end; where, +in my opinion, the _cretic_ deserves the preference. The _dochimus_, which +consists of five syllables, (i.e. a short and two long ones, and a short, +and a long one, as in _amicos tenes_) may be used indifferently in any +part of a sentence, provided it occurs but once: for if it is continued or +repeated, our attention to our numbers will be discovered, and alarm the +suspicion of the hearer. On the other hand, if we properly blend and +intermingle the several varieties above-mentioned, our design will not be +so readily noticed; and we shall also prevent that satiety which would +arise from an elaborate uniformity of cadence. + +But the harmony of language does not result entirely from the use of +_numbers_, but from the _juncture_ and _composition_ of our words; and +from that neatness and _concinnity_ of expression which I have already +mentioned. By _composition_, I here mean when our words are so judiciously +connected as to produce an agreeable sound (independent of _numbers_) +which rather appears to be the effect of nature than of art; as in the +following passage from Crassus, _Nam ubi lubido dominatur, innocentiae +leve praesidium est_ [Footnote: In the sentence which is here quoted from +Crassus, every word which ends with a consonant is immediately succeeded +by another which begins with a vowel; and, _vice versa_, if the preceding +word ends with a vowel, the next begins with a consonant.]: for here the +mere order in which the words are connected, produces a harmony of sound, +without any visible attention of the Speaker. When the ancients, +therefore, (I mean _Herodotus_, and _Thucydides_, and all who flourished +in the same age) composed a numerous and a musical period, it must rather +be attributed to the casual order of their words, than to the labour and +artifice of the writer. + +But there are likewise certain forms of expression, which have such a +natural concinnity, as will necessarily have a similar effect to that of +regular numbers. For when parallel circumstances are compared, or opposite +ones contrasted, or words of the same termination are placed in a regular +succesion, they seldom fail to produce a numerous cadence. But I have +already treated of these, and subjoined a few examples; so that we are +hereby furnished with an additional and a copious variety of means to +avoid the uniformity of cadence above-mentioned; especially as these +measured forms of expression may be occasionally relaxed and dilated. +There is, however, a material difference between a style which is merely +_numerous_, (or, in other words, which has a moderate resemblance to +_metre_) and that which is entirely composed of _numbers_: the latter is +an insufferable fault; but our language, without the former, would be +absolutely vague, unpolished, and dissipated. + +But as a numerous style (strictly so called) is not frequently, and indeed +but seldom admissible in forensic causes,--it seems necessary to enquire, +in the next place, what are those _commas_ and _colons_ before-mentioned, +and which, in real causes, should occupy the major part of an Oration. The +_period_, or complete sentence, is usually composed of four divisions, +which are called _members_, (or _colons_) that it may properly fill the +ear, and be neither longer nor shorter than is requisite for that purpose. +But it sometimes, or rather frequently happens, that a sentence either +falls short of, or exceeds the limits of a regular period, to prevent it +from fatiguing the ear on the one hand, or disappointing it on the other. +What I mean is to recommend an agreeable mediocrity: for we are not +treating of verse, but of rhetorical prose, which is confessedly more free +and unconfined. A full period, then, is generally composed of four parts, +which may be compared to as many hexameter verses, each of which have +their proper points, or particles of continuation, by which they are +connected so as to form a perfect period. But when we speak by _colons_, +we interupt their union, and, as often as occasion requires (which indeed +will frequently be the case) break off with ease from this laboured and +suspicious flow of language; but yet nothing should be so numerous in +reality as that which appears to be least so, and yet has a forcible +effect. Such is the following passage in Crassus:--"_Missos faciant +patronos; ipsi prodeant_." "Let them dismiss their patrons: let them +answer for themselves." Unless "_ipsi prodeant_" was pronounced after a +pause, the hearer must have discovered a complete iambic verse. It would +have had a better cadence in prose if he had said "_prodeant ipsi_." But I +am only to consider the species, and not the cadence of the sentence. He +goes on, "_Cur clandestinis consiliis nos oppugnant? cur de perfugis +nostris copias comparant contra nos_?" "Why do they attack us by +clandestine measures? why do they collect forces against us from our own +deserters?" In the former passage there are two _commas_: in the latter he +first makes use of the _colon_, and afterwards of the _period_: but the +period is not a long one, as only consisting of two _colons_, and the +whole terminates in _spondees_. In this manner Crassus generally expressed +himself; and I much approve his method. But when we speak either in +_commas_, or _colons_, we should be very attentive to the harmony of their +cadence: as in the following instance.--"_Domus tibi deerat? at habebas. +Pecunia superabat? at egebas_." "Was you without a habitation? You had a +house of your own. Was your pocket well provided? You was not master of a +farthing." These are four _commas_; but the two following members are both +_colons_;--"_Incurristi omens in columnas, in alienos insanus insanisti_." + +"You rushed like a madman upon your best supporters; you vented your fury +on your enemies withput mercy." The whole is afterwards supported by a +full period, as by a solid basis;--"Depressam, caecam, jacentem domum, +pluris quam te, et fortunas tuas aestimasti." "You have shewn more regard +to an unprosperous, an obscure, and a fallen family, than to your own +safety and reputation." This sentence ends with a _dichoree_, but the +preceeding one in a _double spondee_. For in those sentences which are to +be used like daggers for close-fighting, their very shortness makes our +numbers less exceptionable. They frequently consist of a single number;-- +generally of _two_, with the addition perhaps of half a foot to each: and +very seldom of more than three. To speak in _commas_ or _colons_ has a +very good effect in real causes; and especially in those parts of an +Oration where it is your business either to prove or refute: as in my +second defence of Cornelius, where I exclaimed, "O callidos homines! O rem +excogitatam! O ingenia metuenda!" "What admirable schemers! what a curious +contrivance! what formidable talents!" Thus far I spoke in _colons_; and +afterwards by _commas_; and then returned to the colon, in "_Testes dare +volumus_," "We are willing to produce our witnesses." This was succeeded +by the following _period_, consisting of two _colons_, which is the +shortest that can be formed,--"_Quem, quaeso, nostrum sesellit ita vos +esse facturos?_" "Which of us, think you, had not the sense to foresee +that you would proceed in this manner?" + +There is no method of expressing ourselves which, if properly timed, is +more agreeable or forcible, than these rapid turns, which are completed in +two or three words, and sometimes in a single one; especially, when they +are properly diversified, and intermingled here and there with a +_numerous_ period; which _Egesias_ avoids with such a ridiculous nicety, +that while he affects to imitate _Lysias_ (who was almost a second +_Demosthenes_) he seems to be continually cutting capers, and clipping +sentence after sentence. He is as frivolous in his sentiments as in his +language: so that no person who is acquainted with his writings, need to +seek any farther for a coxcomb. But I have selected several examples from +Crassus, and a few of my own, that any person, who is so inclined, may +have an opportunity of judging with his own ears, what is really +_numerous_, as well in the shortest as in any other kind of sentences. + +Having, therefore, treated of a _numerous_ style more copiously than any +author before me, I shall now proceed to say something of it's _utility_. +For to speak handsomely, and like an Orator (as no one, my Brutus, knows +better than yourself) is nothing more than to express the choicest +sentiments in the finest language. The noblest thoughts will be of little +service to an orator, unless he is able to communicate them in a correct +and agreeable style: nor will the splendor of our expressions appear to a +proper advantage, unless they are carefully and judiciously ranged. Permit +me to add, that the beauty of both will be considerably heightened by the +harmony of our numbers:--such numbers (for I cannot repeat it too often) +as are not only not cemented together, like those of the poets, but which +avoid all appearance of metre, and have as little resemblance to it as +possible; though it is certainly true that the numbers themselves are the +same, not only of the Poets and Orators, but of all in general who +exercise the faculty of speech, and, indeed, of every instrument which +produces a sound whose time can be measured by the ear. It is owing +entirely to the different arrangement of our feet that a sentence assumes +either the easy air of prose, or the uniformity of verse. Call it, +therefore, by what name you please (_Composition, Perfection_, or +_Number_) it is a necessary restraint upon our language; not only (as +_Aristotle_ and _Theophrastus_ have observed) to prevent our sentences +(which should be limited neither by the breath of the speaker, nor the +pointing of a transcriber, but by the sole restraint of _number_) from +running on without intermission like a babbling current of water; but +chiefly, because our language, when properly measured, has a much greater +effect than when it is loose and unconfined. For as Wrestlers and +Gladiators, whether they parry or make an assault, have a certain grace in +their motions, so that every effort which contributes to the defence or +the victory of the combatants, presents an agreeable attitude to the eye: +so the powers of language can neither give nor evade an important blow, +unless they are gracefully exerted. That style, therefore, which is not +regulated by _numbers_, is to me as unbecoming as the motions of a +Gladiator who has not been properly trained and exercised: and so far is +our language from being _enervated_ by a skilful arrangement of our words +(as is pretended by those who, for want either of proper instructors, +capacity, or diligence, have not been able to attain it) that, on the +contrary, without this, it is impossible it should have any force or +efficacy. + +But it requires a long and attentive course of practice to avoid the +blemishes of those who were unacquainted with this numerous species of +composition, so as not to transpose our words too openly to assist the +cadence and harmony of our periods; which _L. Caelius Antipater_, in the +Introduction to his Punic War, declares he would never attempt, unless +when compelled by necessity. "_O virum simplicem_," (says he, speaking of +himself) "_qui nos nihil celat; sapientem, qui serviendum necessitati +putet_." "O simple man, who has not the skill his art to conceal; and yet +to the rigid laws of necessity he has the wisdom to submit." But he was +totally unskilled in composition. By us, however, both in writing and +speaking, necessity is never admitted as a valid plea; for, in fact, there +is no such thing as an absolute constraint upon the order and arrangement +of our words; and, if there was, it is certainly unnecessary to own it. +But _Antipater_, though he requests the indulgence of Laelius, to whom he +dedicates his work, and attempts to excuse himself, frequently transposes +his words without contributing in the least either to the harmony, or +agreeable cadence of his periods. + +There are others, and particularly the _Asiatics_, who are such slaves to +_number_, as to insert words which have no use nor meaning to fill up the +vacuities in a sentence. There are likewise some who, in imitation of +_Hegesias_ (a notorious trifler as well in this as in every other respect) +curtail and mince their numbers, and are thus betrayed into the low and +paltry style of the Sicilians. Another fault in composition is that which +occurs in the speeches of _Hierocles_ and _Menecles_, two brothers, who +may be considered as the princes of Asiatic Eloquence, and, in my opinion, +are by no means contemptible: for though they deviate from the style of +nature, and the strict laws of Atticism, yet they abundantly compensate +the defect by the richness and fertility of their language. But they have +no variety of cadence, and their sentences are almost always terminated in +the same manner. He therefore, who carefully avoids these blemishes, and +who neither transposes his words too openly,--nor inserts any thing +superfluous or unmeaning to fill up the chasms of a period,--nor curtails +and clips his language, so as to interrupt and enervate the force of it,-- +nor confines himself to a dull uniformity of cadence,--_he_ may justly be +said to avoid the principal and most striking defects of prosaic harmony. +As to its positive graces, these we have already specified; and from +thence the particular blemishes which are opposite to each, will readily +occur to the attentive reader. + +Of what consequence it is to regulate the structure of our language, may +be easily tried by selecting a well-wrought period from some Orator of +reputation, and changing the arrangement of the words; [Footnote: +Professor _Ward_ has commented upon an example of this kind from the +preface to the Vth volume of the Spectator:--"_You have acted in so much +consistency with yourself, and promoted the interests of your country in +so uniform a manner; that even those, who would misrepresent your generous +designs for the public good, cannot but approve the steadiness and +intredipity, with which you pursue them_." I think, says the Doctor, this +may be justly esteemed an handsome period. It begins with ease, rises +gradually till the voice is inflected, then sinks again, and ends with a +just cadency, And perhaps there is not a word in it, whole situation would +be altered to an advantage. Let us now but shift the place of one word in +the last member, and we shall spoil the beauty of the whole sentence. For +if, instead of saying, as it now stands, _cannot but approve the +steadiness and intrepidity, with which you pursue them_; we put it thus, +_cannot but approve the steadiness and intrepidity which you pursue them +with_; the cadency will be flat and languid, and the harmony of the period +entirely lost. Let us try it again by altering the place of the two last +members, which at present stand in this order, _that even those who would +misrepresent your generous designs for the public good, cannot but approve +the steadiness and intrepidity, with which you pursue them_. Now if the +former member be thrown last, they will run thus, _that even those cannot +but approve the steadiness and intrepidity, with which you pursue them, +who would misrepresent your generous designs for the public good_. Here +the sense is much obscured by the inversion of the relative _them_, which +ought to refer to something that went before, and not to the words +_generous designs_, which in this situation of the members are placed +after it. WARD'S Rhetoric. Vol. 1, p. 338, 339.] the beauty of it would +then be mangled and destroyed. Suppose, for instance, we take the +following passage from my Defence of _Cornelius,--"Neque me divitae +movent, quibus omnes Africanos et Laelios, multi venalitii mercatoresque +superarunt._" "Nor am I dazzled by the splendor of wealth, in which many +retailers, and private tradesmen have outvied all the _Africani_ and the +_Lelii_" Only invert the order a little, and say,--"_Multi superarunt +mercatores, venatitiique_," and the harmony of the period will be loft. +Try the experiment on the next sentence;--"_Neque vestes, aut celatum +aurum, & argentum, quo nostros veteres Marcellos, Maximosque multi eunuchi +e Syria Egyptoque vicerunt_:" Nor do. I pay the least regard to costly +habits, or magnificent services of plate, in which many eunuchs, imported +from Syria and Egypt, have far surpassed the illustrious _Marcelli_, and +the _Maximi_. Alter the disposition of the words into, "_vicerunt eunuchi +e Syria, Egyptoque,_" and the whole beauty of the sentence will be +destroyed. Take a third passage from the same paragraph;--"_Neque vero +ornamenta ista villarum, quibus Paulum & L. Mummium, qui rebus his urbem, +Italiamque omnem reserserunt, ab aliquo video perfacile Deliaco aut Syro +potuisse superari:"--"Nor the splendid ornaments of a rural villa, in +which I daily behold every paltry Delian and Syrian outvying the dignity +of Paulus and Lucius Mummius, who, by their victories, supplied the whole +city, and indeed every part of Italy, with a super- fluity of these +glittering trifles!" Only change the latter part of the sentence into,-- +"_potuisse superari ab aliquo Syro aut Deliaco,_" and you will see, though +the meaning and the words are still the same, that, by making this slight +alteration in the order, and breaking the form of the period, the whole +force and spirit of it will be lost. + +On the other hand, take one of the broken sentences of a writer unskilled +in composition, and make the smallest alteration in the arrangement of the +words,--and that which before was loose and disordered, will assume a +just and a regular form. Let us, for instance, take the following passage +from the speech of Gracchus to the Censors;--"_Abesse non potest, quin +ejusdem hominis fit, probos improbare, qui improbos probet_;" "There is no +possibility of doubting that the same person who is an enemy to virtue, +must be a friend to vice." How much better would the period have +terminated if he had said,--"_quin ejusdem hominis fit, qui improbos +probet, probos improbare_!"--"that the same person who is a friend to +vice, must be an enemy to virtue!" There is no one who would object to the +last:--nay, it is impossible that any one who was able to speak thus, +should have been willing to express himself otherwise. But those who have +pretended to speak in a different manner, had not skill enough to speak as +they ought; and for that reason, truly, we must applaud them for their +_Attic_ taste;--as if the great DEMOSTHENES could speak like an _Asiatic_ +[Footnote: Quasi vero Trallianus fuerit Demosthenes.] _Trallianus_ +signifies an inhabitant of _Tralles_, a city in the lesser Asia, between +_Caria_ and _Lydia_. The Asiatics, in the estimation of Cicero, were not +distinguished by the delicacy of their taste.,--that Demosthenes, whose +thunder would have lost half it's force, if it's flight had not been +accelerated by the rapidity of his numbers. + +But if any are better pleased with a broken and dissipated style, let them +follow their humour, provided they condescend to counterbalance it by the +weight, and dignity of their sentiments: in the same manner, as if a +person should dash to pieces the celebrated shield of _Phidias_, though he +would destroy the symmetry of the whole, the fragments would still retain +their separate beauty;--or, as in the history of Thucydides, though we +discover no harmony in the structure of his periods, there are yet many +beauties which excite our admiration. But these triflers, when they +present us with one of their rugged and broken sentences, in which there +is neither a thought, nor word, but what is low and puerile, appear to me +(if I may venture on a comparison which is not indeed very elevated, but +is strictly applicable to the case in hand) to have untied a besom, that +we may contemplate the scattered twigs. If, however, they wish to convince +us that they really despise the species of composition which I have now +recommended, let them favour us with a few lines in the taste of +Isocrates, or such as we find in the orations of _Aeschines_ and +_Demosthenes_. I will then believe they decline the use of it, not from a +consciousness of their inability to put it in practice, but from a real +conviction of it's futility; or, at least, I will engage to find a person, +who, on the same condition, will undertake either to speak or write, in +any language they may please to fix upon, in the very manner they propose. +For it is much easier to disorder a good period, than to harmonize a bad +one. + +But, to speak my whole meaning at once, to be scrupulously attentive to +the measure and harmony of our periods, without a proper regard to our +sentiments, is absolute madness:--and, on the other hand, to speak +sensibly and judiciously, without attending to the arrangement of our +words, and the regularity of our periods, is (at the best) to speak very +awkwardly; but it is such a kind of awkwardness that those who are guilty +of it, may not only escape the title of blockheads, but pass for men of +good-sense and understanding;--a character which those speakers who are +contented with it, are heartily welcome to enjoy! But an Orator who is +expected not only to merit the approbation, but to excite the wonder, the +acclamations, and the plaudits of those who hear him, must excel in every +part of Eloquence, and be so thoroughly accomplished, that it would be a +disgrace to him that any thing should be either seen or heard with greater +pleasure than himself. + + * * * * * + +Thus, my Brutus, I have given you my opinion of a complete Orator; which +you are at liberty either to adopt or reject, as your better judgment +shall incline you. If you see reason to think differently, I shall have no +objection to it; nor so far indulge my vanity as to presume that my +sentiments, which I have so freely communicated in the present Essay, are +more just and accurate than yours. For it is very possible not only that +you and I may have different notions, but that what appears true even to +myself at one time, may appear otherwise at another. Nor only in the +present case, which be determined by the taste of the multitude, and the +capricious pleasure of the ear (which are, perhaps, the most uncertain +judges we can fix upon)--but in the most important branches of science, +have I yet been able to discover a surer rule to direct my judgment, than +to embrace that which has the greatest appearance of probability: for +_Truth_ is covered with too thick a veil to be distinguished to a +certainty. I request, therefore, if what I have advanced should not have +the happiness to merit your approbation, that you will be so much my +friend as to conclude, either that the talk I have attempted is +impracticable, or that my unwillingness to disoblige you has betrayed me +into the rash presumption of undertaking a subject to which my abilities +are unequal. + + + + + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Cicero's Brutus or History of Famous +Orators; also His Orator, or Accomplished Speaker., by Cicero + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CICERO'S BRUTUS *** + +***** This file should be named 9776.txt or 9776.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + https://www.gutenberg.org/9/7/7/9776/ + +Produced by Anne Soulard, Ted Garvin, and the Project +Gutenberg Online Distributed Proofreading Team + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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Do not change or edit the +header without written permission. + +Please read the "legal small print," and other information about the +eBook and Project Gutenberg at the bottom of this file. Included is +important information about your specific rights and restrictions in +how the file may be used. You can also find out about how to make a +donation to Project Gutenberg, and how to get involved. + + +**Welcome To The World of Free Plain Vanilla Electronic Texts** + +**eBooks Readable By Both Humans and By Computers, Since 1971** + +*****These eBooks Were Prepared By Thousands of Volunteers!***** + + +Title: Cicero's Brutus or History of Famous Orators; also His Orator, or Accomplished Speaker. + +Author: Marcus Tullius Cicero + +Release Date: January, 2006 [EBook #9776] +[This file was first posted on October 15, 2003] + +Edition: 10 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: US-ASCII + +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK, CICERO'S BRUTUS OR HISTORY OF FAMOUS ORATORS; ALSO HIS ORATOR, OR ACCOMPLISHED SPEAKER. *** + + + + +E-text prepared by Anne Soulard, Ted Garvin, and the Project Gutenberg +Online Distributed Proofreading Team + + + + + + + +CICERO'S BRUTUS, + +OR + +HISTORY OF FAMOUS ORATORS: + +ALSO, + +HIS ORATOR, + +OR + +ACCOMPLISHED SPEAKER. + +Now first translated into English by E. Jones + + + + + + + +PREFACE. + + +As the following Rhetorical Pieces have never appeared before in the +English language, I thought a Translation of them would be no unacceptable +offering to the Public. The character of the Author (Marcus Tullius +Cicero) is so universally celebrated, that it would be needless, and +indeed impertinent, to say any thing to recommend them. + +The first of them was the fruit of his retirement, during the remains of +the _Civil War_ in Africa; and was composed in the form of a Dialogue. It +contains a few short, but very masterly sketches of all the Speakers +who had flourished either in Greece or Rome, with any reputation of +Eloquence, down to his own time; and as he generally touches the principal +incidents of their lives, it will be considered, by an attentive reader, +as a _concealed epitome of the Roman history_. The conference is supposed +to have been held with Atticus, and their common friend Brutus, in +Cicero's garden at Rome, under the statue of Plato, whom he always +admired, and usually imitated in his dialogues: and he seems in this to +have copied even his _double titles_, calling it _Brutus, or the History +of famous Orators_. It was intended as a _supplement_, or _fourth book_, +to three former ones, on the qualifications of an Orator. + +The second, which is intitled _The Orator_, was composed a very short time +afterwards (both of them in the 61st year of his age) and at the request +of Brutus. It contains a plan, or critical delineation, of what he himself +esteemed the most finished Eloquence, or style of Speaking. He calls it +_The Fifth Part, or Book_, designed to complete his _Brutus_, and _the +former three_ on the same subject. It was received with great approbation; +and in a letter to Lepta, who had complimented him upon it, he declares, +that whatever judgment he had in Speaking, he had thrown it all into that +work, and was content to risk his reputation on the merit of it. But it is +particularly recommended to our curiosity, by a more exact account of the +rhetorical _composition_, or _prosaic harmony_ of the ancients, than is to +be met with in any other part of his works. + +As to the present Translation, I must leave the merit of it to be decided +by the Public; and have only to observe, that though I have not, to my +knowledge, omitted a single sentence of the original, I was obliged, in +some places, to paraphrase my author, to render his meaning intelligible +to a modern reader. My chief aim was to be clear and perspicuous: if I +have succeeded in _that_, it is all I pretend to. I must leave it to abler +pens to copy the _Eloquence_ of Cicero. _Mine_ is unequal to the task. + + + + +BRUTUS, OR THE HISTORY OF ELOQUENCE. + + +When I had left Cilicia, and arrived at Rhodes, word was brought me of the +death of Hortensius. I was more affected with it than, I believe, was +generally expected. For, by the loss of my friend, I saw myself for ever +deprived of the pleasure of his acquaintance, and of our mutual +intercourse of good offices. I likewise reflected, with Concern, that the +dignity of our College must suffer greatly by the decease of such an +eminent augur. This reminded me, that _he_ was the person who first +introduced me to the College, where he attested my qualification upon +oath; and that it was _he_ also who installed me as a member; so that I +was bound by the constitution of the Order to respect and honour him as a +parent. My affliction was increased, that, in such a deplorable dearth of +wife and virtuous citizens, this excellent man, my faithful associate in +the service of the Public, expired at the very time when the Commonwealth +could least spare him, and when we had the greatest reason to regret the +want of his prudence and authority. I can add, very sincerely, that in +_him_ I lamented the loss, not (as most people imagined) of a dangerous +rival and competitor, but of a generous partner and companion in the +pursuit of same. For if we have instances in history, though in studies of +less public consequence, that some of the poets have been greatly +afflicted at the death of their contemporary bards; with what tender +concern should I honour the memory of a man, with whom it is more glorious +to have disputed the prize of eloquence, than never to have met with an +antagonist! especially, as he was always so far from obstructing _my_ +endeavours, or I _his_, that, on the contrary, we mutually assisted each +other, with our credit and advice. + +But as _he_, who had a perpetual run of felicity, left the world at a +happy moment for himself, though a most unfortunate one for his fellow- +citizens; and died when it would have been much easier for him to lament +the miseries of his country, than to assist it, after living in it as long +as he _could_ have lived with honour and reputation;--we may, indeed, +deplore his death as a heavy loss to _us_ who survive him. If, however, we +consider it merely as a personal event, we ought rather to congratulate +his fate, than to pity it; that, as often as we revive the memory of this +illustrious and truly happy man, we may appear at least to have as much +affection for him as for ourselves. For if we only lament that we are no +longer permitted to enjoy him, it must, indeed, be acknowledged that this +is a heavy misfortune to _us_; which it, however, becomes us to support +with moderation, less our sorrow should be suspected to arise from motives +of interest, and not from friendship. But if we afflict ourselves, on the +supposition that _he_ was the sufferer;--we misconstrue an event, which to +_him_ was certainly a very happy one. + +If Hortensius was now living, he would probably regret many other +advantages in common with his worthy fellow-citizens. But when he beheld +the Forum, the great theatre in which he used to exercise his genius, no +longer accessible to that accomplished eloquence, which could charm the +ears of a Roman, or a Grecian audience; he must have felt a pang of which +none, or at least but few, besides himself, could be susceptible. Even _I_ +am unable to restrain my tears, when I behold my country no longer +defensible by the genius, the prudence, and the authority of a legal +magistrate,--the only weapons which I have learned to weild, and to which +I have long been accustomed, and which are most suitable to the character +of an illustrious citizen, and of a virtuous and well-regulated state. + +But if there ever was a time, when the authority and eloquence of an +honest individual could have wrested their arms from the hands of his +distracted fellow-citizens; it was then when the proposal of a compromise +of our mutual differences was rejected, by the hasty imprudence of some, +and the timorous mistrust of others. Thus it happened, among other +misfortunes of a more deplorable nature, that when my declining age, after +a life spent in the service of the Public, should have reposed in the +peaceful harbour, not of an indolent, and a total inactivity, but of a +moderate and becoming retirement; and when my eloquence was properly +mellowed, and had acquired its full maturity;--thus it happened, I say, +that recourse was then had to those fatal arms, which the persons who had +learned the use of them in honourable conquest, could no longer employ to +any salutary purpose. Those, therefore, appear to me to have enjoyed a +fortunate and a happy life, (of whatever State they were members, but +especially in _our's_) who held their authority and reputation, either for +their military or political services, without interruption: and the sole +remembrance of them, in our present melancholy situation, was a pleasing +relief to me, when we lately happened to mention them in the course of +conversation. + +For, not long ago, when I was walking for my amusement, in a private +avenue at home, I was agreeably interrupted by my friend Brutus, and T. +Pomponius, who came, as indeed they frequently did, to visit me;--two +worthy citizens who were united to each other in the closest friendship, +and were so dear and so agreeable to me, that, on the first sight of them, +all my anxiety for the Commonwealth subsided. After the usual +salutations,--"Well, gentlemen," said I, "how go the times? What news have +you brought?" "None," replied Brutus, "that you would wish to hear, or +that I can venture to tell you for truth."--"No," said Atticus; "we are +come with an intention that all matters of state should be dropped; and +rather to hear something from you, than to say any thing which might serve +to distress you." "Indeed," said I, "your company is a present remedy for +my sorrow; and your letters, when absent, were so encouraging, that they +first revived my attention to my studies."--"I remember," replied +Atticus, "that Brutus sent you a letter from Asia, which I read with +infinite pleasure: for he advised you in it like a man of sense, and gave +you every consolation which the warmest friendship could suggest."-- +"True," said I, "for it was the receipt of that letter which recovered me +from a growing indisposition, to behold once more the cheerful face of +day; and as the Roman State, after the dreadful defeat near Cannae, first +raised its drooping head by the victory of Marcellus at Nola, which was +succeeded by many other victories; so, after the dismal wreck of our +affairs, both public and private, nothing occurred to me before the letter +of my friend Brutus, which I thought to be worth my attention, or which +contributed, in any degree, to the anxiety of my heart."--"That was +certainly my intention," answered Brutus; "and if I had the happiness to +succeed, I was sufficiently rewarded for my trouble. But I could wish to +be informed, what you received from Atticus which gave you such uncommon +pleasure."--"That," said I, "which not only entertained me; but, I hope, +has restored me entirely to myself."--"Indeed!" replied he; "and what +miraculous composition could that be?"--"Nothing," answered I; "could have +been a more acceptable, or a more seasonable present, than that excellent +Treatise of his which roused me from a state of languor and despondency." +--"You mean," said he, "his short, and, I think, very accurate abridgment +of Universal History."--"The very same," said I; "for that little Treatise +has absolutely saved me."--"I am heartily glad of it," said Atticus; "but +what could you discover in it which was either new to you, or so +wonderfully beneficial as you pretend?"--"It certainly furnished many +hints," said I, "which were entirely new to me: and the exact order of +time which you observed through the whole, gave me the opportunity I had +long wished for, of beholding the history of all nations in one regular +and comprehensive view. The attentive perusal of it proved an excellent +remedy for my sorrows, and led me to think of attempting something on your +own plan, partly to amuse myself, and partly to return your favour, by a +grateful, though not an equal acknowledgment. We are commanded, it is +true, in that precept of Hesiod, so much admired by the learned, to return +with the same measure we have received; or, if possible, with a larger. As +to a friendly inclination, I shall certainly return you a full proportion +of it; but as to a recompence in kind, I confess it to be out of my power, +and therefore hope you will excuse me: for I have no first-fruits (like a +prosperous husbandman) to acknowledge the obligation I have received; my +whole harvest having sickened and died, for want of the usual manure: and +as little am I able to present you with any thing from those hidden stores +which are now consigned to perpetual darkness, and to which I am denied +all access; though, formerly, I was almost the only person who was able to +command them at pleasure. I must therefore, try my skill in a long- +neglected and uncultivated soil; which I will endeavour to improve with so +much care, that I may be able to repay your liberality with interest; +provided my genius should be so happy as to resemble a fertile field, +which, after being suffered to lie fallow a considerable time, produces a +heavier crop than usual."--"Very well," replied Atticus, "I shall expect +the fulfilment of your promise; but I shall not insist upon it till it +suits your convenience; though, after all, I shall certainly be better +pleased if you discharge the obligation."--"And I also," said Brutus, +"shall expect that you perform your promise to my friend Atticus: nay, +though I am only his voluntary solicitor, I shall, perhaps, be very +pressing for the discharge of a debt, which the creditor himself is +willing to submit to your own choice."--"But I shall refuse to pay you," +said I, "unless the original creditor takes no farther part in the suit." +--"This is more than I can promise," replied he, "for I can easily +foresee, that this easy man, who disclaims all severity, will urge his +demand upon you, not indeed to distress you, but yet very closely and +seriously."--"To speak ingenuously," said Atticus, "my friend Brutus, I +believe, is not much mistaken: for as I now find you in good spirits, for +the first time, after a tedious interval of despondency, I shall soon make +bold to apply to you; and as this gentleman has promised his assistance, +to recover what you owe me, the least I can do is to solicit, in my turn, +for what is due to him." + +"Explain your meaning," said I.--"I mean," replied he, "that you must +write something to amuse us; for your pen has been totally silent this +long time; and since your Treatise on Politics, we have had nothing from +you of any kind; though it was the perusal of that which fired me with the +ambition to write an Abridgment of Universal History. But we shall, +however, leave you to answer this demand, when, and in what manner you +shall think most convenient. At present, if you are not otherwise engaged, +you must give us your sentiments on a subject on which we both desire to +be better informed."--"And what is that?" said I.--"What you gave me a +hasty sketch of," replied he, "when I saw you last at Tusculanum,--the +History of Famous Orators;--_when_ they made their appearance, and _who_ +and _what_ they were; which, furnished such an agreeable train of +conversation, that when I related the substance of it to _your_, or I +ought rather to have said our _common_ friend, Brutus, he expressed a +violent desire to hear the whole of it from your own mouth. Knowing you, +therefore, to be at leisure, we have taken the present opportunity to wait +upon you; so that, if it is really convenient, you will oblige us both by +resuming the subject."--"Well, gentlemen," said I, "as you are so +pressing, I will endeavour to satisfy you in the best manner I am able."-- +"You are _able_ enough," replied he; "only unbend yourself a little, or, +if you can set your mind at full liberty."--"If I remember right," said I, +"Atticus, what gave rise to the conversation, was my observing, that the +cause of Deiotarus, a most excellent Sovereign, and a faithful ally, was +pleaded by our friend Brutus, in my hearing, with the greatest elegance +and dignity."--"True," replied he, "and you took occasion from the ill +success of Brutus, to lament the loss of a fair administration of justice +in the Forum."--"I did so," answered I, "as indeed I frequently do: and +whenever I see you, my Brutus, I am concerned to think where your +wonderful genius, your finished erudition, and unparalleled industry will +find a theatre to display themselves. For after you had thoroughly +improved your abilities, by pleading a variety of important causes; and +when my declining vigour was just giving way, and lowering the ensigns of +dignity to your more active talents; the liberty of the State received a +fatal overthrow, and that Eloquence, of which we are now to give the +History, was condemned to perpetual silence."--"Our other misfortunes," +replied Brutus, "I lament sincerely; and I think I ought to lament them:-- +but as to Eloquence, I am not so fond of the influence and the glory it +bestows, as of the study and the practice of it, which nothing can deprive +me of, while you are so well disposed to assist me: for no man can be an +eloquent speaker, who has not a clear and ready conception. Whoever, +therefore, applies himself to the study of Eloquence, is at the same time +improving his judgment, which is a talent equally necessary in all +military operations." + +"Your remark," said I, "is very just; and I have a higher opinion of the +merit of eloquence, because, though there is scarcely any person so +diffident as not to persuade himself, that he either has, or may acquire +every other accomplishment which, formerly, could have given him +consequence in the State; I can find no person who has been made an orator +by the success of his military prowess.--But that we may carry on the +conversation with greater ease, let us seat ourselves."--As my visitors +had no objection to this, we accordingly took our seats in a private lawn, +near a statue of Plato. + +Then resuming the conversation,--"to recommend the study of eloquence," +said I, "and describe its force, and the great dignity it confers upon +those who have acquired it, is neither our present design, nor has any +necessary connection with it. But I will not hesitate to affirm, that +whether it is acquired by art or practice, or the mere powers of nature, +it is the most difficult of all attainments; for each of the five branches +of which it is said to consist, is of itself a very important art; from +whence it may easily be conjectured, how great and arduous must be the +profession which unites and comprehends them all. + +"Greece alone is a sufficient witness of this:--for though she was fired +with a wonderful love of Eloquence, and has long since excelled every +other nation in the practice of it, yet she had all the rest of the arts +much earlier; and had not only invented, but even compleated them, a +considerable time before she was mistress of the full powers of elocution. +But when I direct my eyes to Greece, your beloved Athens, my Atticus, +first strikes my sight, and is the brightest object in my view: for in +that illustrious city the _orator_ first made his appearance, and it is +there we shall find the earliest records of eloquence, and the first +specimens of a discourse conducted by rules of art. But even in Athens +there is not a single production now extant which discovers any taste for +ornament, or seems to have been the effort of a real orator, before the +time of Pericles (whose name is prefixed to some orations which still +remain) and his cotemporary Thucydides; who flourished,--not in the +infancy of the State, but when it was arrived at its full maturity of +power. + +"It is, however, supposed, that Pisistratus (who lived many years before) +together with Solon, who was something older, and Clisthenes, who survived +them both, were very able speakers for the age they lived in. But some +years after these, as may be collected from the Attic Annals, came the +above-mentioned Themistocles, who is said to have been as much +distinguished by his eloquence as by his political abilities;--and after +him the celebrated Pericles, who, though adorned with every kind of +excellence, was most admired for his talent of speaking. Cleon also (their +cotemporary) though a turbulent citizen, was allowed to be a tolerable +orator. + +"These were immediately succeeded by Alcibiades, Critias, and Theramenes, +whose manner of speaking may be easily inferred from the writings of +Thucydides, who lived at the same time: their discourses were nervous and +stately, full of sententious remarks, and so excessively concise as to be +sometimes obscure. But as soon as the force of a regular and a well- +adjusted speech was understood, a sudden crowd of rhetoricians appeared,-- +such as Gorgias the Leontine, Thrasymachus the Chalcedonian, Protagoras +the Abderite, and Hippias the Elean, who were all held in great esteem,-- +with many others of the same age, who professed (it must be owned, rather +too arrogantly) to teach their scholars,--_how the worse might be made, by +the force of eloquence, to appear the better cause_. But these were openly +opposed by the famous Socrates, who, by an adroit method of arguing which +was peculiar to himself, took every opportunity to refute the principles +of their art. His instructive conferences produced a number of intelligent +men, and _Philosophy_ is said to have derived her birth from him;--not the +doctrine of _Physics_, which was of an earlier date, but that Philosophy +which treats of men, and manners, and of the nature of good and evil. But +as this is foreign to our present subject, we must defer the Philosophers +to another opportunity, and return to the Orators, from whom I have +ventured to make a sort digression. + +"When the professors therefore, abovementioned were in the decline of +life, Isocrates made his appearance, whos house stood open to all Greece +as the _School of Eloquence_. He was an accomplished orator, and an +excellent teacher; though he did not display his talents in the Forum, but +cherished and improved that glory within the walls of his academy, which, +in my opinion, no poet has ever yet acquired. He composed many valuable +specimens of his art, and taught the principles of it to others; and not +only excelled his predecessors in every part of it, but first discovered +that a certain _metre_ should be observed in prose, though totally +different from the measured rhyme of the poets. Before _him_, the +artificial structure and harmony of language was unknown;--or if there are +any traces of it to be discovered, they appear to have been made without +design; which, perhaps, will be thought a beauty:--but whatever it may be +deemed, it was, in the present case, the effect rather of native genius, +or of accident, than of art and observation. For mere nature itself will +measure and limit our sentences by a convenient compass of words; and when +they are thus confined to a moderate flow of expression, they will +frequently have a _numerous_ cadence:--for the ear alone can decide what +is full and complete, and what is deficient; and the course of our +language will necessarily be regulated by our breath, in which it is +excessively disagreeable, not only to fail, but even to labour. + +"After Isocrates came Lysias, who, though not personally engaged in +forensic causes, was a very artful and an elegant composer, and such a one +as you might almost venture to pronounce a complete orator: for +Demosthenes is the man who approaches the character so nearly, that you +may apply it to him without hesitation. No keen, no artful turns could +have been contrived for the pleadings he has left behind him, which he did +not readily discover;--nothing could have been expressed with greater +nicety, or more clearly and poignantly, than it has been already expressed +by him;--and nothing greater, nothing more rapid and forcible, nothing +adorned with a nobler elevation either of language, or sentiment, can be +conceived than what is to be found in his orations. He was soon rivalled +by his cotemporaries Hyperides, Aeschines, Lycurgus, Dinarchus, and +Demades (none of whose writings are extant) with many others that might be +mentioned: for this age was adorned with a profusion of good orators; and +the genuine strength and vigour of Eloquence appears to me to have +subsisted to the end of this period, which was distinguished by a natural +beauty of composition without disguise or affectation. + +"When these orators were in the decline of life, they were succeeded by +Phalereus; who was then in the prime of youth. He was indeed a man of +greater learning than any of them, but was fitter to appear on the parade, +than in the field; and, accordingly, he rather pleased and entertained the +Athenians, than inflamed their passions; and marched forth into the dust +and heat of the Forum, not from a weather-beaten tent, but from the shady +recesses of Theophrastus, a man of consummate erudition. He was the first +who relaxed the force of Eloquence, and gave her a soft and tender air: +and he rather chose to be agreeable, as indeed he was, than great and +striking; but agreeable in such a manner as rather charmed, than warmed +the mind of the hearer. His greatest ambition was to impress his audience +with a high opinion of his elegance, and not, as Eupolis relates of +Pericles, to _sting_ as well as to _please_. + +"You see, then, in the very city in which Eloquence was born and nurtured, +how late it was before she grew to maturity; for before the time of Solon +and Pisistratus, we meet with no one who is so much as mentioned for his +talent of speaking. These, indeed, if we compute by the Roman date, may be +reckoned very ancient; but if by that of the Athenians, we shall find them +to be moderns. For though they flourished in the reign of Servius Tullius, +Athens had then subsisted much longer than Rome has at present. I have +not, however, the least doubt that the power of Eloquence has been always +more or less conspicuous. For Homer, we may suppose, would not have +ascribed such superior talents of elocution to Ulysses, and Nestor (one of +whom he celebrates for his force, and the other for his sweetness) unless +the art of Speaking had then been held in some esteem; nor could the Poet +himself have been master of such an ornamental style, and so excellent a +vein of Oratory as we actually find in him.--The time indeed in which he +lived is undetermined: but we are certain that he flourished many years +before Romulus: for he was at least of as early a date as the elder +Lycurgus, the legislator of the Spartans. + +"But a particular attention to the art, and a greater ability in the +practice of it, may be observed in Pisistratus. He was succeeded in the +following century by Themistocles, who, according to the Roman date, was a +person of the remotest antiquity; but, according to that of the Athenians, +he was almost a modern. For he lived when Greece was in the height of her +power, but when the city of Rome had but lately freed herself from the +shackles of regal tyranny;--for the dangerous war with the Volsci, who +were headed by Coriolanus (then a voluntary exile) happened nearly at the +same time as the Persian war; and we may add, that the fate of both +commanders was remarkably similar. Each of them, after distinguishing +himself as an excellent citizen, being driven from his country by the +wrongs of an ungrateful people, went over to the enemy: and each of them +repressed the efforts of his resentment by a voluntary death. For though +you, my Atticus, have represented the exit of Coriolanus in a different +manner, you must give me leave to dispatch him in the way I have +mentioned."--"You may use your pleasure," replied Atticus with a smile: +"for it is the privilege of rhetoricians to exceed the truth of history, +that they may have an opportunity of embellishing the fate of their +heroes: and accordingly, Clitarchus and Stratocles have entertained us +with the same pretty fiction about the death of Themistocles, which you +have invented for Coriolanus. Thucydides, indeed, who was himself an +Athenian of the highest rank and merit, and lived nearly at the same time, +has only informed us that he died, and was privately buried in Attica, +adding, that it was suspected by some that he had poisoned himself. But +these ingenious writers have assured us, that, having slain a bull at the +altar, he caught the blood in a large bowl, and, drinking it off, fell +suddenly dead upon the ground. For this species of death had a tragical +air, and might be described with all the pomp of rhetoric; whereas the +ordinary way of dying afforded no opportunity for ornament. As it will, +therefore, suit your purpose, that Coriolanus should resemble Themistocles +in every thing, I give you leave to introduce the fatal bowl; and you may +still farther heighten the catastrophe by a solemn sacrifice, that +Coriolanus may appear in all respects to have been a second Themistocles." + +"I am much obliged to you," said I, "for your courtesy: but, for the +future, I shall be more cautious in meddling with History when you are +present; whom I may justly commend as a most exact and scrupulous relator +of the Roman History; but nearly at the time we are speaking of (though +somewhat later) lived the above-mentioned Pericles, the illustrious son of +Xantippus, who first improved his eloquence by the friendly aids of +literature;--not that kind of literature which treats professedly of the +art of Speaking, of which there was then no regular system; but after he +had studied under Anaxagoras the Naturalist, he easily transferred his +capacity from abstruse and intricate speculations to forensic and popular +debates. + +"All Athens was charmed with the sweetness of his language; and not only +admired him for his fluency, but was awed by the superior force and the +_terrors_ of his eloquence. This age, therefore, which may be considered +as the infancy of the Art, furnished Athens with an Orator who almost +reached the summit of his profession: for an emulation to shine in the +Forum is not usually found among a people who are either employed in +settling the form of their government, or engaged in war, or struggling +with difficulties, or subjected to the arbitrary power of Kings. Eloquence +is the attendant of peace, the companion of ease and prosperity, and the +tender offspring of a free and a well established constitution. Aristotle, +therefore, informs us, that when the Tyrants were expelled from Sicily, +and private property (after a long interval of servitude) was determined +by public trials, the Sicilians Corax and Tisias (for this people, in +general, were very quick and acute, and had a natural turn for +controversy) first attempted to write precepts on the art of Speaking. +Before them, he says, there was no one who spoke by method, and rules of +art, though there were many who discoursed very sensibly, and generally +from written notes: but Protagoras took the pains to compose a number of +dissertations, on such leading and general topics as are now called common +places. Gorgias, he adds, did the same, and wrote panegyrics and +invectives on every subject: for he thought it was the province of an +Orator to be able either to exaggerate, or extenuate, as occasion might +require. Antiphon the Rhamnusian composed several essays of the same +species; and (according to Thucydides, a very respectable writer, who was +present to hear him) pleaded a capital cause in his own defence, with as +much eloquence as had ever yet been displayed by any man. But Lysias was +the first who openly professed the _Art_; and, after him, Theodorus, being +better versed in the theory than the practice of it, begun to compose +orations for others to pronounce; but reserved the method of doing it to +himself. In the same manner, Isocrates at first disclaimed the Art, but +wrote speeches for other people to deliver; on which account, being often +prosecuted for assisting, contrary to law, to circumvent one or another of +the parties in judgment, he left off composing orations for other people, +and wholly applied himself to writing rules and systems. + +"Thus then we have traced the birth and origin of the Orators of Greece, +who were, indeed, very ancient, as I have before observed, if we compute +by the Roman Annals; but of a much later date, if we reckon by their own: +for the Athenian State had signalized itself by a variety of great +exploits, both at home and abroad, a considerable time before she was +ravished with the charms of Eloquence. But this noble Art was not common +to Greece in general, but almost peculiar to Athens. For who has ever +heard of an Argive, a Corinthian, or a Theban Orator at the times we are +speaking of? unless, perhaps, some merit of the kind may be allowed to +Epaminondas, who was a man of uncommon erudition. But I have never read of +a Lacedemonian Orator, from the earliest period of time to the present. +For Menelaus himself, though said by Homer to have possessed a sweet +elocution, is likewise described as a man of few words. Brevity, indeed, +upon some occasions, is a real excellence; but it is very far from being +compatible with the general character of Eloquence. + +"The Art of Speaking was likewise studied, and admired, beyond the limits +of Greece; and the extraordinary honours which were paid to Oratory have +perpetuated the names of many foreigners who had the happiness to excel in +it. For no sooner had Eloquence ventured to sail from the Pireaeus, but +she traversed all the isles, and visited every part of Asia; till at last +she infected herself with their manners, and lost all the purity and the +healthy complexion of the Attic style, and indeed had almost forgot her +native language. The Asiatic Orators, therefore, though not to be +undervalued for the rapidity and the copious variety of their elocution, +were certainly too loose and luxuriant. But the Rhodians were of a sounder +constitution, and more resembled the Athenians. So much, then, for the +Greeks; for, perhaps, what I have already said of them, is more than was +necessary." + +"As to the necessity of it," answered Brutus, "there is no occasion to +speak of it: but what you have said of them has entertained me so +agreeably, that instead of being longer, it has been much shorter than I +could have wished."--"A very handsome compliment," said I;--"but it is +time to begin with our own countrymen, of whom it is difficult to give any +further account than what we are able to conjecture from our Annals.--For +who can question the address, and the capacity of Brutus, the illustrious +founder of your family? That Brutus, who so readily discovered the meaning +of the Oracle, which promised the supremacy to him who should first salute +his mother? That Brutus, who concealed the most consummate abilities under +the appearance of a natural defect of understanding? Who dethroned and +banished a powerful monarch, the son of an illustrious sovereign? Who +settled the State, which he had rescued from arbitrary power, by the +appointment of an annual magistracy, a regular system of laws, and a free +and open course of justice? And who abrogated the authority of his +colleague, that he might rid the city of the smallest vestige of the +_regal_ name?--Events, which could never have been produced without +exerting the powers of Persuasion!--We are likewise informed that a few +years after the expulsion of the Kings, when the Plebeians retired to the +banks of the Anio, about three miles from the city, and had possessed +themselves of what is called The _sacred_ Mount, M. Valerius the dictator +appeased their fury by a public harangue; for which he was afterwards +rewarded with the highest posts of honour, and was the first Roman who was +distinguished by the surname of _Maximus_. Nor can L. Valerius Potitus be +supposed to have been destitute of the powers of utterance, who, after the +odium which had been excited against the Patricians by the tyrannical +government of the _Decemviri_, reconciled the people to the Senate, by his +prudent laws and conciliatory speeches. We may likewise suppose, that +Appius Claudius was a man of some eloquence; since he dissuaded the Senate +from consenting to a peace with King Pyrrhus, though they were much +inclined to it. The same might be said of Caius Fabricius, who was +dispatched to Pyrrhus to treat for the ransom of his captive fellow- +citizens; and of Titus Coruncanius, who appears by the memoirs of the +pontifical college, to have been a person of no contemptible genius: and +likewise of M. Curius (then a tribune of the people) who, when the +Interrex Appius _the Blind_, an artful Speaker, held the _Comitia_ +contrary to law, by refusing to admit any consuls of plebeian rank, +prevailed upon the Senate to protest against the conduct: of his +antagonist; which, if we consider that the Moenian law was not then in +being, was a very bold attempt. We may also conjecture, that M. Popilius +was a man of abilities, who, in the time of his consulship, when he was +solemnizing a public sacrifice in the proper habit of his office, (for he +was also a Flamen Carmentalis) hearing of the mutiny and insurrection of +the people against the Senate, rushed immediately into the midst of the +assembly, covered as he was with his sacerdotal robes, and quelled the +sedition by his authority and the force of his elocution. I do not pretend +to have read that the persons I have mentioned were then reckoned Orators, +or that any fort of reward or encouragement was given to Eloquence: I only +conjecture what appears very probable. It is also recorded, that C. +Flaminius, who, when tribune of the people proposed the law for dividing +the conquered territories of the Gauls and Piceni among the citizens, and +who, after his promotion to the consulship, was slain near the lake +Thrasimenus, became very popular by the mere force of his address, Quintus +Maximus Verrucosus was likewise reckoned a good Speaker by his +cotemporaries; as was also Quintus Metellus, who, in the second Punic war, +was joint consul with L. Veturius Philo. But the first person we have any +certain account of, who was publicly distinguished as an _Orator_, and who +really appears to have been such, was M. Cornelius Cethegus; whose +eloquence is attested by Q. Ennius, a voucher of the highest credibility; +since he actually heard him speak, and gave him this character after his +death; so that there is no reason to suspect that he was prompted by the +warmth of his friendship to exceed the bounds of truth. In his ninth book +of Annals, he has mentioned him in the following terms: + + "_Additur Orator Corneliu' suaviloquenti + Ore Cethegus Marcu', Tuditano collega, + Marci Filius._" + +"_Add the_ Orator _M. Cornelius Cethegus, so much admired for his +mellifluent tongue; who was the colleague of Tuditanus, and the son of +Marcus_." + +"He expressly calls him an _Orator_, you see, and attributes to him a +remarkable sweetness of elocution; which, even now a-days, is an +excellence of which few are possessed: for some of our modern Orators are +so insufferably harsh, that they may rather be said to bark than to speak. +But what the Poet so much admires in his friend, may certainly be +considered as one of the principal ornaments of Eloquence. He adds; + +" ----_is dictus, ollis popularibus olim, + Qui tum vivebant homines, atque aevum agitabant, + Flos delibatus populi_." + +"_He was called by his cotemporaries, the choicest Flower of the State_." + +"A very elegant compliment! for as the glory of a man is the strength of +his mental capacity, so the brightest ornament of that is Eloquence; in +which, whoever had the happiness to excel, was beautifully styled, by the +Ancients, the _Flower_ of the State; and, as the Poet immediately +subjoins, + + "'--_Suadaeque medulla:' + +"the very marrow and quintessence of Persuasion_." + +"That which the Greeks call [Greek: Peitho], _(i.e. Persuasion)_ and which +it is the chief business of an Orator to effect, is here called _Suada_ by +Ennius; and of this he commends Cethegus as the _quintessence_; so that he +makes the Roman Orator to be himself the very substance of that amiable +Goddess, who is said by Eupolis to have dwelt on the lips of Pericles. +This Cethegus was joint-consul with P. Tuditanus in the second Punic war; +at which time also M. Cato was Quaestor, about one hundred and forty years +before I myself was promoted to the consulship; which circumstance would +have been absolutely lost, if it had not been recorded by Ennius; and the +memory of that illustrious citizen, as has probably been the case of many +others, would have been obliterated by the rust of antiquity. The manner +of speaking which was then in vogue, may easily be collected from the +writings of _Naevius_: for Naevius died, as we learn from the memoirs of +the times, when the persons above-mentioned were consuls; though Varro, a +most accurate investigator of historical truth, thinks there is a mistake +in this, and fixes the death of Naevius something later. For Plautus died +in the consulship of P. Claudius and L. Porcius, twenty years after the +consulship of the persons we have been speaking of, and when Cato was +Censor. Cato, therefore, must have been younger than Cethegus, for he was +consul nine years after him: but we always consider him as a person of the +remotest antiquity, though he died in the consulship of Lucius Marcius and +M. Manilius, and but eighty-three years before my own promotion to the +same office. He is certainly, however, the most ancient Orator we have, +whose writings may claim our attention; unless any one is pleased with the +above-mentioned speech of Appius, on the peace with Pyrrhus, or with a set +of panegyrics on the dead, which, I own, are still extant. For it was +customary in most families of note to preserve their images, their +trophies of honour, and their memoirs, either to adorn a funeral when any +of the family deceased, or to perpetuate the fame of their ancestors, or +prove their own nobility. But the truth of History has been much corrupted +by these laudatory essays; for many circumstances were recorded in them +which never existed; such as false triumphs, a pretended succession of +consulships, and false alliances and elevations, when men of inferior rank +were confounded with a noble family of the same name: as if I myself +should pretend that I am descended from M. Tullius, who was a Patrician, +and shared the consulship with Servius Sulpicius, about ten years after +the expulsion of the kings. + +"But the real speeches of Cato are almost as numerous as those of Lysias +the Athenian; a great number of whose are still extant. For Lysias was +certainly an Athenian; because he not only died but received his birth at +Athens, and served all the offices of the city; though Timaesus, as if he +acted by the Licinian or the Mucian law, remands him back to Syracuse. +There is, however, a manifest resemblance between _his_ character and that +of _Cato_: for they are both of them distinguished by their acuteness, +their elegance, their agreeable humour, and their brevity. But the Greek +has the happiness to be most admired: for there are some who are so +extravagantly fond of him, as to prefer a graceful air to a vigorous +constitution, and who are perfectly satisfied with a slender and an easy +shape, if it is only attended with a moderate share of health. It must, +however, be acknowledged, that even Lysias often displays a strength of +arm, than which nothing can be more strenuous and forcible; though he is +certainly, in all respects, of a more thin and feeble habit than Cato, +notwithstanding he has so many admirers, who are charmed with his very +slenderness. But as to Cato, where will you find a modern Orator who +condescends to read him?--nay, I might have said, who has the least +knowledge of him?--And yet, good Gods! what a wonderful man! I say nothing +of his merit as a Citizen, a Senator, and a General; we must confine our +attention to the Orator. Who, then, has displayed more dignity as a +panegyrist?--more severity as an accuser?--more ingenuity in the turn of +his sentiments?--or more neatness and address in his narratives and +explanations? Though he composed above a hundred and fifty orations, +(which I have seen and read) they are crowded with all the beauties of +language and sentiment. Let us select from these what deserves our notice +and applause: they will supply us with all the graces of Oratory. Not to +omit his _Antiquities_, who will deny that these also are adorned with +every flower, and with all the lustre of Eloquence? and yet he has +scarcely any admirers; which some ages ago was the case of Philistus the +Syracusan, and even of Thucydides himself. For as the lofty and elevated +style of Theopompus soon diminished the reputation of their pithy and +laconic harangues, which were sometimes scarcely intelligible through +their excessive brevity and quaintness; and as Demosthenes eclipsed the +glory of Lysias, so the pompous and stately elocution of the moderns has +obscured the lustre of Cato. But many of us are shamefully ignorant and +inattentive; for we admire the Greeks for their antiquity, and what is +called their Attic neatness, and yet have never noticed the same quality +in Cato. It was the distinguishing character, say they, of Lysias and +Hyperides. I own it, and I admire them for it: but why not allow a share +of it to Cato? They are fond, they tell us, of the _Attic_ style of +Eloquence: and their choice is certainly judicious, provided they borrow +the blood and the healthy juices, as well as the bones and membranes. What +they recommend, however, is, to do it justice, an agreeable quality. But +why must Lysias and Hyperides be so fondly courted, while Cato is entirely +overlooked? His language indeed has an antiquated air, and some of his +expressions are rather too harsh and crabbed. But let us remember that +this was the language of the time: only change and modernize it, which it +was not in his power to do;--add the improvements of number and cadence, +give an easier turn to his sentences, and regulate the structure and +connection of his words, (which was as little practised even by the older +Greeks as by him) and you will discover no one who can claim the +preference to Cato. The Greeks themselves acknowledge that the chief +beauty of composition results from the frequent use of those +_translatitious_ forms of expression which they call _Tropes_, and of +those various attitudes of language and sentiment which they call +_Figures_: but it is almost incredible in what numbers, and with what +amazing variety, they are all employed by Cato. I know, indeed, that he is +not sufficiently polished, and that recourse must be had to a more perfect +model for imitation: for he is an author of such antiquity, that he is the +oldest now extant, whose writings can be read with patience; and the +ancients in general acquired a much greater reputation in every other art, +than in that of Speaking. But who that has seen the statues of the +moderns, will not perceive in a moment, that the figures of Canachus are +too stiff and formal, to resemble life? Those of Calamis, though evidently +harsh, are somewhat softer. Even the statues of Myron are not sufficiently +alive; and yet you would not hesitate to pronounce them beautiful. But +those of Polycletes are much finer, and, in my mind, completely finished. +The case is the same in Painting; for in the works of Zeuxis, Polygnotus, +Timanthes, and several other masters who confined themselves to the use of +four colours, we commend the air and the symmetry of their figures; but in +Aetion, Nicomachus, Protogenes, and Apelles, every thing is finished to +perfection. This, I believe, will hold equally true in all the other arts; +for there is not one of them which was invented and completed at the same +time. I cannot doubt, for instance, that there were many Poets before +Homer: we may infer it from those very songs which he himself informs us +were sung at the feasts of the Phaeacians, and of the profligate suitors +of Penelope. Nay, to go no farther, what is become of the ancient poems of +our own countrymen?" + + "Such as the Fauns and rustic Bards compos'd, + When none the rocks of poetry had cross'd, + Nor wish'd to form his style by rules of art, + Before this vent'rous man: &c. + +"Old Ennius here speaks of himself; nor does he carry his boast beyond the +bounds of truth: the case being really as he describes it. For we had only +an Odyssey in Latin, which resembled one of the rough and unfinished +statues of Daedalus; and some dramatic pieces of Livius, which will +scarcely bear a second reading. This Livius exhibited his first +performance at Rome in the Consulship of M. Tuditanus, and C. Clodius the +son of Caecus, the year before Ennius was born, and, according to the +account of my friend Atticus, (whom I choose to follow) the five hundred +and fourteenth from the building of the city. But historians are not +agreed about the date of the year. Attius informs us that Livius was taken +prisoner at Tarentum by Quintus Maximus in his fifth Consulship, about +thirty years after he is said by Atticus, and our ancient annals, to have +introduced the drama. He adds that he exhibited his first dramatic piece +about eleven years after, in the Consulship of C. Cornelius and Q. +Minucius, at the public games which Salinator had vowed to the Goddess of +Youth for his victory over the Senones. But in this, Attius was so far +mistaken, that Ennius, when the persons above-mentioned were Consuls, was +forty years old: so that if Livius was of the same age, as in this case he +would have been, the first dramatic author we had must have been younger +than Plautus and Naevius, who had exhibited a great number of plays before +the time he specifies. If these remarks, my Brutus, appear unsuitable to +the subject before us, you must throw the whole blame upon Atticus, who +has inspired me with a strange curiosity to enquire into the age of +illustrious men, and the respective times of their appearance."--"On the +contrary," said Brutus, "I am highly pleased that you have carried your +attention so far; and I think your remarks well adapted to the curious +task you have undertaken, the giving us a history of the different classes +of Orators in their proper order."--"You understand me right," said I; +"and I heartily wish those venerable Odes were still extant, which Cato +informs us in his Antiquities, used to be sung by every guest in his turn +at the homely feasts of our ancestors, many ages before, to commemorate +the feats of their heroes. But the _Punic war_ of that antiquated Poet, +whom Ennius so proudly ranks among the _Fauns and rustic Bards_, affords +me as exquisite a pleasure as the finest statue that was ever formed by +Myron. Ennius, I allow, was a more finished writer: but if he had really +undervalued the other, as he pretends to do, he would scarcely have +omitted such a bloody war as the first _Punic_, when he attempted +professedly to describe all the wars of the Republic. Nay he himself +assigns the reason. + + "Others" (said he) "that cruel war have sung:" + +Very true, and they have sung it with great order and precision, though +not, indeed, in such elegant strains as yourself. This you ought to have +acknowledged, as you must certainly be conscious that you have borrowed +many ornaments from Naevius; or if you refuse to own it, I shall tell you +plainly that you have _pilfered_ them. + +"Cotemporary with the Cato above-mentioned (though somewhat older) were C. +Flaminius, C. Varro, Q. Maximus, Q. Metellus, P. Lentulus, and P. Crassus +who was joint Consul with the elder Africanus. This Scipio, we are told, +was not destitute of the powers of Elocution: but his son, who adopted the +younger Scipio (the son of Paulus Aemilius) would have stood foremost in +the list of Orators, if he had possessed a firmer constitution. This is +evident from a few Speeches, and a Greek History of his, which are very +agreeably written. In the same class we may place Sextus Aelius, who was +the best lawyer of his time, and a ready speaker. A little after these, +was C. Sulpicius Gallus, who was better acquainted with the Grecian +literature than all the rest of the nobility, and was reckoned a graceful +Orator, being equally distinguished, in every other respect, by the +superior elegance of his taste; for a more copious and splendid way of +speaking began now to prevail. When this Sulpicius, in quality of Praetor, +was celebrating the public shews in honour of Apollo, died the Poet +Ennius, in the Consulship of Q. Marcius and Cn. Servilius, after +exhibiting his Tragedy of _Thyestes_. At the same time lived Tiberius +Gracchus, the son of Publius, who was twice Consul and Censor: a Greek +Oration of his to the Rhodians is still extant, and he bore the character +of a worthy citizen, and an eloquent Speaker. We are likewise told that P. +Scipio Nasica, surnamed The Darling of the People, and who also had the +honor to be twice chosen Consul and Censor, was esteemed an able Orator: +To him we may add L. Lentulus, who was joint Consul with C. Figulus;--Q. +Nobilior, the son of Marcus, who was inclined to the study of literature +by his father's example, and presented Ennius (who had served under his +father in Aetolia) with the freedom of the City, when he founded a colony +in quality of Triumvir: and his colleague, T. Annius Luscus, who is said +to have been tolerably eloquent. We are likewise informed that L. Paulus, +the father of Africanus, defended the character of an eminent citizen in a +public speech; and that Cato, who died in the 83d year of his age, was +then living, and actually pleaded, that very year, against the defendant +Servius Galba, in the open Forum, with great energy and spirit:--he has +left a copy of this Oration behind him. But when Cato was in the decline +of life, a crowd of Orators, all younger than himself, made their +appearance at the same time: For A. Albinus, who wrote a History in Greek, +and shared the Consulship with L. Lucullus, was greatly admired for his +learning and Elocution: and almost equal to him were Servius Fulvius, and +Servius Fabius Pictor, the latter of whom was well acquainted with the +laws of his country, the Belles Lettres, and the History of Antiquity. +Quintus Fabius Labeo was likewise adorned with the same accomplishments. +But Q. Metellus whose four sons attained the consular dignity, was admired +for his Eloquence beyond the rest;--he undertook the defence of L. Cotta, +when he was accused by Africanus,--and composed many other Speeches, +particularly that against Tiberius Gracchus, which we have a full account +of in the Annals of C. Fannius. L. Cotta himself was likewise reckoned a +_veteran_; but C. Laelius, and P. Africanus were allowed by all to be more +finished Speakers: their Orations are still extant, and may serve as +specimens of their respective abilities. But Servius Galba, who was +something older than any of them, was indisputably the best speaker of the +age. He was the first among the Romans who displayed the proper and +distinguishing talents of an Orator, such as, digressing from his subject +to embellish and diversify it,--soothing or alarming the passions, +exhibiting every circumstance in the strongest light,--imploring the +compassion of his audience, and artfully enlarging on those topics, or +general principles of Prudence or Morality, on which the stress of his +argument depended: and yet, I know not how, though he is allowed to have +been the greatest Orator of his time, the Orations he has left are more +lifeless, and have a more antiquated air, than those of Laelius, or +Scipio, or even of Cato himself: in short, the strength and substance of +them has so far evaporated, that we have scarcely any thing of them +remaining but the bare skeletons. In the same manner, though both Laelius +and Scipio are greatly extolled for their abilities; the preference was +given to Laelius as a speaker; and yet his Oration, in defence of the +privileges of the Sacerdotal College, has no greater merit than any one +you may please to fix upon of the numerous speeches of Scipio. Nothing, +indeed, can be sweeter and milder than that of Laelius, nor could any +thing have been urged with greater dignity to support the honour of +religion: but, of the two, Laelius appears to me to be rougher, and more +old-fashioned than Scipio; and, as different Speakers have different +tastes, he had in my mind too strong a relish for antiquity, and was too +fond of using obsolete expressions. But such is the jealousy of mankind, +that they will not allow the same person to be possessed of too many +perfections. For as in military prowess they thought it impossible that +any man could vie with Scipio, though Laelius had not a little +distinguished himself in the war with Viriathus; so for learning, +Eloquence, and wisdom, though each was allowed to be above the reach of +any other competitor, they adjudged the preference to Laelius. Nor was +this only the opinion of the world, but it seems to have been allowed by +mutual consent between themselves: for it was then a general custom, as +candid in this respect as it was fair and just in every other, to give his +due to each. I accordingly remember that P. Rutilius Rufus once told me at +Smyrna, that when he was a young man, the two Consuls P. Scipio and D. +Brutus, by order of the Senate, tried a capital cause of great +consequence. For several persons of note having been murdered in the Silan +Forest, and the domestics, and some of the sons, of a company of gentlemen +who farmed the taxes of the pitch-manufactory, being charged with the +fact, the Consuls were ordered to try the cause in person. Laelius, he +said, spoke very sensibly and elegantly, as indeed he always did, on the +side of the farmers of the customs. But the Consuls, after hearing both +sides, judging it necessary to refer the matter to a second trial, the +same Laelius, a few days after, pleaded their cause again with more +accuracy, and much better than at first. The affair, however, was once +more put off for a further hearing. Upon this, when his clients attended +Laelius to his own house, and, after thanking him for what he had already +done, earnestly begged him not to be disheartened by the fatigue he had +suffered;--he assured them he had exerted his utmost to defend their +reputation; but frankly added, that he thought their cause would be more +effectually supported by Servius Galba, whose manner of speaking was more +embellished and more spirited than his own. They, accordingly, by the +advice of Laelius, requested Galba to undertake it. To this he consented; +but with the greatest modesty and reluctance, out of respect to the +illustrious advocate he was going to succeed:--and as he had only the next +day to prepare himself, he spent the whole of it in considering and +digesting his cause. When the day of trial was come, Rutilius himself, at +the request of the defendants, went early in the morning to Galba, to give +him notice of it, and conduct him to the court in proper time. But till +word was brought that the Consuls were going to the bench, he confined +himself in his study, where he suffered no one to be admitted; and +continued very busy in dictating to his Amanuenses, several of whom (as +indeed he often used to do) he kept fully employed at once. While he was +thus engaged, being informed that it was high time for him to appear in +court, he left his house with so much life in his eyes, and such an ardent +glow upon his countenance, that you would have thought he had not only +_prepared_ his cause, but actually _carried_ it. Rutilius added, as +another circumstance worth noticing, that his scribes, who attended him to +the bar, appeared excessively fatigued: from whence he thought it probable +that he was equally warm and vigorous in the composition, as in the +delivery of his speeches. But to conclude the story, Galba pleaded his +cause before Laelius himself, and a very numerous and attentive audience, +with such uncommon force and dignity, that every part of his Oration +received the applause of his hearers: and so powerfully did he move the +feelings, and affect the pity of the judges, that his clients were +immediately acquitted of the charge, to the satisfaction of the whole +court. + +"As, therefore, the two principal qualities required in an Orator, are to +be neat and clear in stating the nature of his subject, and warm and +forcible in moving the passions; and as he who fires and inflames his +audience, will always effect more than he who can barely inform and amuse +them; we may conjecture from the above narrative, which I was favoured +with by Rutilius, that Laelius was most admired for his elegance, and +Galba for his pathetic force. But this force of his was most remarkably +exerted, when, having in his Praetorship put to death some Lusitanians, +contrary (it was believed) to his previous and express engagement;--T. +Libo the Tribune exasperated the people against him, and preferred a bill +which was to operate against his conduct as a subsequent law. M. Cato (as +I have before mentioned) though extremely old, spoke in support of the +bill with great vehemence; which Speech he inserted in his Book of +_Antiquities_, a few days, or at most only a month or two, before his +death. On this occasion, Galba refusing to plead to the charge, and +submitting his fate to the generosity of the people, recommended his +children to their protection, with tears in his eyes; and particularly his +young ward the son of C. Gallus Sulpicius his deceased friend, whose +orphan state and piercing cries, which were the more regarded for the sake +of his illustrious father, excited their pity in a wonderful manner;--and +thus (as Cato informs us in his History) he escaped the flames which would +otherwise have consumed him, by employing the children to move the +compassion of the people. I likewise find (what may be easily judged from +his Orations still extant) that his prosecutor Libo was a man of some +Eloquence." + +As I concluded these remarks with a short pause;--"What can be the +reason," said Brutus, "if there was so much merit in the Oratory of Galba, +that there is no trace of it to be seen in his Orations;--a circumstance +which I have no opportunity to be surprized at in others, who have left +nothing behind them in writing."--"The reasons," said I, "why some have +not wrote any thing, and others not so well as they spoke, are very +different. Some of our Orators have writ nothing through mere indolence, +and because they were loath to add a private fatigue to a public one: for +most of the Orations we are now possessed of were written not before they +were spoken, but some time afterwards. Others did not choose the trouble +of improving themselves; to which nothing more contributes than frequent +writing; and as to perpetuating the fame of their Eloquence, they thought +it unnecessary; supposing that their eminence in that respect was +sufficiently established already, and that it would be rather diminished +than increased by submitting any written specimen of it to the arbitrary +test of criticism. Some also were sensible that they spoke much better +than they were able to write; which is generally the case of those who +have a great genius, but little learning, such as Servius Galba. When he +spoke, he was perhaps so much animated by the force of his abilities, and +the natural warmth and impetuosity of his temper, that his language was +rapid, bold, and striking; but afterwards, when he took up the pen in his +leisure hours, and his passion had sunk into a calm, his Elocution became +dull and languid. This indeed can never happen to those whose only aim is +to be neat and polished; because an Orator may always be master of that +discretion which will enable him both to speak and write in the same +agreeable manner: but no man can revive at pleasure the ardour of his +passions; and when that has once subsided, the fire and pathos of his +language will be extinguished. This is the reason why the calm and easy +spirit of Laelius seems still to breathe in his writings, whereas the +force of Galba is entirely withered and lost. + +"We may also reckon in the number of middling Orators, the two brothers L. +and Sp. Mummius, both whose Orations are still in being:--the style of +Lucius is plain and antiquated; but that of Spurius, though equally +unembellished, is more close, and compact; for he was well versed in the +doctrine of the Stoics. The Orations of Sp. Alpinus, their cotemporary, +are very numerous: and we have several by L. and C. Aurelius Oresta, who +were esteemed indifferent Speakers. P. Popilius also was a worthy citizen, +and had a tolerable share of utterance: but his son Caius was really +eloquent. To _these_ we may add C. Tuditanus, who was not only very +polished, and genteel, in his manners and appearance, but had an elegant +turn of expression; and of the same class was M. Octavius, a man of +inflexible constancy in every just and laudable measure; and who, after +being affronted and disgraced in the most public manner, defeated his +rival Tiberius Gracchus by the mere dint of his perseverance. But M. +Aemilius Lepidus, who was surnamed Porcina, and flourished at the same +time as Galba, though he was indeed something younger, was esteemed an +Orator of the first eminence; and really appears, from his Orations which +are still extant, to have been a masterly writer. For he was the first +Speaker, among the Romans, who gave us a specimen of the easy gracefulness +of the Greeks; and who was distinguished by the measured flow of his +language, and a style regularly polished and improved by art. His manner +was carefully studied by C. Carbo and Tib. Gracchus, two accomplished +youths who were nearly of an age: but we must defer their character as +public Speakers, till we have finished our account of their elders. For Q. +Pompeius, according to the style of the time, was no contemptible Orator; +and actually raised himself to the highest honours of the State by his own +personal merit, and without being recommended, as usual, by the quality of +his ancestors. Lucius Cassius too derived his influence, which was very +considerable, not indeed from his _Eloquence_, but from his manly way of +speaking: for it is remarkable that he made himself popular, not, as +others did, by his complaisance and liberality, but by the gloomy rigour +and severity of his manners. His law for collecting the votes of the +people by way of ballot, was strongly opposed by the Tribune M. Antius +Briso, who was supported by M. Lepidus one of the Consuls: and it was +afterwards objected to Africanus, that Briso dropped the opposition by his +advice. At this time the two Scipios were very serviceable to a number of +clients by their superior judgment, and Eloquence; but still more so by +their extensive interest and popularity. But the written speeches of +Pompeius (though it must be owned they have rather an antiquated air) +discover an amazing sagacity, and are very far from being dry and +spiritless. To these we must add P. Crassus, an orator of uncommon merit, +who was qualified for the profession by the united efforts of art and +nature, and enjoyed some other advantages which were almost peculiar to +his family. For he had contracted an affinity with that accomplished +Speaker Servius Galba above-mentioned, by giving his daughter in marriage +to Galba's son; and being likewise himself the son of Mucius, and the +brother of P. Scaevola, he had a fine opportunity at home (which he made +the best use of) to gain a thorough knowledge of the Civil Law. He was a +man of unusual application, and was much beloved by his fellow-citizens; +being constantly employed either in giving his advice, or pleading causes +in the Forum. Cotemporary with the Speakers I have mentioned were the two +C. Fannii, the sons of C. and M. one of whom, (the son of C.) who was +joint Consul with Domitius, has left us an excellent speech against +Gracchus, who proposed the admission of the Latin and Italian allies to +the freedom of Rome."--"Do you really think, then," said Atticus, "that +Fannius was the author of that Oration? For when we were young, there were +different opinions about it. Some asserted it was wrote by C. Persius, a +man of letters, and the same who is so much extolled for his learning by +Lucilius: and others believed it was the joint production of a number of +noblemen, each of whom contributed his best to complete it."--"This I +remember," said I; "but I could never persuade myself to coincide with +either of them. Their suspicion, I believe, was entirely founded on the +character of Fannius, who was only reckoned among the _middling_ Orators; +whereas the speech in question is esteemed the best which the time +afforded. But, on the other hand, it is too much of a piece to have been +the mingled composition of many: for the flow of the periods, and the turn +of the language, are perfectly similar, throughout the whole of it.--and +as to _Persius_, if _he_ had composed it for Fannius to pronounce, +Gracchus would certainly have taken some notice of it in his reply; +because Fannius rallies Gracchus pretty severely, in one part of it, for +employing Menelaus of Marathon, and several others, to manufacture his +speeches. We may add that Fannius himself was no contemptible Orator: for +he pleaded a number of causes, and his Tribuneship, which was chiefly +conducted under the management and direction of P. Africanus, was very far +from being an idle one. But the other C. Fannius, (the son of M.) and son- +in-law of C. Laelius, was of a rougher cast, both in his temper, and +manner of speaking. By the advice of his father-in-law, (of whom, by the +bye, he was not remarkably fond, because he had not voted for his +admission into the college of augurs, but gave the preference to his +younger son-in-law Q. Scaevola; though Laelius genteely excused himself, +by saying that the preference was not given to the youngest son, but to +his wife the eldest daughter,) by his advice, I say, he attended the +lectures of Panaetius. His abilities as a Speaker may be easily +conjectured from his History, which is neither destitute of elegance, nor +a perfect model of composition. As to his brother Mucius the augur, +whenever he was called upon to defend himself, he always pleaded his own +cause; as, for instance, in the action which was brought against him for +bribery by T. Albucius. But he was never ranked among the Orators; his +chief merit being a critical knowledge of the Civil Law, and an uncommon +accuracy of judgment. L. Caelius Antipater likewise (as you may see by his +works) was an elegant and a handsome writer for the time he lived in; he +was also an excellent Lawyer, and taught the principles of jurisprudence +to many others, particularly to L. Crassus. As to Caius Carbo and T. +Gracchus, I wish they had been as well inclined to maintain peace and good +order in the State, as they were qualified to support it by their +Eloquence: their glory would then have been out-rivaled by no one. But the +latter, for his turbulent Tribuneship, which he entered upon with a heart +full of resentment against the great and good, on account of the odium he +had brought upon himself by the treaty of Numantia, was slain by the hands +of the Republic: and the other, being impeached of a seditious affectation +of popularity, rescued himself from the severity of the judges by a +voluntary death. That both of them were excellent Speakers, is very plain +from the general testimony of their cotemporaries: for as to their +Speeches now extant, though I allow them to be very artful and judicious, +they are certainly defective in Elocution. Gracchus had the advantage of +being carefully instructed by his mother Cornelia from his very childhood, +and his mind was enriched with all the stores of Grecian literature: for +he was constantly attended by the ablest masters from Greece, and +particularly, in his youth, by Diophanes of Mitylene, who was the most +eloquent Grecian of his age: but though he was a man of uncommon genius, +he had but a short time to improve and display it. As to Carbo, his whole +life was spent in trials, and forensic debates. He is said by very +sensible men who heard him, and, among others, by our friend L. Gellius +who lived in his family in the time of his Consulship, to have been a +sonorous, a fluent, and a spirited Speaker, and likewise, upon occasion, +very pathetic, very engaging, and excessively humorous: Gellius used to +add, that he applied himself very closely to his studies, and bestowed +much of his time in writing and private declamation. He was, therefore, +esteemed the best pleader of his time; for no sooner had he began to +distinguish himself in the Forum, but the depravity of the age gave birth +to a number of law-suits; and it was first found necessary, in the time of +his youth, to settle the form of public trials, which had never been done +before. We accordingly find that L. Piso, then a Tribune of the people, +was the first who proposed a law against bribery; which he did when +Censorinus and Manilius were Consuls. This Piso too was a professed +pleader, and the proposer and opposer of a great number of laws: he left +some Orations behind him, which are now lost, and a Book of Annals very +indifferently written. But in the public trials, in which Carbo was +concerned, the assistance of an able advocate had become more necessary +than ever, in consequence of the law for voting by ballots, which was +proposed and carried by L. Cassius, in the Consulship of Lepidus and +Mancinus. + +"I have likewise been often assured by the poet Attius, (an intimate +friend of his) that your ancestor D. Brutus, the son of M. was no +inelegant Speaker; and that for the time he lived in, he was well versed +both in the Greek and Roman literature. He ascribed the same +accomplishments to Q. Maximus, the grandson of L. Paulus: and added that, +a little prior to Maximus, the Scipio, by whose instigation (though only +in a private capacity) T. Gracchus was assassinated, was not only a man of +great ardour in all other respects, but very warm and spirited in his +manner of speaking. P. Lentulus too, the Father of the Senate, had a +sufficient share of eloquence for an honest and useful magistrate. About +the same time L. Furius Philus was thought to speak our language as +elegantly, and more correctly than any other man; P. Scaevola to be very +artful and judicious, and rather more fluent than Philus; M. Manilius to +possess almost an equal share of judgment with the latter; and Appius +Claudius to be equally fluent, but more warm and pathetic. M. Fulvius +Flaccus, and C. Cato the nephew of Africanus, were likewise tolerable +Orators: some of the writings of Flaccus are still in being, in which +nothing, however, is to be seen but the mere scholar. P. Decius was a +professed rival of Flaccus; he too was not destitute of Eloquence; but his +style, as well as his temper, was too violent. M. Drusus the son of C. +who, in his Tribuneship, baffled [Footnote: _Laffiea_. In the original it +runs, "_Caium Gracchum collegam, iterum Tribinum fecit_." but this was +undoubtedly a mistake of the transcriber, as being contrary not only to +the truth of History, but to Cicero's own account of the matter in lib. +IV. _Di Finibus_. Pighius therefore has very properly recommended the word +_fregit_ instead of _fecit_.] his colleague Gracchus (then raised to the +same office a second time) was a nervous Speaker, and a man of great +popularity: and next to him was his brother C. Drusus. Your kinsman also, +my Brutus, (M. Pennus) successfully opposed the Tribune Gracchus, who was +something younger than himself. For Gracchus was Quaestor, and Pennus (the +son of that M. who was joint Consul with Q. Aelius) was Tribune, in the +Consulship of M. Lepidus and L. Orestes: but after enjoying the +Aedileship, and a prospect: of succeeding to the highest honours, he was +snatched off by an untimely death. As to T. Flaminius, whom I myself have +seen, I can learn nothing but that he spoke our language with great +accuracy. To these we may join C. Curio, M. Scaurus, P. Rutilius, and C. +Gracchus. It will not be amiss to give a short account of Scaurus and +Rutilius; neither of whom, indeed, had the reputation of being a first- +rate Orator, though each of them pleaded a number of causes. But some +deserving men, who were not remarkable for their genius, may be justly +commended for their industry; not that the persons I am speaking of were +really destitute of genius, but only of that particular kind of it which +distinguishes the Orator. For it is of little consequence to discover what +is proper to be said, unless you are able to express it in a free and +agreeable manner: and even that will be insufficient, if not recommended +by the voice, the look, and the gesture. It is needless to add that much +depends upon _Art_: for though, even without this, it is possible, by the +mere force of nature, to say many striking things; yet, as they will after +all be nothing more than so many lucky hits, we shall not be able to +repeat them at our pleasure. The style of Scaurus, who was a very sensible +and honest man, was remarkably serious, and commanded the respect of the +hearer: so that when he was speaking for his client, you would rather have +thought he was giving evidence in his favour, than pleading his cause. +This manner of speaking, however, though but indifferently adapted to the +bar, was very much so to a calm, debate in the Senate, of which Scaurus +was then esteemed the Father: for it not only bespoke his prudence, but +what was still a more important recommendation, his credibility. This +advantage, which it is not easy to acquire by art, he derived entirely +from nature: though you know that even _here_ we have some precepts to +assist us. We have several of his Orations still extant, and three books +inscribed to L. Fufidius containing the History of his own Life, which, +though a very useful work, is scarcely read by any body. But the +_Institution of Cyrus_, by Xenophon, is read by every one; which, though +an excellent performance of the kind, is much less adapted to our manners +and form of government, and not superior in merit to the honest simplicity +of Scaurus. Fufidius himself was likewise a tolerable pleader. But +Rutilius was distinguished by his solemn and austere way of speaking; and +both of them were naturally warm, and spirited. Accordingly, after they +had rivalled each other for the Consulship, he who had lost his election, +immediately sued his competitor for bribery; and Scaurus, the defendant, +being honourably acquitted of the charge, returned the compliment to +Rutilius, by commencing a similar prosecution against _him_. Rutilius was +a man of great industry and application; for which he was the more +respected, because, besides his pleadings, he undertook the office (which +was a very troublesome one) of giving advice to all who applied to him, in +matters of law. His Orations are very dry, but his juridical remarks are +excellent: for he was a learned man, and well versed in the Greek +literature, and was likewise an attentive and constant hearer of +Panaetius, and a thorough proficient in the doctrine of the Stoics; whose +method of discoursing, though very close and artful, is too precise, and +not at all adapted to engage the attention of common people. That self- +confidence, therefore, which is so peculiar to the sect, was displayed by +_him_ with amazing firmness and resolution; for though he was perfectly +innocent of the charge, a prosecution was commenced against him for +bribery (a trial which raised a violent commotion in the city)--and yet +though L. Crassus and M. Antonius, both of Consular dignity, were, at that +time, in very high repute for their Eloquence, he refused the assistance +of either; being determined to plead his cause himself, which he +accordingly did. C. Cotta, indeed, who was his nephew, made a short speech +in his vindication, which he spoke in the true style of an Orator, though +he was then but a youth. Q. Mucius too said much in his defence, with his +usual accuracy and elegance; but not with that force, and extension, which +the mode of trial, and the importance of the cause demanded. Rutilius, +therefore, was an Orator of the _Stoical_, and Scaurus of the _Antique_ +cast: but they are both entitled to our commendation; because, in _them_, +even this formal and unpromising species of Elocution has appeared among +us with some degree of merit. For as in the Theatre, so in the Forum, I +would not have our applause confined to those alone who act the busy, and +more important characters; but reserve a share of it for the quiet and +unambitious performer who is distinguished by a simple truth of gesture, +without any violence. As I have mentioned the Stoics, I must take some +notice of Q. Aelius Tubero, the grandson of L. Paullus, who made his +appearance at the time we are speaking of. He was never esteemed an +Orator, but was a man of the most rigid virtue, and strictly conformable +to the doctrine he professed: but, in truth, he was rather too crabbed. In +his Triumvirate, he declared, contrary to the opinion of P. Africanus his +uncle, that the Augurs had no right of exemption from sitting in the +courts of justice: and as in his temper, so in his manner of speaking, he +was harsh, unpolished, and austere; on which account, he could never raise +himself to the honourable ports which were enjoyed by his ancestors. But +he was a brave and steady citizen, and a warm opposer of Gracchus, as +appears from an Oration of Gracchus against him: we have likewise some of +Tubero's speeches against Gracchus. He was not indeed a shining Orator: +but he was a learned, and a very skilfull disputant. + +"I find," said Brutus, "that the case is much the same among us, as with +the Greeks; and that the Stoics, in general, are very judicious at an +argument, which they conduct by certain rules of art, and are likewise +very neat and exact in their language; but if we take them from this, to +speak in Public, they make a poor appearance. Cato, however, must be +excepted; in whom, though as rigid a Stoic as ever existed, I could not +wish for a more consummate degree of Eloquence: I can likewise discover a +moderate share of it in Fannius,--not so much in Rutilius;--but none at +all in Tubero."--"True," said I; "and we may easily account for it: Their +whole attention was so closely confined to the study of Logic, that they +never troubled themselves to acquire the free, diffusive, and variegated +style which is so necessary for a public Speaker. But your uncle, you +doubtless know, was wise enough to borrow only that from the Stoics, which +they were able to furnish for his purpose (the art of reasoning:) but for +the art of Speaking, he had recourse to the masters of Rhetoric, and +exercised himself in the manner they directed. If, however, we must be +indebted for everything to the Philosophers, the Peripatetic discipline +is, in my mind, much the properest to form our language. For which reason, +my Brutus, I the more approve your choice, in attaching yourself to a +sect, (I mean the Philosophers of the Old Academy,) in whose system, a +just and accurate way of reasoning is enlivened by a perpetual sweetness +and fluency of expression: but even the delicate and flowing style of the +Peripatetics, and Academics, is not sufficient to complete an Orator; nor +yet can he be complete without it. For as the language of the Stoics is +too close, and contracted, to suit the ears of common people; so that of +the latter is too diffusive and luxuriant for a spirited contest in the +Forum, or a pleading at the bar. Who had a richer style than Plato? The +Philosophers tell us, that if Jupiter himself was to converse in Greek, he +would speak like _him_. Who also was more nervous than Aristotle? Who +sweeter than Theophrastus? We are told that even Demosthenes attended the +lectures of Plato, and was fond of reading what he published; which, +indeed, is sufficiently evident from the turn, and the majesty of his +language and he himself has expressly mentioned it in one of his Letters. +But the style of this excellent Orator is, notwithstanding, much too +fierce for the Academy; as that of the Philosophers is too mild and placid +for the Forum. I shall now, with your leave, proceed to the age and merits +of the rest of the Roman Orators."--"Nothing," said Atticus, "(for I can +safely answer for my friend Brutus) would please us better."--"Curio, +then," said I, "was nearly of the age I have just mentioned,--a celebrated +Speaker, whose genius may be easily decided from his Orations. For, among +several others, we have a noble Speech of his for Ser. Fulvius, in a +prosecution for incest. When we were children, it was esteemed the best +then extant; but now it is almost overlooked among the numerous +performances of the same kind which have been lately published."--"I am +very sensible," replied Brutus, "to whom we are obliged for the numerous +performances you speak of."--"And I am equally sensible," said I, "who is +the person you intend: for I have at least done a service to my young +countrymen, by introducing a loftier, and more embellished way of +speaking, than was used before: and, perhaps, I have also done some harm, +because after _mine_ appeared, the Speeches of our ancestors and +predecessors began to be neglected by most people; though never by _me_, +for I can assure you, I always prefer them to my own."--"But you must +reckon me," said Brutus, "among the _most people_; though I now see, from +your recommendation, that I have a great many books to read, of which +before I had very little opinion."--"But this celebrated Oration," said I, +"in the prosecution for incest, is in some places excessively puerile; and +what is said in it of the passion of love, the inefficacy of questioning +by tortures, and the danger of trusting to common hear-say, is indeed +pretty enough, but would be insufferable to the tutored ears of the +moderns, and to a people who are justly distinguished for the solidity of +their knowledge. He likewise wrote several other pieces, spoke a number of +good Orations, and was certainly an eminent pleader; so that I much +wonder, considering how long he lived, and the character he bore, that he +was never preferred to the Consulship. But I have a man here, [Footnote: +He refers, perhaps, to the Works of Gracchus, which he might then have in +his hand; or, more probably, to a statue of him, which stood near the +place where he and his friends were sitting.] (C. Gracchus) who had an +amazing genius, and the warmest application; and was a Scholar from his +very childhood: For you must not imagine, my Brutus, that we have ever yet +had a Speaker, whose language was richer and more copious than his."--"I +really think so," answered Brutus; "and he is almost the only author we +have, among the ancients, that I take the trouble to read." "And he well +_deserves_ it," said I; "for the Roman name and literature were great +losers by his untimely fate. I wish he had transferred his affection for +his brother to his country! How easily, if he had thus prolonged his life, +would he have rivalled the glory of his father, and grandfather! In +Eloquence, I scarcely know whether we should yet have had his equal. His +language was noble; his sentiments manly and judicious; and his whole +manner great and striking. He wanted nothing but the finishing touch: for +though his first attempts were as excellent as they were numerous, he did +not live to complete them. In short, my Brutus, _he_, if any one, should +be carefully studied by the Roman youth: for he is able, not only to edge, +but to feed and ripen their talents. After _him_ appeared C. Galba, the +son of the eloquent Servius, and the son-in-law of P. Crassus, who was +both an eminent Speaker, and a skilful Civilian. He was much commended by +our fathers, who respected him for the sake of _his_: but he had the +misfortune to be stopped in his career. For being tried by the Mamilian +law, as a party concerned in the conspiracy to support Jugurtha, though he +exerted all his abilities to defend himself, he was unhappily cast. His +peroration, or, as it is often called, his epilogue, is still extant; and +was so much in repute, when we were school-boys, that we used to learn it +by heart: he was the first member of the Sacerdotal College, since the +building of Rome, who was publicly tried and condemned. As to P. Scipio, +who died in his Consulship, he neither spoke much, nor often: but he was +inferior to no one in the purity of his language, and superior to all in +wit and pleasantry. His colleague L. Bestia, who begun his Tribuneship +very successfully, (for, by a law which he preferred for the purpose, he +procured the recall of Popillius, who had been exiled by the influence of +Caius Gracchus) was a man of spirit, and a tolerable Speaker: but he did +not finish his Consulship so happily. For, in consequence of the invidious +law of Mamilius above-mentioned, C. Galba one of the Priests, and the four +Consular gentlemen L. Bestia, C. Cato, Sp. Albinus, and that excellent +citizen L. Opimius, who killed Gracchus; of which he was acquitted by the +people, though he had constantly sided against them,--were all condemned +by their judges, who were of the Gracchan party. Very unlike him in his +Tribuneship, and indeed in every other part of his life, was that infamous +citizen C. Licinius Nerva; but he was not destitute of Eloquence. Nearly +at the same time, (though, indeed, he was somewhat older) flourished C. +Fimbria, who was rather rough and abusive, and much too warm and hasty: +but his application, and his great integrity and firmness made him a +serviceable Speaker in the Senate. He was likewise a tolerable Pleader, +and Civilian, and distinguished by the same rigid freedom in the turn of +his language, as in that of his virtues. When we were boys, we used to +think his Orations worth reading; though they are now scarcely to be met +with. But C. Sextius Calvinus was equally elegant both in his taste, and +his language, though, unhappily, of a very infirm constitution:--when the +pain in his feet intermitted, he did not decline the trouble of pleading, +but he did not attempt it very often. His fellow-citizens, therefore, made +use of his advice, whenever they had occasion for it; but of his +patronage, only when his health permitted. Cotemporary with these, my good +friend, was your namesake M. Brutus, the disgrace of your noble family; +who, though he bore that honourable name, and had the best of men, and an +eminent Civilian, for his father, confined his practice to accusations, as +Lycurgus is said to have done at Athens. He never sued for any of our +magistracies; but was a severe, and a troublesome prosecutor: so that we +easily see that, in _him_, the natural goodness of the flock was corrupted +by the vicious inclinations of the man. At the same time lived L. +Caesulenus, a man of Plebeian rank, and a professed accuser, like the +former: I myself heard him in his old age, when he endeavoured, by the +Aquilian law, to subject L. Sabellius to a fine, for a breach of justice. +But I should not have taken any notice of such a low-born wretch, if I had +not thought that no person I ever heard, could give a more suspicious turn +to the cause of the defendant, or exaggerate it to a higher degree of +criminality. T. Albucius, who lived in the same age, was well versed in +the Grecian literature, or, rather, was almost a Greek himself. I speak of +him, as I think; but any person, who pleases, may judge what he was by his +Orations. In his youth, he studied at Athens, and returned from thence a +thorough proficient in the doctrine of Epicurus; which, of all others, is +the least adapted to form an orator. His cotemporary, Q. Catulus, was an +accomplished Speaker, not in the ancient taste, but (unless any thing more +perfect can be exhibited) in the finished style of the moderns. He had a +plentiful stock of learning; an easy, winning elegance, not only in his +manners and disposition, but in his very language; and an unblemished +purity and correctness of style. This may be easily seen by his Orations; +and particularly, by the History of his Consulship, and of his subsequent +transactions, which he composed in the soft and agreeable manner of +Xenophon, and made a present of to the poet, A. Furius, an intimate +acquaintance of his: but this performance is as little known, as the three +books of Scaurus before-mentioned."--"Indeed, I must confess," said +Brutus, "that both the one and the other, are perfectly unknown to me: but +that is entirely my _own_ fault. I shall now, therefore, request a sight +of them from _you_; and am resolved, in future, to be more careful in +collecting such valuable curiosities."--"This Catulus," said I, "as I have +just observed, was distinguished by the purity of his language; which, +though a material accomplishment, is too much neglected by most of the +Roman orators; for as to the elegant tone of his voice, and the sweetness +of his accent, as you knew his son, it will be needless to take any notice +of them. His son, indeed, was not in the list of Orators: but whenever he +had occasion to deliver his sentiments in public, he neither wanted +judgment, nor a neat and liberal turn of expression. Nay, even the father +himself was not reckoned the foremost in the list of Orators: but still he +had that kind of merit, that notwithstanding, after you had heard two or +three speakers, who were particularly eminent in their profession, you +might judge him inferior; yet, whenever you heard him _alone_, and without +an immediate opportunity of making a comparison, you would not only be +satisfied with him, but scarcely wish for a better advocate. As to Q. +Metellus Numidicus, and his Colleague M. Silanus, they spoke, on matters +of government, with as much eloquence as was really necessary for men of +their illustrious character, and of consular dignity. But M. Aurelius +Scaurus, though he spoke in public but seldom, always spoke very neatly, +and he had a more elegant command of the Roman language than most men. A. +Albinus was a speaker of the same kind; but Albinus, the Flamen, was +esteemed an _orator_. Q. Capio too had a great deal of spirit, and was a +brave citizen: but the unlucky chance of war was imputed to him as a +crime, and the general odium of the people proved his ruin. C. and L. +Memmius were likewise indifferent orators, and distinguished by the +bitterness and asperity of their accusations: for they prosecuted many, +but seldom spoke for the defendant. Sp. Torius, on the other hand, was +distinguished by his _popular_ way of speaking; the very same man, who, by +his corrupt and frivolous law, diminished [Footnote: By dividing great +part of them among the people.] the taxes which were levied on the public +lands. M. Marcellus, the father of Aeserninus, though not reckoned a +professed pleader, was a prompt, and, in some degree, a practised speaker; +as was also his son P. Lentulus. L. Cotta likewise, a man of Praetorian +rank, was esteemed a tolerable orator; but he never made any great +progress; on the contrary, he purposely endeavoured, both in the choice of +his words, and the rusticity of his pronunciation, to imitate the manner +of the ancients. I am indeed sensible that in this instance of Cotta, and +in many others, I have, and shall again insert in the list of Orators, +those who, in reality, had but little claim to the character. For it was, +professedly, my design, to collect an account of all the Romans, without +exception, who made it their business to excel in the profession of +_Eloquence_: and it may be easily seen from this account, by what slow +gradations they advanced, and how excessively difficult it is, in every +thing, to rise to the summit of perfection. As a proof of this, how many +orators have been already recounted, and how much time have we bestowed +upon them, before we could force our way, after infinite fatigue and +drudgery, as, among the Greek's, to _Demosthenes_ and _Hyperides_, so now, +among our own countrymen, to _Antonius_ and _Crassus_! For, in my mind, +these were consummate Orators, and the first among the Romans whose +diffusive Eloquence rivalled the glory of the Greeks. Antonius discovered +every thing which could be of service to his cause, and that in the very +order in which it would be most so: and as a skilful General posts the +cavalry, the infantry, and the light troops, where each of them can act to +most advantage; so Antonius drew up his arguments in those parts of his +discourse, where they were likely to have the best effect. He had a quick +and retentive memory, and a frankness of manner which precluded any +suspicion of artifice. All his speeches were, in appearance, the +unpremeditated effusions of an honest heart; and yet, in reality, they +were preconcerted with so much skill, that the judges were, sometimes, not +so well prepared, as they should have been, to withstand the force of +them. His language, indeed, was not so refined as to pass for the standard +of elegance; for which reason he was thought to be rather a careless +speaker; and yet, on the other hand, it was neither vulgar nor incorrect, +but of that solid and judicious turn, which constitutes the real merit of +an Orator, as to the choice of his words. For, as to a purity of style, +though this is certainly (as before observed) a very commendable quality, +it is not so much so for its intrinsic consequence, as because it is too +generally neglected. In short, it is not so meritorious to speak our +native tongue correctly, as it is scandalous to speak it otherwise; nor is +it so much the property of a good Orator, as of a well-bred Citizen. But +in the choice of his words (in which he had more regard to their weight +than their brilliance) and likewise in the structure of his language, and +the compass of his periods, Antonius conformed himself to the dictates of +reason, and, in a great measure, to the nicer rules of art: though his +chief excellence was a judicious management of the figures and decorations +of sentiment. This was likewise the distinguishing excellence of +Demosthenes; in which he was so far superior to all others, as to be +allowed, in the opinion of the best judges, to be the Prince of Orators. +For the _figures_ (as they are called by the Greeks) are the principal +ornaments of an able speaker, I mean those which contribute not so much to +paint and embellish our language, as to give a lustre to our sentiments. +But besides these, of which Antonius had a great command, he had a +peculiar excellence in his manner of delivery, both as to his voice and +gesture; for the latter was such as to correspond to the meaning of every +sentence, without beating time to the words. His hands, his shoulders, the +turn of his body, the stamp of his foot, his posture, his air, and, in +short, his every motion, was adapted to his language and sentiments: and +his voice was strong and firm, though naturally hoarse;--a defect which he +alone was capable of improving to his advantage; for in capital causes, it +had a mournful dignity of accent, which was exceedingly proper, both to +win the assent of the judges, and excite their compassion for a suffering +client: so that in _him_ the observation of Demosthenes was eminently +verified, who being asked what was the _first_ quality of a good Orator, +what the _second_, and what the _third_, constantly replied, A good +enunciation. + +"But many thought that he was equalled, and others that he was even +excelled by Lucius Crassus. All, however, were agreed in this, that +whoever had either of them for his advocate, had no cause to wish for a +better. For my own part, notwithstanding the uncommon merit I have +ascribed to Antonius, I must also acknowlege, that there cannot be a more +finished character than that of Crassus. He possessed a wonderful dignity +of elocution, with an agreeable mixture of wit and pleasantry, which was +perfectly genteel, and without the smallest tincture of scurrility. His +style was correct and elegant without stiffness or affectation: his method +of reasoning was remarkably clear and distinct: and when his cause turned +upon any point of law, or equity, he had an inexhaustible fund of +arguments, and comparative illustrations. For as Antonius had an admirable +turn for suggesting apposite hints, and either suppressing or exciting the +suspicions of the hearer; so no man could explain and define, or discuss a +point of equity, with a more copious facility than Crassus; as +sufficiently appeared upon many other occasions, but particularly in the +cause of M. Curius, which was tried before the Centum Viri. For he urged a +great variety of arguments in the defence of right and equity, against the +literal _jubeat_ of the law; and supported them by such a numerous series +of precedents, that he overpowered Q. Scaevola (a man of uncommon +penetration, and the ablest Civilian of his time) though the case before +them was only a matter of legal right. But the cause was so ably managed +by the two advocates, who were nearly of an age, and both of consular +rank, that while each endeavoured to interpret the law in favour of his +client, Crassus was universally allowed to be the best Lawyer among the +Orators, and Scaevola to be the most eloquent Civilian of the age: for the +latter could not only discover with the nicest precision what was +agreeable to law and equity; but had likewise a conciseness and propriety +of expression, which was admirably adapted to his purpose. In short, he +had such a wonderful vein of oratory in commenting, explaining, and +discussing, that I never beheld his equal; though in amplifying, +embellishing, and refuting, he was rather to be dreaded as a formidable +critic, than admired as an eloquent speaker."--"Indeed," said Brutus, +"though I always thought I sufficiently understood the character of +Scaevola, by the account I had heard of him from C. Rutilius, whose +company I frequented for the sake of his acquaintance with him, I had not +the least idea of his merit as an orator. I am now, therefore, not a +little pleased to be informed, that our Republic has had the honour of +producing so accomplished a man, and such an excellent genius."--"Really, +my Brutus," said I, "you may take it from me, that the Roman State had +never been adorned with two finer characters than these. For, as I have +before observed, that the one was the best Lawyer among the Orators, and +the other the best Speaker among the Civilians of his time; so the +difference between them, in all other respects, was of such a nature, that +it would almost be impossible for you to determine which of the two you +would rather choose to resemble. For, as Crassus was the closest of all +our elegant speakers, so Scaevola was the most elegant among those who +were distinguished by the frugal accuracy of their language: and as +Crassus tempered his affability with a proper share of severity, so the +rigid air of Scaevola was not destitute of the milder graces of an affable +condescension. Though this was really their character, it is very possible +that I may be thought to have embellished it beyond the bounds of truth, +to give an agreeable air to my narrative: but as your favourite sect, my +Brutus, the Old Academy, has defined all Virtue to be a just Mediocrity, +it was the constant endeavour of these two eminent men to pursue this +Golden Mean; and yet it so happened, that while each of them shared a part +of the other's excellence, he preserved his own entire."--"To speak what I +think," replied Brutus, "I have not only acquired a proper acquaintance +with their characters from your account of them, but I can likewise +discover, that the same comparison might be drawn between _you_ and Serv. +Sulpicius, which you have just been making between Crassus and Scaevola." +--"In what manner?" said I.--"Because _you_," replied Brutus, "have taken +the pains to acquire as extensive a knowledge of the law as is necessary +for an Orator; and Sulpicius, on the other hand, took care to furnish +himself with sufficient eloquence to support the character of an able +Civilian. Besides, your age corresponded as nearly to his, as the age of +Crassus did to that of Scaevola."--"As to my own abilities," said I, "the +rules of decency forbid me to speak of them: but your character of Servius +is a very just one, and I may freely tell you what I think of him. There +are few, I believe, who have applied themselves more assiduously to the +art of Speaking than he did, or indeed to the study of every useful +science. In our youth, we both of us followed the same liberal exercises; +and he afterwards accompanied me to Rhodes, to pursue those studies which +might equally improve him as a Man and a Scholar; but when he returned +from thence, he appears to me to have been rather ambitious to be the +foremost man in a secondary profession, than the second in that which +claims the highest dignity. I will not pretend to say that he could not +have ranked himself among the foremost in the latter profession; but he +rather chose to be, what he actually made himself, the first Lawyer of his +time."--"Indeed!" said Brutus: "and do you really prefer Servius to Q. +Scaevola?"--"My opinion," said I, "Brutus, is, that Q. Scaevola, and many +others, had a thorough practical knowledge of the law; but that Servius +alone understood it as _science_: which he could never have done by the +mere study of the law, and without a previous acquaintance with the art +which teaches us to divide a whole into its subordinate parts, to, decide +an indeterminate idea by an accurate definition: to explain what is +obscure, by a clear interpretation; and first to discover what things are +of a _doubtful_ nature, then to distinguish them by their different +degrees of probability; and lastly, to be provided with a certain rule or +measure by which we may judge what is true, and what false, and what +inferences fairly may, or may not be deduced from any given premises. This +important art he applied to those subjects which, for want of it, were +necessarily managed by others without due order and precision."--"You +mean, I suppose," said Brutus, "the Art of Logic."--"You suppose very +right," answered I: "but he added to it an extensive acquaintance with +polite literature, and an elegant manner of expressing himself; as is +sufficiently evident from the incomparable writings he has left behind +him. And as he attached himself, for the improvement of his eloquence, to +L. Lucilius Balbus, and C. Aquilius Gallus, two very able speakers; he +effectually thwarted the prompt celerity of the latter (though a keen, +experienced man) both in supporting and refuting a charge, by his accuracy +and precision, and overpowered the deliberate formality of Balbus (a man +of great learning and erudition) by his adroit and dextrous method of +arguing: so that he equally possessed the good qualities of both, without +their defects. As Crassus, therefore, in my mind, acted more prudently +than Scaevola; (for the latter was very fond of pleading causes, in which +he was certainly inferior to Crassus; whereas the former never engaged +himself in an unequal competition with Scaevola, by assuming the character +of a Civilian;) so Servius pursued a plan which sufficiently discovered +his wisdom; for as the profession of a Pleader, and a Lawyer, are both of +them held in great esteem, and give those who are masters of them the most +extensive influence among their fellow-citizens; he acquired an undisputed +superiority in the one, and improved himself as much in the other as was +necessary to support the authority of the Civil Law, and promote him to +the dignity of a Consul."--"This is precisely the opinion I had formed of +him," said Brutus. "For, a few years ago I heard him often and very +attentively at Samos, when I wanted to be instructed by him in the +Pontifical Law, as far as it is connected with the Civil; and I am now +greatly confirmed in my opinion of him, by finding that it coincides so +exactly with yours. I am likewise not a little pleased to observe, that +the equality of your ages, your sharing the same honours and preferments, +and the vicinity of your respective studies and professions, has been so +far from precipitating either of you into that envious detraction of the +other's merit, which most people are tormented with, that, instead of +wounding your mutual friendship, it has only served to increase and +strengthen it; for, to my own knowlege, he had the same affection for, and +the same favourable sentiments of _you_, which I now discover in you +towards _him_. I cannot, therefore, help regretting very sincerely, that +the Roman State has so long been deprived of the benefit of his advice, +and of your Eloquence;--a circumstance which is indeed calamitous enough +in itself; but must appear much more so to him who considers into what +hands that once respectable authority has been of late, I will not say +transferred, but forcibly wrested."--"You certainly forget," said Atticus, +"that I proposed, when we began the conversation, to drop all matters of +State; by all means, therefore, let us keep to our plan: for if we once +begin to repeat our grievances, there will be no end, I need not say to +our inquiries, but to our sighs and lamentations."--"Let us proceed, +then," said I, "without any farther digression, and pursue the plan we set +out upon. Crassus (for he is the Orator we were just speaking of) always +came into the Forum ready prepared for the combat. He was expected with +impatience, and heard with pleasure. When he first began his Oration +(which he always did in a very accurate style) he seemed worthy of the +great expectations he had raised. He was very moderate in the sway of his +body, had no remarkable variation of voice, never advanced from the ground +he stood upon, and seldom stamped his foot: his language was forcible, and +sometimes warm and pathetic; he had many strokes of humour, which were +always tempered with a becoming dignity; and, what is a difficult +character to hit, he was at once very florid, and very concise. In a close +contest, he never met with his equal; and there was scarcely any kind of +causes, in which he had not signalized his abilities; so that he enrolled +himself very early among the first Orators of the time. He accused C. +Carbo, though a man of great Eloquence, when he was but a youth;--and +displayed his talents in such a manner, that they were not only applauded, +but admired by every body. He afterwards defended the Virgin Licinia, when +he was only twenty-seven years of age; on which occasion he discovered an +uncommon share of Eloquence, as is evident from those parts of his Oration +which he left behind him in writing. As he was then desirous to have the +honour of settling the colony of Narbonne (as he afterwards did) he +thought it adviseable to recommend himself, by undertaking the management +of some popular cause. His Oration, in support of the act which was +proposed for that purpose, is still extant; and discovers a greater +maturity of genius than might have been expected at that time of life. He +afterwards pleaded many other causes: but his tribuneship was such a +remarkably silent one, that if he had not supped with Granius the beadle +when he enjoyed that office (a circumstance which has been twice mentioned +by Lucilius) we should scarcely have known that a tribune of that name had +existed."--"I believe so," replied Brutus: "but I have heard as little of +the tribuneship of Scaevola, though I must naturally suppose that he was +the colleague of Crassus."--"He was so," said I, "in all his other +preferments; but he was not tribune till the year after him; and when he +sat in the Rostrum in that capacity, Crassus spoke in support of the +Servilian law. I must observe, however, that Crassus had not Scaevola for +his colleague in the censorship; for none of the Scaevolas ever sued for +that office. But when the last-mentioned Oration of Crassus was published +(which I dare say you have frequently read) he was thirty-four years of +age, which was exactly the difference between his age and mine. For he +supported the law I have just been speaking of, in the very consulship +under which I was born; whereas he himself was born in the consulship of +Q. Caepio, and C. Laelius, about three years later than Antonius. I have +particularly noticed this circumstance, to specify the time when the Roman +Eloquence attained its first _maturity_; and was actually carried to such +a degree of perfection, as to leave no room for any one to carry it +higher, unless by the assistance of a more complete and extensive +knowledge of philosophy, jurisprudence, and history."--"But does there," +said Brutus, "or will there ever exist a man, who is furnished with all +the united accomplishments you require?"--"I really don't know," said I; +"but we have a speech made by Crassus in his consulship, in praise of Q. +Caepio, intermingled with a defence of his conduct, which, though a short +one if we consider it as an Oration, is not so as a Panegyric;--and +another, which was his last, and which he spoke in the 48th year of his +age, at the time he was censor. In these we have the genuine complexion of +Eloquence, without any painting or disguise: but his periods (I mean +Crassus's) were generally short and concise; and he was fond of expressing +himself in those minuter sentences, or members, which the Greeks call +Colons."--"As you have spoken so largely," said Brutus, "in praise of the +two last-mentioned Orators, I heartily wish that Antonius had left us some +other specimen of his abilities, than his trifling Essay on the Art of +Speaking, and Crassus more than he has: by so doing, they would have +transmitted their fame to _posterity_; and to us a valuable system of +Eloquence. For as to the elegant language of Scaevola, we have sufficient +proofs of it in the Orations he has left behind him."--"For my part," said +I, "the Oration I was speaking of, on Caepio's case, has been my pattern, +and my tutoress, from my very childhood. It supports the dignity of the +Senate, which was deeply interested in the debate; and excites the +jealousy of the audience against the party of the judges and accusers, +whose power it was necessary to expose in the most popular terms. Many +parts of it are very strong and nervous, many others very cool and +composed; and some are distinguished by the asperity of their language, +and not a few by their wit and pleasantry: but much more was said than was +committed to writing, as is sufficiently evident from several heads of the +Oration, which are merely proposed without any enlargement or explanation. +But the oration in his censorship against his colleague Cn. Domitius, is +not so much an Oration, as an analysis of the subject, or a general sketch +of what he had said, with here and there a few ornamental touches, by way +of specimen: for no contest was ever conducted with greater spirit than +this. Crassus, however, was eminently distinguished by the popular turn of +his language: but that of Antonius was better adapted to judicial trials, +than to a public debate. As we have had occasion to mention him, Domitius +himself must not be left unnoticed: for though he is not enrolled in the +list of Orators, he had a sufficient share both of utterance and genius, +to support his character as a magistrate and his dignity as a consul. I +might likewise observe of C. Caelius, that he was a man of great +application, and many eminent qualities, and had eloquence enough to +support the private interests of his friends, and his own dignity in the +State. At the same time lived M. Herennius, who was reckoned among the +middling Orators, whose principal merit was the purity and correctness of +their language; and yet, in a suit for the consulship, he got the better +of L. Philippus, a man of the first rank and family, and of the most +extensive connections, and who was likewise a member of the College, and a +very eloquent speaker. _Then_ also lived C. Clodius, who, besides his +consequence as a nobleman of the first distinction, and a man of the most +powerful influence, was likewise possessed of a moderate share of +Eloquence. Nearly of the same age was C. Titius, a Roman knight, who, in +my judgment, arrived at as high a degree of perfection as a Roman orator +was able to do, without the assistance of the Grecian literature, and a +good share of practice. His Orations have so many delicate turns, such a +number of well-chosen examples, and such an agreeable vein of politeness, +that they almost seem to have been composed in the true Attic style. He +likewise transferred his delicacies into his very Tragedies, with +ingenuity enough, I confess, but not in the tragic taste. But the poet L. +Afranius, whom he studiously imitated, was a very smart writer, and, as +you well know, a man of great expression in the dramatic way. Q. Rubrius +Varro, who with C. Marius, was declared an enemy by the Senate, was +likewise a warm, and a very spirited prosecutor. My relation, M. +Gratidius, was a plausible speaker of the same kind, well versed in the +Grecian literature, formed by nature for the profession of Eloquence, and +an intimate acquaintance of M. Antonius: he commanded under him in +Cilicia, where he lost his life: and he once commenced a prosecution +against C. Fimbria, the father of M. Marius Gratidianus. There have +likewise been several among the Allies, and the Latins, who were esteemed +good Orators; as, for instance, Q. Vettius of Vettium, one of the Marsi, +whom I myself was acquainted with, a man of sense, and a concise speaker; +--the Q. and D. Valerii of Sora, my neighbours and acquaintances, who were +not so remarkable for their talent of speaking, as for their skill both in +the Greek and Roman literature; and C. Rusticellus of Bononia, an +experienced Orator, and a man of great natural volubility. But the most +eloquent of all those who were not citizens of Rome, was T. Betucius +Barrus of Asculum, some of whose Orations, which were spoken in that city, +are still extant: that which he made at Rome against Caepio, is really an +excellent one: the speech which Caepio delivered in answer to it, was made +by Aelius, who composed a number of Orations, but pronounced none himself. +But among those of a remoter date, L. Papirius of Fregellae in Latium, who +was almost cotemporary with Ti. Gracchus, was universally esteemed the +most eloquent: we have a speech of his in vindication of the Fregellani, +and the Latin Colonies, which was delivered before the Senate."--"And what +then is the merit," said Brutus, "which you mean to ascribe to these +provincial Orators?"--"What else," replied I, "but the very same which I +have ascribed to the city-orators; excepting that their language is not +tinctured with the same fashionable delicacy?"--"What fashionable delicacy +do you mean?" said he.--"I cannot," said I, "pretend to define it: I only +know that there is such a quality existing. When you go to your province +in Gaul, you will be convinced of it. You will there find many expressions +which are not current in Rome; but these may be easily changed, and +corrected. But, what is of greater importance, our Orators have a +particular accent in their manner of pronouncing, which is more elegant, +and has a more agreeable effect than any other. This, however, is not +peculiar to the Orators, but is equally common to every well-bred citizen. +I myself remember that T. Tineas, of Placentia, who was a very facetious +man, once engaged in a repartee skirmish with my old friend Q. Granius, +the public crier."--"Do you mean that Granius," said Brutus, "of whom +Lucilius has related such a number of stories?"--"The very same," said I: +"but though Tineas said as many smart things as the other, Granius at last +overpowered him by a certain vernacular _gout_, which gave an additional +relish to his humour: so that I am no longer surprised at what is said to +have happened to Theophrastus, when he enquired of an old woman who kept a +stall, what was the price of something which he wanted to purchase. After +telling him the value of it,--"Honest _stranger_," said she, "I cannot +afford it for less": "an answer which nettled him not a little, to think +that _he_ who had resided almost all his life at Athens, and spoke the +language very correctly, should be taken at last for a foreigner. In the +same manner, there is, in my opinion, a certain accent as peculiar to the +native citizens of Rome, as the other was to those of Athens. But it is +time for us to return home; I mean to the Orators of our own growth. Next, +therefore, to the two capital Speakers above-mentioned, (that is Crassus +and Antonius) came L. Philippus,--not indeed till a considerable time +afterwards; but still he must be reckoned the next. I do not mean, +however, though nobody appeared in the interim who could dispute the prize +with him, that he was entitled to the second, or even the third post of +honour. For, as in a Chariot-race I cannot properly consider _him_ as +either the second, or third winner, who has scarcely got clear of the +starting-post, before the first has reached the goal; so, among Orators, I +can scarcely honour him with the name of a competitor, who has been so far +distanced by the foremost as hardly to appear on the same ground with him. +But yet there were certainly some talents to be observed in Philippus, +which any person who considers them, without subjecting them to a +comparison with the superior merits of the two before-mentioned, must +allow to have been respectable. He had an uncommon freedom of address, a +large fund of humour, great facility in the invention of his sentiments, +and a ready and easy manner of expressing them. He was likewise, for the +time he lived in, a great adept in the literature of the Greeks; and, in +the heat of a debate, he could sting, and gash, as well as ridicule his +opponents. Almost cotemporary with these was L. Gellius, who was not so +much to be valued for his positive, as for his negative merits: for he was +neither destitute of learning, nor invention, nor unacquainted with the +history and the laws of his country; besides which, he had a tolerable +freedom of expression. But he happened to live at a time when many +excellent Orators made their appearance; and yet he served his friends +upon many occasions to good purpose: in short, his life was so long, that +he was successively cotemporary with a variety of Orators of different +dates, and had an extensive series of practice in judicial causes. Nearly +at the same time lived D. Brutus, who was fellow-consul with Mamercus;-- +and was equally skilled both in the Grecian and Roman literature. L. +Scipio likewise was not an unskilful Speaker; and Cnaeus Pompeius, the son +of Sextus, had some reputation as an Orator; for his brother Sextus +applied the excellent genius he was possessed of, to acquire a thorough +knowledge of the Civil Law, and a complete acquaintance with geometry and +the doctrine of the Stoics. A little before these, M. Brutus, and very +soon after him, C. Bilienus, who was a man of great natural capacity, made +themselves, by nearly the same application, equally eminent in the +profession of the law;--the latter would have been chosen Consul, if he +had not been thwarted by the repeated promotion of Marius, and some other +collateral embarrassments which attended his suit. But the eloquence of +Cn. Octavius, which was wholly unknown before his elevation to the +Consulship, was effectually displayed, after his preferment to that +office, in a great variety of speeches. It is, however, time for us to +drop those who were only classed in the number of good _speakers_, and +turn our attention to such as were really _Orators_."--"I think so too," +replied Atticus; "for I understood that you meant to give us an account, +not of those who took great pains to be eloquent, but of those who were so +in reality."--"C. Julius then," said I, (the son of Lucius) was certainly +superior, not only to his predecessors, but to all his cotemporaries, in +wit and humour: he was not, indeed, a nervous and striking Orator, but, in +the elegance, the pleasantry, and the agreeableness of his manner, he has +not been excelled by any man. There are some Orations of his still extant, +in which, as well as in his Tragedies, we may discover a pleasing +tranquillity of expression with very little energy. P. Cethegus, his +cotemporary, had always enough to say on matters of civil regulation; for +he had studied and comprehended them with the minutest accuracy; by which +means he acquired an equal authority in the Senate with those who had +served the office of consul, and though he made no figure in a public +debate, he was a serviceable veteran in any suit of a private nature. Q. +Lucretius Vispillo was an acute Speaker, and a good Civilian in the same +kind of causes: but Osella was better qualified for a public harangue, +than to conduct a judicial process. T. Annius Velina was likewise a man of +sense, and a tolerable pleader; and T. Juventius had a great deal of +practice in the same way:--the latter indeed was rather too heavy and +unanimated, but at the same time he was keen and artful, and knew how to +seize every advantage which was offered by his antagonist; to which we may +add, that he was far from being a man of no literature, and had an +extensive knowledge of the Civil Law. His scholar, P. Orbius, who was +almost cotemporary with me, had no great practice as a pleader; but his +skill in the Civil Law was nothing inferior to his master's. As to Titus +Aufidius, who lived to a great age, he was a professed imitator of both; +and was indeed a worthy inoffensive man, but seldom spoke at the bar. His +brother, M. Virgilius, who when he was a tribune of the people, commenced +a prosecution against L. Sylla, then advanced to the rank of General, had +as little practice as Aufidius. Virgilius's colleague, P. Magius, was more +copious and diffusive. But of all the Orators, or rather _Ranters_, I ever +knew, who were totally illiterate and unpolished, and (I might have added) +absolutely coarse and rustic, the readiest and keenest, were Q. Sertorius, +and C. Gorgonius, the one of consular, and the other of equestrian rank. +T. Junius (the son of L.) who had served the office of tribune, and +prosecuted and convicted P. Sextius of bribery, when he was praetor elect, +was a prompt and an easy speaker: he lived in great splendor, and had a +very promising genius; and, if he had not been of a weak, and indeed a +sickly constitution, he would have advanced much farther than he did in +the road to preferment. I am sensible, however, that in the account I have +been giving, I have included many who were neither real, nor reputed +Orators; and that I have omitted others, among those of a remoter date, +who well deserved not only to have been mentioned, but to be recorded with +honour. But this I was forced to do, for want of better information: for +what could I say concerning men of a distant age, none of whose +productions are now remaining, and of whom no mention is made in the +writings of other people? But I have omitted none of those who have fallen +within the compass of my own knowledge, or that I myself remember to have +heard. For I wish to make it appear, that in such a powerful and ancient +republic as ours, in which the greatest rewards have been proposed to +Eloquence, though all have desired to be good speakers, not many have +attempted the talk, and but very few have succeeded. But I shall give my +opinion of every one in such explicit terms, that it may be easily +understood whom I consider as a mere Declaimer, and whom as an Orator." + +"About the same time, or rather something later than the above-mentioned +Julius, but almost cotemporary with each other, were C. Cotta, P. +Sulpicius, Q. Varius, Cn. Pomponius, C. Curio, L. Fufius, M. Drusus, and +P. Antistius; for no age whatsoever has been distingushed by a more +numerous progeny of Orators. Of these, Cotta and Sulpicius, both in my +opinion, and in that of the Public at large, had an evident claim to the +preference."--"But wherefore," interrupted Atticus, "do you say, _in your +own opinion, and in that of the Public at large?_ In deciding the merits +of an Orator, does the opinion of the vulgar, think you, always coincide +with that of the learned? Or rather does not one receive the approbation +of the populace, while another of a quite opposite character is preferred +by those who are better qualified to give their judgment?"--"You have +started a very pertinent question," said I; "but, perhaps, _the Public at +large_ will not approve my answer to it."--"And what concern need _that_ +give you," replied Atticus, "if it meets the approbation of Brutus?"-- +"Very true," said I; "for I had rather my _sentiments_ on the +qualifications of an Orator would please you and Brutus, than all the +world besides: but as to my _Eloquence_, I should wish _this_ to please +every one. For he who speaks in such a manner as to please the people, +must inevitably receive the approbation of the learned. As to the truth +and propriety of what I hear, I am indeed to judge of this for myself, as +well as I am able: but the general merit of an Orator must and will be +decided by the effects which his eloquence produces. For (in my opinion at +least) there are three things which an Orator should be able to effect; +_viz_. to _inform_ his hearers, to _please_ them, and to _move their +passions_. By what qualities in the Speaker each of these, effects may be +produced, or by what deficiencies they are either lost, or but imperfectly +performed, is an enquiry which none but an artist can resolve: but whether +an audience is really so affected by an Orator as shall best answer his +purpose, must be left to their own feelings, and the decision of the +Public. The learned, therefore, and the people at large, have never +disagreed about who was a good Orator, and who was otherwise. For do you +suppose, that while the Speakers above-mentioned were in being, they had +not the same degree of reputation among the learned as among the populace? +If you had enquired of one of the latter, _who was the most eloquent man +in the city_, he might have hesitated whether to say _Antonius_ or +_Crassus_; or this man, perhaps, would have mentioned the one, and that +the other. But would any one have given the preference to _Philippus_, +though otherwise a smooth, a sensible, and a facetious Speaker?--that +_Philippus_ whom we, who form our judgment upon these matters by rules of +art, have decided to have been the next in merit? Nobody would, I am +certain. For it is the invariable, property of an accomplished Orator, to +be reckoned such in the opinion of the people. Though Antigenidas, +therefore, the musician, might say to his scholar, who was but coldly +received by the Public, Play on, to please me and the Muses;--I shall say +to my friend Brutus, when he mounts the Rostra, as he frequently does,-- +Play to me and the people;--that those who hear him may be sensible of the +effect of his Eloquence, while I can likewise amuse myself with remarking +the causes which produce it. When a Citizen hears an able Orator, he +readily credits what is said;--he imagines every thing to be true, he +believes and relishes the force of it; and, in short, the persuasive +language of the Speaker wins his absolute, his hearty assent. You, who are +possessed of a critical knowledge of the art, what more will you require? +The listening multitude is charmed and captivated by the force of his +Eloquence, and feels a pleasure which is not to be resisted. What here can +you find to censure? The whole audience is either flushed with joy, or +overwhelmed with grief;--it smiles, or weeps,--it loves, or hates,--it +scorns or envies,--and, in short, is alternately seized with the various +emotions of pity, shame, remorse, resentment, wonder, hope, and fear, +according as it is influenced by the language, the sentiments, and the +action of the speaker. In this case, what necessity is there to await the +sanction of a critic? For here, whatever is approved by the feelings of +the people, must be equally so by men of taste and erudition: and, in this +instance of public decision, there can be no disagreement between the +opinion of the vulgar, and that of the learned. For though many good +Speakers have appeared in every species of Oratory, which of them who was +thought to excel the rest in the judgment of the populace, was not +approved as such by every man of learning? or which of our ancestors, when +the choice of a pleader was left to his own option, did not immediately +fix it either upon Crassus or Antonius? There were certainly many others +to be had: but though any person might have hesitated to which of the +above two he should give the preference, there was nobody, I believe, who +would have made choice of a third. And in the time of my youth, when Cotta +and Hortensius were in such high reputation, who, that had liberty to +choose for himself, would have employed any other?"--"But what occasion is +there," said Brutus, "to quote the example of other speakers to support +your assertion? have we not seen what has always been the wish of the +defendant, and what the judgment of Hortensius, concerning yourself? for +whenever the latter shared a cause with you, (and I was often present on +those occasions) the peroration, which requires the greatest exertion of +the powers of Eloquence, was constantly left to _you_."--"It was," said I; +"and Hortensius (induced, I suppose, by the warmth of his friendship) +always resigned the post of honour to me. But, as to myself, what rank I +hold in the opinion of the people I am unable to determine: as to others, +however, I may safely assert, that such of them as were reckoned most +eloquent in the judgment of the vulgar, were equally high in the +estimation of the learned. For even Demosthenes himself could not have +said what is related of Antimachus, a poet of Claros, who, when he was +rehearsing to an audience assembled for the purpose, that voluminous piece +of his which you are well acquainted with, and was deserted by all his +hearers except Plato, in the midst of his performance, cried out, "I +shall proceed notwithstanding_; for Plato alone is of _more consequence to +me than many thousands_." "The remark was very just. For an abstruse poem, +such as his, only requires the approbation of the judicious few; but a +discourse intended for the people should be perfectly suited to their +taste. If Demosthenes, therefore, after being deserted by the rest of his +audience, had even Plato left to hear him, and no one else, I will answer +for it, he could not have uttered another syllable. 'Nay, or could you +yourself, my Brutus, if the whole assembly was to leave you, as it once +did Curio?"--"To open my whole mind to you," replied he, "I must confess +that even in such causes as fall under the cognizance of a few select +judges, and not of the people at large, if I was to be deserted by the +casual crowd who came to hear the trial, I should not be able to +proceed."--"The case, then, is plainly this," said I: "as a flute, which +will not return its proper sound when it is applied to the lips, would be +laid aside by the musician as useless; so, the ears of the people are the +instrument upon which an Orator is to play: and if these refuse to admit +the breath he bestows upon them, or if the hearer, like a restive horse, +will not obey the spur, the speaker must cease to exert himself any +farther. There is, however, the exception to be made; the people sometimes +give their approbation to an orator who does not deserve it. But even here +they approve what they have had no opportunity of comparing with something +better: as, for instance, when they are pleased with an indifferent, or, +perhaps, a bad speaker. His abilities satisfy their expectation: they have +seen nothing preferable: and, therefore, the merit of the day, whatever it +may happen to be, meets their full applause. For even a middling Orator, +if he is possessed of any degree of Eloquence, will always captivate the +ear; and the order and beauty of a good discourse has an astonishing +effect upon the human mind. Accordingly, what common hearer who was +present when Q. Scaevola pleaded for M. Coponius, in the cause above- +mentioned, would have wished for, or indeed thought it possible to find +any thing which was more correct, more elegant, or more complete? When he +attempted to prove, that, as M. Curius was left heir to the estate only in +case of the death of his future ward before he came of age, he could not +possibly be a legal heir, when the expected ward was never born;--what did +he leave unsaid of the scrupulous regard which should be paid to the +literal meaning of every testament? what of the accuracy and preciseness +of the old and established forms; of law? and how carefully did he specify +the manner in which the will would have been expressed, if it had intended +that Curius should be the heir in case of a total default of issue? in +what a masterly manner did he represent the ill consequences to the +Public, if the letter of a will should be disregarded, its intention +decided by arbitrary conjectures, and the written bequests of plain +illiterate men, left to the artful interpretation of a pleader? how often +did he urge the authority of his father, who had always been an advocate +for a strict adherence to the letter of a testament? and with what +emphasis did he enlarge upon the necessity of supporting the common forms +of law? All which particulars he discussed not only very artfully, and +skilfully; but in such a neat,--such a close,--and, I may add, in so +florid, and so elegant a style, that there was not a single person among +the common part of the audience, who could expect any thing more complete, +or even think it possible to exist. But when Crassus, who spoke on the +opposite side, began with the story of a notable youth, who having found a +cock-boat as he was rambling along the shore, took it into his head +immediately that he would build a ship to it;--and when he applied the +tale to Scaevola, who, from the cock-boat of an argument [which he had +deduced from certain imaginary ill consequences to the Public] represented +the decision of a private will to be a matter of such importance as to +deserve he attention of the _Centum-viri_;--when Crassus, I say, in the +beginning of his discourse, had thus taken off the edge of the strongest +plea of his antagonist, he entertained his hearers with many other turns +of a similar kind; and, in a short time, changed the serious apprehensions +of all who were present into open mirth and good-humour; which is one of +those three effects which I have just observed an Orator should be able to +produce. He then proceeded to remark that it was evidently the intention +and the will of the testator, that in cafe, either by death, or default of +issue, there should happen to be no son to fall to his charge, the +inheritance should devolve to Curius:--'that most people in a similar case +would express themselves in the same manner, and that it would certainly +stand good in law, and always had. By these, and many other observations +of the same kind, he gained the assent of his hearers; which is another of +the three duties of an Orator. Lastly, he supported, at all events, the +true meaning and spirit of a will, against the literal construction: +justly observing, that there would be an endless cavilling about words, +not only in wills, but in all other legal deeds, if the real intention of +the party was to be disregarded: and hinting very smartly, that his +friend Scaevola had assumed a most unwarrantable degree of importance, if +no person must afterwards presume to indite a legacy, but in the musty +form which he himself might please to prescribe. As he enlarged on each of +these arguments with great force and propriety, supported them by a number +of precedents, exhibited them in a variety of views, and enlivened them +with many occasional turns of wit and pleasantry, he gained so much +applause, and gave such general satisfaction, that it was scarcely +remembered that any thing had been said on the contrary side of the +question. This was the third, and the most important duty we assigned to +an Orator. + +"Here, if one of the people was to be judge, the same person who had heard +the first Speaker with a degree of admiration, would, on hearing the +second, despise himself for his former want of judgment:--whereas a man of +taste and erudition, on hearing Scaevola, would have observed that he was +really master of a rich and ornamental style; but if, on comparing the +manner in which each of them concluded his cause, it was to be enquired +which of the two was the best Orator, the decision of the man of learning +would not have differed from that of the vulgar. What advantage, then, it +will be said, has the skilful critic over the illiterate hearer? A great +and very important advantage; if it is indeed a matter of any consequence, +to be able to discover by what means that which is the true and real end +of speaking, is either obtained or lost. He has likewise this additional +superiority, that when two or more Orators, as has frequently happened, +have shared the applauses of the Public, he can judge, on a careful +observation of the principal merits of each, what is the most perfect +character of Eloquence: since whatever does not meet the approbation of +the people, must be equally condemned by a more intelligent hearer. For as +it is easily understood by the sound of a harp, whether the strings are +skilfully touched; so it may likewise be discovered from the manner in +which the passions of an audience are affected, how far the Speaker is +able to command them. A man, therefore, who is a real connoisseur in the +art, can sometimes by a single glance as he passes through the Forum, and +without stopping to listen attentively to what is said, form a tolerable +judgment of the ability of the Speaker. When he observes any of the Bench +either yawning, or speaking to the person who is next to him, or looking +carelessly about him, or sending to enquire the time of day, or teazing +the Quaestor to dismiss the court; he concludes very naturally that the +cause upon trial is not pleaded by an Orator who understands how to apply +the powers of language to the passions of the judges, as a skilful +musician applies his fingers to the harp. On the other hand, if, as he +passes by, he beholds the judges looking attentively before them, as if +they were either receiving some material information, or visibly approved +what they had already heard--if he sees them listening to the voice of the +Pleader with a kind of extasy like a fond bird to some melodious tune;-- +and, above all, if he discovers in their looks any strong indications of +pity, abhorrence, or any other emotion of the mind;--though he should not +be near enough to hear a single word, he immediately discovers that the +cause is managed by a real Orator, who is either performing, or has +already played his part to good purpose." + +After I had concluded these digressive remarks, my two friends were kind +enough to signify their approbation, and I resumed my subject.--"As this +digression," said I, "took its rise from Cotta and Sulpicius, whom I +mentioned as the two most approved Orators of the age they lived in, I +shall first return to _them,_ and afterwards notice the rest in their +proper order, according to the plan we began upon. I have already observed +that there are two classes of _good_ Orators (for we have no concern with +any others) of which the former are distinguished by the simple neatness +and brevity of their language, and the latter by their copious dignity and +elevation: but although the preference must always be given to that which +is great and striking; yet, in speakers of real merit, whatever is most +perfect of the kind, is justly entitled to our commendation. It must, +however, be observed, that the close and simple Orator should be careful +not to sink into a driness and poverty of expression; while, on the other +hand, the copious and more stately Speaker should be equally on his guard +against a swelling and empty parade of words. + +"To begin with Cotta, he had a ready, quick Invention, and spoke correctly +and freely; and as he very prudently avoided every forcible exertion of +his voice on account of the weakness of his lungs, so his language was +equally adapted to the delicacy of his constitution. There was nothing in +his style but what was neat, compact, and healthy; and (what may justly be +considered as his greatest excellence) though he was scarcely able, and +therefore never attempted to force the passions of the judges by a strong +and spirited elocution, yet he managed them so artfully, that the gentle +emotions he raised in them, answered exactly the same purpose, and +produced the same effect, as the violent ones which were excited by +Sulpicius. For Sulpicius was really the most striking, and, if I may be +allowed the expression, the most tragical Orator I ever heard:--his voice +was strong and sonorous, and yet sweet, and flowing:--his gesture, and the +sway of his body, was graceful and ornamental, but in such a style as to +appear to have been formed for the Forum, and not for the stage:--and his +language, though rapid and voluble, was neither loose nor exuberant. He +was a professed imitator of Crassus, while Cotta chose Antonius for his +model: but the latter wanted the force of Antonius, and the former the +agreeable humour of Crassus."--"How extremely difficult, then," said +Brutus, "must be the art of speaking, when such consummate Orators as +these were each of them destitute of one of its principal beauties!"--"We +may likewise observe," said I, "in the present instance, that two Orators +may have the highest degree of merit, who are totally unlike each other: +for none could be more so than Cotta and Sulpicius, and yet both of them +were far superior to any of their cotemporaries. It is therefore the +business of every intelligent matter to take notice what is the natural +bent of his pupil's capacity; and, taking that for his guide, to imitate +the conduct of Socrates with his two scholars Theopompus and Ephorus, who, +after remarking the lively genius of the former, and the mild and timid +bashfulness of the latter, is reported to have said that he applied a spur +to the one, and a curb to the other. The Orations now extant, which bear +the name of Sulpicius, are supposed to have been written after his decease +by my cotemporary P. Canutius, a man indeed of inferior rank, but who, in +my mind, had a great command of language. But we have not a single speech +of Sulpicius that was really his own: for I have often heard him say, that +he neither had, nor ever could commit any thing of the kind to writing. +And as to Cotta's speech in defence of himself, called a vindication of +the _Varian Law_, it was composed, at his own request, by L. Aelius. This +Aelius was a man of merit, and a very worthy Roman knight, who was +thoroughly versed in the Greek and Roman literature. He had likewise a +critical knowledge of the antiquities of his country, both as to the date +and particulars of every new improvement, and every memorable transaction, +and was perfectly well read in the ancient writers;--a branch of learning +in which he was succeeded by our friend Varro, a man of genius, and of the +most extensive erudition, who afterwards enlarged the plan by many +valuable collections of his own, and gave a much fuller and more elegant +system of it to the Public. For Aelius himself chose to assume the +character of a Stoic, and neither aimed to be, nor ever was an Orator: but +he composed several Orations for other people to pronounce; as for Q. +Metellus, F. Q. Caepio, and Q. Pompeius Rufus; though the latter composed +those speeches himself which he spoke in his own defence, but not without +the assistance of Aelius. For I myself was present at the writing of them, +in the younger part of my life, when I used to attend Aelius for the +benefit of his instructions. But I am surprised, that Cotta, who was +really an excellent Orator, and a man of good learning, should be willing +that the trifling Speeches of Aelius mould be published to the world as +_his_. + +"To the two above-mentioned, no third person of the same age was esteemed +an equal: Pomponius, however, was a Speaker much to my taste; or, at +least, I have very little fault to find with him. But there was no +employment for any in capital causes, excepting for those I have already +mentioned; because Antonius, who was always courted on these occasions, +was very ready to give his service; and Crassus, though not so compliable, +generally consented, on any pressing sollicitation, to give _his_. Those +who had not interest enough to engage either of these, commonly applied to +Philip, or Caesar; but when Cotta and Sulpicius were at liberty, they +generally had the preference: so that all the causes in which any honour +was to be acquired, were pleaded by these six Orators. We may add, that +trials were not so frequent then as they are at present; neither did +people employ, as they do now, several pleaders on the same side of the +question,--a practice which is attended with many disadvantages. For +hereby we are often obliged to speak in reply to those whom we had not an +opportunity of hearing; in which case, what has been alledged on the +opposite side, is often represented to us either falsely or imperfectly; +and besides, it is a very material circumstance, that I myself should be +present to see with what countenance my antagonist supports his +allegations, and, still more so, to observe the effect of every part of +his discourse upon the audience. And as every defence should be conducted +upon one uniform plan, nothing can be more improperly contrived, than to +re-commence it by assigning the peroration, or pathetical part of it, to a +second advocate. For every cause can have but one natural introduction and +conclusion; and all the other parts of it, like the members of an animal +body, will best retain their proper strength and beauty, when they are +regularly disposed and connected. We may add, that as it is very difficult +in a single Oration of any length, to avoid saying something which does +not comport with the rest of it so well as it ought to do, how much more +difficult must it be to contrive that nothing shall be said, which does +not tally exactly with the speech of another person who has spoken before +you? But as it certainly requires more labour to plead a whole cause, than +only a part of it, and as many advantageous connections are formed by +assisting in a suit in which several persons are interested, the custom, +however preposterous in itself, has been readily adopted. + +"There were some, however, who esteemed Curio the third best Orator of the +age; perhaps, because his language was brilliant and pompous, and because +he had a habit (for which I suppose he was indebted to his domestic +education) of expressing himself with tolerable correctness: for he was a +man of very little learning. But it is a circumstance of great importance, +what sort of people we are used to converse with at home, especially in +the more early part of life; and what sort of language we have been +accustomed to hear from our tutors and parents, not excepting the mother. +We have all read the Letters of Cornelia, the mother of the Gracchi; and +are satisfied, that her sons were not so much nurtured in their mother's +lap, as in the elegance and purity of her language. I have often too +enjoyed the agreeable conversation of Laelia, the daughter of Caius, and +observed in her a strong tincture of her father's elegance. I have +likewise conversed with his two daughters, the Muciae, and his +granddaughters, the two Liciniae, with one of whom (the wife of Scipio) +you, my Brutus, I believe, have sometimes been in company."--"I have," +replied he, "and was much pleased with her conversation; and the more so, +because she was the daughter of Crassus."--"And what think you," said I, +"of Crassus, the son of that Licinia, who was adopted by Crassus in his +will?"--"He is said," replied he, "to have been a man of great genius: and +the Scipio you have mentioned, who was my colleague, likewise appears to +me to have been a good Speaker, and an elegant companion."--"Your opinion, +my Brutus," said I, "is very just. For this family, if I may be allowed +the expression, seems to have been the offspring of Wisdom. As to their +two grandfathers, Scipio and Crassus, we have taken notice of them +already: as we also have of their great grandfathers, Q. Metellus, who had +four sons,--P. Scipio, who, when a private citizen, freed the Republic +from the arbitrary influence of T. Gracchus,--and Q. Scaevola, the augur, +who was the ablest and most affable Civilian of his time. And lastly, how +illustrious are the names of their next immediate progenitors, P. Scipio, +who was twice Consul, and was called the Darling of the People,--and C. +Laelius, who was esteemed the wisest of men?"--"A generous stock indeed!" +cries Brutus, "into which the wisdom of many has been successively +ingrafted, like a number of scions on the same tree!"--"I have likewise a +suspicion," replied I, "(if we may compare small things with great) that +Curio's family, though he himself was left an orphan, was indebted to his +father's instruction, and good example, for the habitual purity of their +language: and so much the more, because, of all those who were held in any +estimation for their Eloquence, I never knew one who was so totally rude +and unskilled in every branch of liberal science. He had not read a single +poet, or studied a single orator; and he knew little or nothing either of +Public, Civil, or Common law. We might say almost the same, indeed, of +several others, and some of them very able Orators, who (we know) were but +little acquainted with these useful parts of knowledge; as, for instance, +of Sulpicius and Antonius. But this deficiency was supplied in them by an +elaborate knowledge of the art of Speaking; and there was not one of them +who was totally unqualified in any of the five [Footnote: Invention, +Disposition, Elocution, Memory, and Pronunciation.] principal parts of +which it is composed; for whenever this is the case, (and it matters not +in which of those parts it happens) it intirely incapacitates a man to +shine as an Orator. Some, however, excelled in one part, and some in +another. Thus Antonius could readily invent such arguments as were most in +point, and afterwards digest and methodize them to the best advantage; and +he could likewise retain the plan he had formed with great exactness: but +his chief merit was the goodness of his delivery, in which he was justly +allowed to excel. In some of these qualifications he was upon an equal +footing with Crassus, and in others he was superior: but then the language +of Crassus was indisputably preferable to _his_. In the same manner, it +cannot be said that either Sulpicius or Cotta, or any other Speaker of +repute, was absolutely deficient in any one of the five parts of Oratory. +But we may justly infer from the example of Curio, that nothing will more +recommend an Orator, than a brilliant and ready flow of expression; for he +was remarkably dull in the invention, and very loose and unconnected in +the disposition of his arguments. The two remaining parts are +Pronunciation and Memory; in each of which he was so poorly qualified, as +to excite the laughter and the ridicule of his hearers. His gesture was +really such as C. Julius represented it, in a severe sarcasm, that will +never be forgotten; for as he was swaying and reeling his whole body from +side to side, Julius enquired very merrily, _who it was that was speaking +from a boat_. To the same purpose was the jest of Cn. Sicinius, a very +vulgar sort of man, but exceedingly humourous, which was the only +qualification he had to recommend him as an Orator. When this man, as +Tribune of the people, had summoned Curio and Octavius, who were then +Consuls, into the Forum, and Curio had delivered a tedious harangue, while +Octavius sat silently by him, wrapt up in flannels, and besmeared with +ointments, to ease the pain of the gout;"--"_Octavius," said he, "you are +infinitely obliged to your colleague; for if he had not tossed and flung +himself about to-day, in the manner he did, you would have certainly have +been devoured by the flies._"--"As to his memory, it was so extremely +treacherous, that after he had divided his subject into three general +heads, he would sometimes, in the course of speaking, either add a fourth, +or omit the third. In a capital trial, in which I had pleaded for Titinia, +the daughter of Cotta, when he attempted to reply to me in defence of +Serv. Naevius, he suddenly forgot every thing he had intended to say, and +attributed it to the pretended witchcraft, and magic artifices of Titinia. +These were undoubted proofs of the weakness of his memory. But, what is +still more inexcusable, he sometimes forgot, even in his written +treatises, what he had mentioned but a little before. Thus, in a book of +his, in which he introduces himself as entering into conversation with our +friend Pansa, and his son Curio, when he was walking home from the Senate- +house; the Senate is supposed to have been summoned by Caesar in his first +Consulship; and the whole conversation arises from the son's enquiry what +the House had resolved upon. Curio launches out into a long invective +against the conduct of Caesar, and, as is generally the custom in +dialogues, the parties are engaged in a close dispute on the subject: but +very unhappily, though the conversation commences at the breaking up of +the Senate which Caesar held when he was first Consul, the author censures +those very actions of the same Caesar, which did not happen till the next, +and several other succeeding years of his government in Gaul."--"Is it +possible then," said Brutus, with an air of surprize, "that any man, (and +especially in a written performance) could be so forgetful as not to +discover, upon a subsequent perusal of his own work, what an egregious +blunder he had committed?"--"Very true," said I; "for if he wrote with a +design to discredit the measures which he represents in such an odious +light, nothing could be more stupid than not to commence his dialogue at a +period which was subsequent to those measures. But he so entirely forgets +himself, as to tell us, that he did not choose to attend a Senate which +was held in one of Caesar's future consulships, in the very same dialogue +in which he introduces himself as returning home from a Senate which was +held in his first consulship. It cannot, therefore, be wondered at, that +he who was so remarkably defective in a faculty which is the steward of +our other intellectual powers, as to forget, even in a written treatise, a +material circumstance which he had mentioned but a little before, should +find his memory fail him, as it generally did, in a sudden and +unpremeditated harangue. It accordingly happened, though he had many +connections, and was fond of speaking in public, that few causes were +intrusted to his management. But, among his cotemporaries, he was esteemed +next in merit to the first Orators of the age; and that merely, as I said +before, for his good choice of words, and his uncommon readiness, and +great fluency of expression. His Orations, therefore, may deserve a +cursory perusal. It is true, indeed, they are much too languid and +spiritless; but they may yet be of service to enlarge and improve an +accomplishment, of which he certainly had a moderate share; and which has +so much force and efficacy, that it gave Curio the appearance and +reputation of an Orator, without the assistance of any other good quality. + +"But to return to our subject,--C. Carbo, of the same age, was likewise +reckoned an Orator of the second class: he was the son, indeed, of the +truly eloquent man before-mentioned, but was far from being an acute +Speaker himself: he was, however, esteemed an Orator. His language was +tolerably nervous, he spoke with ease,--and there was an air of authority +in his address that was perfectly natural. But Q. Varius was a man of +quicker invention, and, at the same time, had an equal freedom of +expression: besides which, he had a bold and spirited delivery, and a vein +of elocution which was neither poor, nor coarse and vulgar;--in short, you +need not hesitate to pronounce him an _Orator_. Cn. Pomponius was a +vehement, a rousing, and a fierce and eager Speaker, and more inclined to +act the part of a prosecutor, than of an advocate. But far inferior to +these was L. Fufius; though his application was, in some measure, rewarded +by the success of his prosecution against M. Aquilius. For as to M. +Drusus, your great uncle, who spoke like an Orator only upon matters of +government;--L. Lucullus, who was indeed an artful Speaker, and your +father, my Brutus, who was well acquainted with the Common and Civil Law; +--M. Lucullus, and M. Octavius, the son of Cnaeus, who was a man of so +much authority and address, as to procure the repeal of Sempronius's +corn-act, by the suffrages of a full assembly of the people;--Cn. +Octavius, the son of Marcus,--and M. Cato, the father, and Q. Catulus, +the son;--we must excuse these (if I may so express myself) from the +fatigues and dangers of the field,--that is, from the management of +judicial causes, and place them in garison over the general interests +of the Republic, a duty to which they seem to have been sufficiently +adequate. I should have assigned the same post to Q. Caepio, if he +had not been so violently attached to the Equestrian Order, as to set +himself at variance with the Senate. I have also remarked, that Cn. +Carbo, M. Marius, and several others of the same stamp, who would +not have merited the attention of an audience that had any taste for +elegance, were extremely well suited to address a tumultuous crowd. +In the same class, (if I may be allowed to interrupt the series of +my narrative) L. Quintius lately made his appearance: though Palicanus, +it must be owned, was still better adapted to please the ears of the +populace. But, as I have mentioned this inferior kind of Speakers, +I must be so just to L. Apuleius Saturninus, as to observe that, of all +the factious declaimers since the time of the Gracchi, he was generally +esteemed the ablest: and yet he caught the attention of the Public, more +by his appearance, his gesture, and his dress, than by any real fluency of +expression, or even a tolerable share of good sense. But C. Servilius +Glaucia, though the most abandoned wretch that ever existed, was very keen +and artful, and excessively humourous; and notwithstanding the meanness of +his birth, and the depravity of his life, he would have been advanced to +the dignity of a Consul in his Praetorship, if it had been judged lawful +to admit his suit: for the populace were entirely at his devotion, and he +had secured the interest of the Knights, by an act he had procured in +their favour. He was slain in the open Forum, while he was Praetor, on the +same day as the tribune Saturninus, in the Consulship of Marius and +Flaccus; and bore a near resemblance to Hyperbolus, the Athenian, whose +profligacy was so severely stigmatized in the old Attic Comedies. These +were succeeded by Sext. Titius, who was indeed a voluble Speaker, and +possessed a ready comprehension, but he was so loose and effeminate in his +gesture, as to furnish room for the invention of a dance, which was called +the _Titian jigg_: so careful should we be to avoid every oddity in our +manner of speaking, which may afterwards be exposed to ridicule by a +ludicrous imitation. + +"But we have rambled back insensibly to a period which has been already +examined: let us, therefore, return to that which we were reviewing a +little before. Cotemporary with Sulpicius was P. Antistius,--a plausible +declaimer, who, after being silent for several years, and exposed, (as he +often was) not only to the contempt, but the derision of his hearers, +first spoke with applause in his tribuneship, in a real and very +interesting protest against the illegal application of C. Julius for the +consulship; and that so much the more, because though Sulpicius himself, +who then happened to be his colleague, spoke on the same side of the +debate, Antistius argued more copiously, and to better purpose. This +raised his reputation so high, that many, and (soon afterwards) every +cause of importance, was eagerly recommended to his patronage. To speak +the truth, he had a quick conception, a methodical judgment, and a +retentive memory; and though his language was not much embellished, it was +very far from being low. In short, his style was easy, and flowing, and +his appearance rather genteel than otherwise: but his action was a little +defective, partly through the disagreeable tone of his voice, and partly +by a few ridiculous gestures, of which he could not entirely break +himself. He flourished in the time between the flight and the return of +Sylla, when the Republic was deprived of a regular administration of +justice, and of its former dignity and splendor. But the very favourable +reception he met with was, in some measure, owing to the great scarcity of +good Orators which then prevailed in the Forum. For Sulpicius was dead; +Cotta and Curio were abroad; and no pleaders of any eminence were left but +Carbo and Pomponius, from each of whom he easily carried off the palm. His +nearest successor in the following age was L. Sisenna, who was a man of +learning, had a taste for the liberal Sciences, spoke the Roman language +with accuracy, was well acquainted with the laws and constitution of his +country, and had a tolerable share of wit; but he was not a Speaker of any +great application, or extensive practice; and as he happened to live in +the intermediate time between the appearance of Sulpicius and Hortensius, +he was unable to equal the former, and forced to yield to the superior +talents of the latter. We may easily form a judgment of his abilities from +the historical Works he has left behind him; which, though evidently +preferable to any thing of the kind which had appeared before, may serve +as a proof that he was far below the standard of perfection, and that this +species of composition had not then been improved to any great degree of +excellence among the Romans. But the genius of Q. Hortensius, even in his +early youth, like one of Phidias's statues, was no sooner beheld than it +was universally admired! He spoke his first Oration in the Forum in the +consulship of L. Crassus and Q. Scaevola, to whom it was personally +adressed; and though he was then only nineteen years old, he descended +from the Rostra with the hearty approbation not only of the audience in +general, but of the two Consuls themselves, who were the most intelligent +judges in the whole city. He died in the consulship of L. Paulus and C. +Marcellus; from which it appears that he was four-and-forty years a +Pleader. We shall review his character more at large in the sequel: but in +this part of my history, I chose to include him in the number of Orators +who were rather of an earlier date. This indeed must necessarily happen to +all whose lives are of any considerable length: for they are equally +liable to a comparison with their Elders and their Juniors; as in the case +of the poet Attius, who says that both he and Pacuvius applied themselves +to the cultivation of the drama under the fame Aediles; though, at the +time, the one was eighty, and the other only thirty years old. Thus +Hortensius may be paralleled not only with those who were properly his +contemporaries, but with me, and you, my Brutus, and with others of a +prior date. For he began to speak in public while Crassus was living but +his fame increased when he appeared as a joint advocate with Antonius and +Philip (at that time in the decline of life) in defence of Cn. Pompeius,-- +a cause in which (though a mere youth) he distinguished himself above the +rest. He may therefore be included in the lift of those whom I have placed +in the time of Sulpicius; but among his proper coevals, such as M. Piso, +M. Crassus, Cn. Lentulus, and P. Lentulus Sura, he excelled beyond the +reach of competition; and after these he happened upon me, in the early +part of my life (for I was eight years younger than himself) and spent a +number of years with me in pursuit of the same forensic glory: and at +last, (a little before his death) he once pleaded with _you_, in defence +of Appius Claudius, as I have frequently done for others. Thus you see, my +Brutus, I am come insensibly to _yourself_, though there was undoubtedly a +great variety of Orators between my first appearance in the Forum, and +yours. But as I determined, when we began the conversation, to make no +mention of those among them who are still living, to prevent your +enquiring too minutely what is my opinion concerning each; I shall confine +myself to such as are now no more."--"That is not the true reason," said +Brutus, "why you choose to be silent about the living."--"What then do you +suppose it to be," said I?--"You are only fearful," replied he, "that your +remarks should afterwards be mentioned by us in other company, and that, +by this means, you should expose yourself to the resentment of those, whom +you may not think it worth your while to notice."--"Indeed," answered I, +"I have not the least doubt of your secresy."--"Neither have you any +reason," said he; "but after all, I suppose, you had rather be silent +_yourself_, than rely upon our taciturnity."--"To confess the truth," +replied I, "when I first entered upon the subject, I never imagined that I +should have extended it to the age now before us; whereas I have been +drawn by a continued series of history among the moderns of latest date." +--"Introduce, then," said he, "those intermediate Orators you may think +worthy of our notice: and afterwards let us return to yourself, and +Hortensius."--"To Hortensius," replied I, "with all my heart; but as to my +_own_ character, I shall leave it to other people to examine, if they +choose to take the trouble."--"I can by no means agree to _that_," said +he: "for though every part of the account you have favoured us with, has +entertained me very agreeably, it now begins to seem tedious, because I am +impatient to hear something of _yourself_: I do not mean the wonderful +qualities, but the _progressive steps_, and advances of your Eloquence; +for the former are sufficiently known already both to me, and the whole +world."--"As you do not require me," said I, "to sound the praises of my +own genius, but only to describe my labour and application to improve it, +your request shall be complied with. But to preserve the order of my +narrative, I shall first introduce such other Speakers as I think ought to +be previously noticed: and I shall begin with M. Crassus, who was +contemporary with Hortensius. With a tolerable share of learning, and a +very moderate capacity, his application, assiduity, and interest, procured +him a place among the ablest Pleaders of the time for several years. His +language was pure, his expression neither low nor ungenteel, and his ideas +well digested: but he had nothing in him that was florid, and ornamental; +and the real ardor of his mind was not supported by any vigorous exertion +of his voice, so that he pronounced almost every thing in the same uniform +tone. His equal, and professed antagonist C. Fimbria was not able to +maintain his character so long; and though he always spoke with a strong +and elevated voice, and poured forth a rapid torrent of well-chosen +expressions, he was so immoderately vehement that you might justly be +surprised that the people should have been so absent and inattentive as to +admit a _madman_, like him, into the lift of Orators. As to Cn. Lentulus, +his action acquired him a reputation for his Eloquence very far beyond his +real abilities: for though he was not a man of any great penetration +(notwithstanding he carried the appearance of it in his countenance) nor +possessed any real fluency of expression (though he was equally specious +in this respect as in the former)--yet by his sudden breaks, and +exclamations, he affected such an ironical air of surprize, with a sweet +and sonorous turn of voice, and his whole action was so warm and lively, +that his defects were scarcely noticed. For as Curio acquired the +reputation of an Orator with no other quality than a tolerable freedom of +Elocution; so Cn. Lentulus concealed the mediocrity of his other +accomplishments by his _action_, which was really excellent. Much the same +might be said of P. Lentulus, whose poverty of invention and expression +was secured from notice by the mere dignity of his presence, his correct +and graceful gesture, and the strength and sweetness of his voice: and his +merit depended so entirely upon his action, that he was more deficient in +every other quality than his namesake. But M. Piso derived all his talents +from his erudition; for he was much better versed in the Grecian +literature than any of his predecessors. He had, however, a natural +keenness of discernment, which he greatly improved by art, and exerted +with great address and dexterity, though in very indifferent language: but +he was frequently warm and choleric, sometimes cold and insipid, and now +and then rather smart and humourous. He did not long support the fatigue, +and emulous contention of the Forum; partly, on account of the weakness of +his constitution; and partly, because he could not submit to the follies +and impertinencies of the common people (which we Orators are forced to +swallow) either, as it was generally supposed, from a peculiar moroseness +of temper, or from a liberal and ingenuous pride of heart. After +acquiring, therefore, in his youth, a tolerable degree of reputation, his +character began to sink: but in the trial of the Vestals, he again +recovered it with some additional lustre, and being thus recalled to the +theatre of Eloquence, he kept his rank, as long as he was able to support +the fatigue of it; after which his credit declined, in proportion as he +remitted his application.--P. Murena had a moderate genius, but was +passionately fond of the study of Antiquity; he applied himself with equal +diligence to the Belles Lettres, in which he was tolerably versed; in +short, he was a man of great industry, and took the utmost pains to +distinguish himself.--C. Censorinus had a good stock of Grecian +literature, explained whatever he advanced with great neatness and +perspicuity, and had a graceful action, but was too cold and unanimated +for the Forum.--L. Turius with a very indifferent genius, but the most +indefatigable application, spoke in public very often, in the best manner +he was able; and, accordingly, he only wanted the votes of a few Centuries +to promote him to the Consulship.--C. Macer was never a man of much +interest or authority, but was one of the most active Pleaders of his +time; and if his life, his manners, and his very looks, had not ruined the +credit of his genius, he would have ranked higher in the lift of Orators. +He was neither copious, nor dry and barren; neither eat and embellished, +nor wholly inelegant; and his voice, his gesture, and every part of his +action, was without any grace: but in inventing and digesting his ideas, +he had a wonderful accuracy, such as no man I ever saw either possessed +or exerted in a more eminent degree; and yet, some how, he displayed it +rather with the air of a Quibbler, than of an Orator. Though he had +acquired some reputation in public causes, he appeared to most advantage +and was most courted and employed in private ones.--C. Piso, who comes +next in order, had scarcely any exertion, but he was a Speaker of a very +convertible style; and though, in fact, he was far from being slow of +invention, he had more penetration in his look and appearance than he +really possessed.--His cotemporary M. Glabrio, though carefully instructed +by his grandfather Scaevola, was prevented from distinguishing himself by +his natural indolence and want of attention.--L. Torquatus, on the +contrary, had an elegant turn of expression, and a clear comprehension, +and was perfectly genteel and well-bred in his whole manner.--But Cn. +Pompeius, my coeval, a man who was born to excel in every thing, would +have acquired a more distinguished reputation for his Eloquence, if he had +not been diverted from the pursuit of it by the more dazzling charms of +military fame. His language was naturally bold and elevated, and he was +always master of his subject; and as to his powers of enunciation, his +voice was sonorous and manly, and his gesture noble, and full of dignity. +--D. Silanus, another of my cotemporaries, and your father-in-law, was not +a man of much application, but he had a very competent share of +discernment, and elocution.--Q. Pompeius, the son of Aulus, who had the +title of _Bithynicus_, and was about two years older than myself, was, to +my own knowledge, remarkably fond of the study of Eloquence, had an +uncommon stock of learning, and was a man of indefatigable industry and +perseverance: for he was connected with me and M. Piso, not only as an +intimate acquaintance, but as an associate in our studies, and private +exercises. His elocution was but poorly recommended by his action: for +though the former was sufficiently copious and diffusive, there was +nothing graceful in the latter.--His contemporary, P. Autronius, had a +very clear, and strong voice; but he was distinguished by no other +accomplishment.--L. Octavius Reatinus died in his youth, while he was in +full practice: but he ascended the rostra with more assurance, than +ability.--C. Staienus, who changed his name into Aelius by a kind of self- +adoption, was a warm, an abusive, and indeed a furious speaker; which was +so agreeable to the taste of many, that he would have risen to some rank +in the State, if it had not been for a crime of which he was clearly +convicted, and for which he afterwards suffered.--At the same time were +the two brothers C. and L. Caepasius, who, though men of an obscure +family, and little previous consequence, were yet, by mere dint of +application, suddenly promoted to the Quaestorship, with no other +recommendation than a provincial and unpolished kind of Oratory.--That I +may not seem to have put a wilful slight on any of the vociferous tribe, I +must also notice C. Cosconius Calidianus, who, without any discernment, +amused the people with a rapidity of language (if such it might be called) +which he attended with a perpetual hurry of action, and a most violent +exertion of his voice.--Of much the same cast was Q. Arrius, who may be +considered as a second-hand M. Crassus. He is a striking proof of what +consequence it is in such a city as ours to devote one's-self to the +occasions of _the many_, and to be as active as possible in promoting +their safety, or their honour. For by these means, though of the lowest +parentage, having raised himself to offices of rank, and to considerable +wealth and influence, he likewise acquired the reputation of a tolerable +patron, without either learning or abilities. But as inexperienced +champions, who, from a passionate desire to distinguish themselves in the +Circus, can bear the blows of their opponents without shrinking, are often +overpowered by the heat of the sun, when it is increased by the reflection +of the sand; so _he_, who had hitherto supported even the sharpest +encounters with good success, could not stand the severity of that year of +judicial contest, which blazed upon him like a summer's sun." + +"Upon my word," cried Atticus, "you are now treating us with the very +_dregs_ of Oratory, and you have entertained us in this manner for some +time: but I did not offer to interrupt you, because I never dreamed you +would have descended so low as to mention the _Staieni_ and _Autronii_!"-- +"As I have been speaking of the dead, you will not imagine, I suppose," +said I, "that I have done it to court their favour: but in pursuing the +order of history, I was necessarily led by degrees to a period of time +which falls within the compass of our own knowledge. But I wish it to be +noticed, that after recounting all who ever ventured to speak in public, +we find but few, (very few indeed!) whose names are worth recording; and +not many who had even the repute of being Orators. Let us, however, return +to our subject. T. Torquatus, then, the son of Titus, was a man of +learning, (which he first acquired in the school of Molo in Rhodes,) and +of a free and easy elocution which he received from Nature. If he had +lived to a proper age, he would have been chosen Consul, without any +canvassing; but he had more ability for speaking than inclination; _so_ +that, in fact, he did not do justice to the art he professed; and yet he +was never wanting to his duty, either in the private causes of his +friends and dependents, or in his senatorial capacity.--My townsman too, +P. Pontidius, pleaded a number of private causes. He had a rapidity of +expression, and a tolerable quickness of comprehension: but he was very +warm, and indeed rather too choleric and irascible; so that he often +wrangled not only with his antagonist, but (what appears very strange) +with the judge himself, whom it was rather his business to sooth and +gratify.--M. Messala, who was something younger than myself, was far from +being a poor and an abject Pleader, and yet he was not a very embellished +one. He was judicious, penetrating, and wary, very exact in digesting and +methodizing his subject, and a man of uncommon diligence and application, +and of very extensive practice.--As to the two Metelli (Celer and Nepos) +these also had a moderate share of employment at the bar; but being +destitute neither of learning nor abilities, they chiefly applied +themselves (and with some success) to debates of a more popular kind.--But +Caius Lentulus Marcellinus, who was never reckoned a bad Speaker, was +esteemed a very eloquent one in his Consulship. He wanted neither +sentiment, nor expression; his voice was sweet and sonorous; and he had a +sufficient stock of humour.--C. Memmius, the son of Lucius, was a perfect +adept in the _belles lettres_ of the Greeks; for he had an insuperable +disgust to the literature of the Romans. He was a neat and polished +Speaker, and had a sweet and harmonious turn of expression; but as he was +equally averse to every laborious effort either of the mind or the tongue, +his Eloquence declined in proportion as he lessened his application."-- +"But I heartily wish," said Brutus, "that you would give us your opinion +of those Orators who are still living; or, if you are determined to say +nothing of the rest, there are two at least, (that is Caesar and +Marcellus, whom I have often heard you speak of with the highest +approbation) whose characters would give me as much entertainment as any +of those you have already specified."--"But why," answered I, "would you +expect that I would give you my opinion of men who are as well known to +yourself as to me?"--"Marcellus, indeed," replied he, "I am very well +acquainted with; but as to Caesar, I know little of _him_. For I have +_heard_ the former very often: but, by the time I was able to judge for +myself, the latter had set out for his province."--"Mighty well," said I; +"and what think you of him you have heard so often?"--"What else can I +think," replied he, "but that you will soon have an Orator, who will very +nearly resemble yourself?"--"If that is the case," answered I, "pray think +of him as favourably as you can." "I do," said he; "for he pleases me very +highly; and not without reason. He is absolutely master of his trade, and, +neglecting every other profession, has applied himself solely to _this_; +and, for that purpose, has persevered in the rigorous task of composing a +daily Essay in writing. His words are well chosen; his language is full +and copious; and every thing he says receives an additional ornament from +the graceful tone of his voice, and the dignity of his action. In short, +he is so compleat an Orator, that there is no quality I know of, in which +I can think him deficient. But he is still more to be admired, for being +able, in these unhappy times, (which are marked with a distress that, by +some cruel fatality, has overwhelmed us all) to console himself, as +opportunity offers, with the consciousness of his own integrity, and by +the frequent renewal of his literary pursuits. I saw him lately at +Mitylene; and then (as I have already hinted) I saw him a thorough man. +For though I had before discovered in him a strong resemblance of +yourself, the likeness was much improved, after he was enriched by the +instructions of your learned, and very intimate friend Cratippus."-- +"Though I acknowledge," said I, "that I have listened with pleasure to +your Elogies on a very worthy man, for whom I have the warmest esteem, +they have led me insensibly to the recollection of our common miseries, +which our present conversation was intended to suspend. But I would +willingly hear what is Atticus's opinion of Caesar."--"Upon my word," +replied Atticus, "you are wonderfully consistent with your plan, to say +nothing _yourself_ of the living: and indeed, if you was to deal with +_them_, as you already have with the _dead_, and say something of every +paltry fellow that occurs to your memory, you would plague us with +_Autronii_ and _Steiani_ without end. But though you might possibly have +it in view not to incumber yourself with such a numerous crowd of +insignificant wretches; or perhaps, to avoid giving any one room to +complain that he was either unnoticed, or not extolled according to his +imaginary merit; yet, certainly, you might have said something of Caesar; +especially, as your opinion of _his_ abilities is well known to every +body, and his concerning _your's_ is very far from being a secret. But, +however," said he, (addressing himself to Brutus) "I really think of +Caesar, and every body else says the same of this accurate connoisseur in +the Art of Speaking, that he has the purest and the most elegant command +of the Roman language of all the Orators that have yet appeared: and that +not merely by domestic habit, as we have lately heard it observed of the +families of the Laelii and the Mucii, (though even here, I believe, this +might partly have been the case) but he chiefly acquired and brought it to +its present perfection, by a studious application to the most intricate +and refined branches of literature, and by a careful and constant +attention to the purity of his style. But that _he_, who, involved as he +was in a perpetual hurry of business, could dedicate to _you_, my Cicero, +a laboured Treatise on the Art of Speaking correctly; that _he_, who, in +the first book of it, laid it down as an axiom, that an accurate choice of +words is the foundation of Eloquence; and who has bestowed," said he, +(addressing himself again to Brutus) "the highest encomiums on this friend +of ours, who yet chooses to leave Caesar's character to _me_;--that _he_ +should be a perfect master of the language of polite conservation, is a +circumstance which is almost too obvious to be mentioned." "I said, _the +highest encomiums_," pursued Atticus, "because he says in so many words, +when he addresses himself to Cicero--_if others have bestowed all their +time and attention to acquire a habit of expressing themselves with ease +and correctness, how much is the name and dignity of the Roman people +indebted to you, who are the highest pattern, and indeed the first +inventor of that rich fertility of language which distinguishes your +performances?_"--Indeed," said Brutus, "I think he has extolled your merit +in a very friendly, and a very magnificent style: for you are not only the +_highest pattern_, and even the _first inventor_ of all our _fertility_ of +language, which alone is praise enough to content any reasonable man, but +you have added fresh honours to the name and dignity of the Roman people; +for the very excellence in which we had hitherto been conquered by the +vanquished Greeks, has now been either wrested from their hands, or +equally shared, at least, between us and them. So that I prefer this +honourable testimony of Caesar, I will not say to the public thanksgiving, +which was decreed for your _own_ military services, but to the triumphs of +many heroes."--"Very true," replied I, "provided this honourable testimony +was really the voice of Caesar's judgment, and not of his friendship: for +_he_ certainly has added more to the dignity of the Roman people, whoever +he may be (if indeed any such man has yet existed) who has not only +exemplified and enlarged, but first produced this rich fertility of +expression, than the doughty warrior who has stormed a few paltry castles +of the Ligurians, which have furnished us, you know, with many repeated +triumphs. In reality, if we can submit to hear the truth, it may be +asserted (to say nothing of those god-like plans, which, supported by the +wisdom of our Generals, has frequently saved the sinking State both abroad +and at home) that an Orator is justly entitled to the preference to any +Commander in a petty war. But the General, you will say, is the more +serviceable man to the public. Nobody denies it: and yet (for I am not +afraid of provoking your censure, in a conversation which leaves each of +us at liberty to say what he thinks) I had rather be the author of the +single Oration of Crassus, in defence of Curius, than be honoured with two +Ligurian triumphs. You will, perhaps, reply, that the storming a castle of +the Ligurians was a thing of more consequence to the State, than that the +claim of Curius should be ably supported. This I own to be true. But it +was also of more consequence to the Athenians, that their houses should be +securely roofed, than to have their city graced with a most beautiful +statue of Minerva: and yet, notwithstanding this, I would much rather have +been a Phidias, than the most skilful joiner in Athens. In the present +case, therefore, we are not to consider a man's usefulness, but the +strength of his abilities; especially as the number of painters and +statuaries, who have excelled in their profession, is very small; whereas, +there can never be any want of joiners and mechanic labourers. But +proceed, my Atticus, with Caesar; and oblige us with the remainder of his +character."--"We see then," said he, "from what has just been mentioned, +that a pure and correct style is the groundwork, and the very basis and +foundation, upon which an Orator must build his other accomplishments: +though, it is true, that those who had hitherto possessed it, derived it +more from early habit, than from any principles of art. It is needless to +refer you to the instances of Laelius and Scipio; for a purity of +language, as well as of manners, was the characteristic of the age they +lived in. It could not, indeed, be applied to every one; for their two +cotemporaries, Caecilius and Pacuvius, spoke very incorrectly: but yet +people in general, who had not resided out of the city, nor been corrupted +by any domestic barbarisms, spoke the Roman language with purity. Time, +however, as well at Rome as in Greece, soon altered matters for the worse: +for this city, (as had formerly been the case at Athens) was resorted to +by a crowd of adventurers from different parts, who spoke very corruptly; +which shews the necessity of reforming our language, and reducing it to a +certain standard, which shall not be liable to vary like the capricious +laws of custom. Though we were then very young, we can easily remember T. +Flaminius, who was joint-consul with Q. Metellus: he was supposed to speak +his native language with correctness, but was a man of no Literature. As +to Catulus, he was far indeed from being destitute of learning, as you +have already observed: but his reputed purity of diction was chiefly owing +to the sweetness of his voice, and the delicacy of his accent. Cotta, who, +by his broad pronunciation, threw off all resemblance of the elegant tone +of the Greeks, and affected a harsh and rustic utterance, quite opposite +to that of Catulus, acquired the same reputation of correctness by +pursuing a wild and unfrequented path. But Sisenna, who had the ambition +to think of reforming our phraseology, could not be lashed out of his +whimsical and new-fangled turns of expression, by all the raillery of C. +Rufius."--"What do you refer to?" said Brutus; "and who was the Caius +Rufius you are speaking of?"--"He was a noted prosecutor," replied he, +"some years ago. When this man had supported an indictment against one +Christilius, Sisenna, who was counsel for the defendant, told him, that +several parts of his accusation were absolutely _spitatical_. [Footnote: +In the original _sputatilica_, worthy to be spit upon. It appears, from +the connection, to have been a very unclassical word, whimsically derived +by the author of it from _sputa_, spittle.] _My Lords_, cried Rufius to +the judges, _I shall be cruelly over-reached, unless you give me your +assistance. His charge overpowers my comprehension; and I am afraid he has +some unfair design upon me. What, in the name of Heaven, can be intend by_ +SPITATICAL? _I know the meaning of_ SPIT, _or_ SPITTLE; _but this horrid_ +ATICAL, _at the end of it, absolutely puzzles me._ The whole Bench laughed +very heartily at the singular oddity of the expression: my old friend, +however, was still of opinion, that to speak correctly, was to speak +differently from other people. But Caesar, who was guided by the +principles of art, has corrected the imperfections of a vicious custom, by +adopting the rules and improvements of a good one, as he found them +occasionally displayed in the course of polite conversation. Accordingly, +to the purest elegance of expression, (which is equally necessary to every +well-bred Citizen, as to an Orator) he has added all the various ornaments +of Elocution; so that he seems to exhibit the finest painting in the most +advantageous point of view. As he has such extraordinary merit even in the +common run of his language, I must confess that there is no person I know +of, to whom he should yield the preference. Besides, his manner of +speaking, both as to his voice and gesture, is splendid and noble, without +the least appearance of artifice or affectation: and there is a dignity in +his very presence, which bespeaks a great and elevated mind."--"Indeed," +said Brutus, "his Orations please me highly; for I have had the +satisfaction to read several of them. He has likewise wrote some +commentaries, or short memoirs, of his own transactions;"--"and such," +said I, "as merit the highest approbation: for they are plain, correct, +and graceful, and divested of all the ornaments of language, so as to +appear (if I may be allowed the expression) in a kind of undress. But +while he pretended only to furnish the loose materials, for such as might +be inclined to compose a regular history, he may, perhaps, have gratified +the vanity of a few literary _Frisseurs_: but he has certainly prevented +all sensible men from attempting any improvement on his plan. For in +history, nothing is more pleasing than a correct and elegant brevity of +expression. With your leave, however, it is high time to return to those +Orators who have quitted the stage of life. C. Sicinius then, who was a +grandson of the Censor Q. Pompey, by one of his daughters, died after his +advancement to the Quaestorship. He was a Speaker of some merit and +reputation, which he derived from the system of Hermagoras; who, though he +furnished but little assistance for acquiring an ornamental style, gave +many useful precepts to expedite and improve the invention of an Orator. +For in this System we have a collection of fixed and determinate rules for +public speaking; which are delivered indeed without any shew or parade, +(and, I might have added, in a trivial and homely form) but yet are so +plain and methodical, that it is almost impossible to mistake the road. By +keeping close to these, and always digesting his subject before he +ventured to speak upon it, (to which we may add, that he had a tolerable +fluency of expression) he so far succeeded, without any other assistance, +as to be ranked among the pleaders of the day.--As to C. Visellius Varro, +who was my cousin, and a cotemporary of Sicinius, he was a man of great +learning. He died while he was a member of the Court of Inquests, into +which he had been admitted after the expiration of his Aedileship. The +public, I confess, had not the same opinion of his abilities that I have; +for he never passed as a man of Sterling Eloquence among the people. His +style was excessively quick and rapid, and consequently obscure; for, in +fact, it was embarrassed and blinded by the celerity of its course: and +yet, after all, you will scarcely find a man who had a better choice of +words, or a richer vein of sentiment. He had besides a complete fund of +polite literature, and a thorough knowledge of the principles of +jurisprudence, which he learned from his father Aculeo. To proceed in our +account of the dead, the next that presents himself is L. Torquatus, whom +you will not so readily pronounce a connoisseur in the Art of Speaking +(though he was by no means destitute of elocution) as, what is called by +the Greeks, _a political Adept_. He had a plentiful stock of learning, not +indeed of the common sort, but of a more abstruse and curious nature: he +had likewise an admirable memory, and a very sensible and elegant turn of +expression; all which qualities derived an additional grace from the +dignity of his deportment, and the integrity of his manners. I was also +highly pleased with the style of his cotemporary Triarius, which expressed +to perfection, the character of a worthy old gentleman, who had been +thoroughly polished by the refinements of Literature.--What a venerable +severity was there in his look! What forcible solemnity in his language! +and how thoughtful and deliberate every word he spoke!"--At the mention of +Torquatus and Triarius, for each of whom he had the most affectionate +veneration,--"It fills my heart with anguish," said Brutus, "(to omit a +thousand other circumstances) when I reflect, as I cannot help doing, on +your mentioning the names of these worthy men, that your long-respected +authority was insufficient to procure an accommodation of our differences. +The Republic would not otherwise have been deprived of these, and many +other excellent Citizens."--"Not a word more," said I, on this melancholy +subject, which can only aggravate our sorrow: for as the remembrance of +what is already past is painful enough, the prospect of what is yet to +come is still more cutting. Let us, therefore, drop our unavailing +complaints, and (agreeably to our plan) confine our attention to the +forensic merits of our deceased friends. Among those, then, who lost their +lives in this unhappy war, was M. Bibulus, who, though not a professed +orator, was a very accurate writer, and a solid and experienced advocate: +and Appius Claudius, your father-in-law, and my colleague and intimate +acquaintance, who was not only a hard student, and a man of learning, but +a practised Orator, a skilful Augurist and Civilian, and a thorough Adept +in the Roman History.--As to L. Domitius, he was totally unacquainted +with any rules of art; but he spoke his native language with purity, and +had a great freedom of address. We had likewise the two Lentuli, men of +consular dignity; one of whom, (I mean Publius) the avenger of my wrongs, +and the author of my restoration, derived all his powers and +accomplishments from the assistance of Art, and not from the bounty of +Nature: but he had such a great and noble disposition, that he claimed all +the honours of the most illustrious Citizens, and supported them with the +utmost dignity of character.--The other (L. Lentulus) was an animated +Speaker, for it would be saying too much, perhaps, to call him an Orator-- +but, unhappily, he had an utter aversion to the trouble of thinking. His +voice was sonorous; and his language, though not absolutely harsh and +forbidding, was warm and rigorous, and carried in it a kind of terror. In +a judicial trial, you would probably have wished for a more agreeable and +a keener advocate: but in a debate on matters of government, you would +have thought his abilities sufficient.--Even Titus Postumius had such +powers of utterance, as were not to be despised: but in political matters, +he spoke with the same unbridled ardour he fought with: in short, he was +much too warm; though it must be owned he possessed an extensive knowledge +of the laws and constitution of his country."--"Upon my word," cried +Atticus, "if the persons you have mentioned were still living, I should be +apt to imagine, that you was endeavouring to solicit their favour. For you +introduce every body who had the courage to stand up and speak his mind: +so that I almost begin to wonder how M. Servilius has escaped your +notice."--"I am, indeed, very sensible," replied I, "that there have been +many who never spoke in public, that were much better qualified for the +talk, than those Orators I have taken the pains to enumerate: [Footnote: +This was probably intended as an indirect Compliment to Atticus.] but I +have, at least, answered one purpose by it, which is to shew you, that in +this populous City, we have not had very many who had the resolution to +speak at all; and that even among these, there have been few who were +entitled to our applause. I cannot, therefore, neglect to take some notice +of those worthy knights, and my intimate friends, very lately deceased, P. +Comminius Spoletinus, against whom I pleaded in defence of C. Cornelius, +and who was a methodical, a spirited, and a ready Speaker; and T. Accius, +of Pisaurum, to whom I replied in behalf of A. Cluentius, and who was an +accurate, and a tolerably copious Advocate: he was also well instructed in +the precepts of Hermagoras, which, though of little service to embellish +and enrich our Elocution, furnish a variety of arguments, which, like the +weapons of the light infantry, may be readily managed, and are adapted to +every subject of debate. I must add, that I never knew a man of greater +industry and application. As to C. Piso, my son-in-law, it is scarcely +possible to mention any one who was blessed with a finer capacity. He was +constantly employed either in public speaking, and private declamatory +exercises, or, at least, in writing and thinking: and, consequently, he +made such a rapid progress, that he rather seemed to fly than to run. He +had an elegant choice of expression, and the structure of his periods was +perfectly neat and harmonious; he had an astonishing variety and strength +of argument, and a lively and agreeable turn of sentiment: and his gesture +was naturally so graceful, that it appeared to have been formed (which it +really was not) by the nicest rules of art. I am rather fearful, indeed, +that I should be thought to have been prompted by my affection for him to +have given him a greater character than he deserved: but this is so far +from being the case, that I might justly have ascribed to him many +qualities of a different and more valuable nature: for in continence, +social piety, and every other kind of virtue, there was scarcely any of +his cotemporaries who was worthy to be compared with him.--M. Caelius too +must not pass unnoticed, notwithstanding the unhappy change, either of his +fortune or disposition, which marked the latter part of his life. As long +as he was directed by my influence, he behaved himself so well as a +Tribune of the people, that no man supported the interests of the Senate, +and of all the good and virtuous, in opposition to the factious and unruly +madness of a set of abandoned citizens, with more firmness than _he_ did: +a part in which he was enabled to exert himself to great advantage, by the +force and dignity of his language, and his lively humour, and genteel +address. He spoke several harangues in a very sensible style, and three +spirited invectives, which originated from our political disputes: and his +defensive speeches, though not equal to the former, were yet tolerably +good, and had a degree of merit which was far from being contemptible. +After he had been advanced to the Aedileship, by the hearty approbation of +all the better sort of citizens, as he had lost my company (for I was then +abroad in Cilicia) he likewise lost himself; and entirely sunk his credit, +by imitating the conduct of those very men, whom he had before so +successfully opposed.--But M. Calidius has a more particular claim to our +notice for the singularity of his character; which cannot so properly be +said to have entitled him to a place among our other Orators, as to +distinguish him from the whole fraternity; for in him we beheld the most +uncommon, and the most delicate sentiments, arrayed in the softest and +finest language imaginable. Nothing could be so easy as the turn and +compass of his periods; nothing so ductile; nothing more pliable and +obsequious to his will, so that he had a greater command of it than any +Orator whatever. In short, the flow of his language was so pure and +limpid, that nothing could be clearer; and so free, that it was never +clogged or obstructed. Every word was exactly in the place where it should +be, and disposed (as Lucilius expresses it) with as much nicety as in a +curious piece of Mosaic-work. We may add, that he had not a single +expression which was either harsh, unnatural, abject, or far-fetched; and +yet he was so far from confining himself to the plain and ordinary mode of +speaking, that he abounded greatly in the metaphor,--but such metaphors as +did not appear to usurp a post that belonged to another, but only to +occupy their own. These delicacies were displayed not in a loose and +disfluent style; but in such a one as was strictly _numerous_, without +_either_ appearing to be so, or running on with a dull uniformity of +sound. He was likewise master of the various ornaments of language and +sentiment which the Greeks call _figures_, whereby he enlivened and +embellished his style as with so many forensic decorations. We may add +that he readily discovered, upon all occasions, what was the real point of +debate, and where the stress of the argument lay; and that his method of +ranging his ideas was extremely artful, his action genteel, and his whole +manner very engaging and very sensible. In short, if to speak agreeably is +the chief merit of an Orator, you will find no one who was better +qualified than Calidius. But as we have observed a little before, that it +is the business of an Orator to instruct, to please, and _to move the +passions_; he was, indeed, perfectly master of the two first; for no one +could better elucidate his subject, or charm the attention of his +audience. But as to the third qualification,--the moving and alarming the +passions,--which is of much greater efficacy than the two former, he was +wholly destitute of it. He had no force,--no exertion;--either by his own +choice, and from an opinion that those who had a loftier turn of +expression, and a more warm and spirited action, were little betther than +madmen; or because it was contrary to his natural temper, and habitual +practice; or, lastly, because it was beyond the strength of his abilities. +If, indeed, it is a useless quality, his want of it was a real excellence: +but if otherwise, it was certainly a defect. I particularly remember, that +when he prosecuted Q. Gallius for an attempt to poison him, and pretended +that he had the plainest proofs of it, and could produce many letters, +witnesses, informations, and other evidences to put the truth of his +charge beyond a doubt, interspersing many sensible and ingenious remarks +on the nature of the crime;--I remember, I say, that when it came to my +turn to reply to him, after urging every argument which the case itself +suggested, I insisted upon it as a material circumstance in favour of my +client, that the prosecutor, while he charged him with a design against +his life, and assured us that he had the most indubitable proofs of it +then in his hands, related his story with as much ease, and as much +calmness, and indifference, as if nothing had happened."--"Would it have +been possible," said I, (addressing myself to Calidius) "that you should +speak with this air of unconcern, unless the charge was purely an +invention of your own? and, above all, that you, whose Eloquence has often +vindicated the wrongs of other people with so much spirit, should speak so +coolly of a crime which threatened your life? Where was that expression of +resentment which is so natural to the injured? Where that ardour, that +eagerness, which extorts the most pathetic language even from men of the +dullest capacities? There was no visible disorder in your mind, no emotion +in your looks and gesture, no smiting of the thigh or the forehead, nor +even a single stamp of the foot. You was, therefore, so far from +interesting our passions in your favour, that we could scarcely keep our +eyes open, while you was relating the dangers you had so narrowly escaped. +Thus we employed the natural defect, or if you please, the sensible +calmness of an excellent Orator, as an argument to invalidate his +charge."--"But is it possible to doubt," cried Brutus, "whether this was a +sensible quality, or a defect? For as the greatest merit of an Orator is +to be able to inflame the passions, and give them such a biass as shall +best answer his purpose; he who is destitute of this must certainly be +deficient in the most capital part of his profession."--"I am of the same +opinion," said I; "but let us now proceed to him (Hortensius) who is the +only remaining Orator worth noticing; after which, as you may seem to +insist upon it, I shall say something of myself. I must first, however, do +justice to the memory of two promising youths, who, if they had lived to a +riper age, would have acquired the highest reputation for their +Eloquence."--"You mean, I suppose," said Brutus, "C. Curio, and C. +Licinius Calvus."--"The very same," replied I. "One of them, besides his +plausible manner, had such an easy and voluble flow of expression, and +such an inexhaustible variety, and sometimes accuracy of sentiment, that +he was one of the most ready and ornamental speakers of his time. Though +he had received but little instruction from the professed masters of the +art, Nature had furnished him with an admirable capacity of the practice +of it. I never, indeed, discovered in him any great degree of application; +but he was certainly very ambitious to distinguish himself; and if he had +continued to listen to my advice, as he had begun to do, he would have +preferred the acquisition of real honour to that of untimely grandeur."-- +"What do you mean," said Brutus? "Or in what manner are these two objects +to be distinguished?"--"I distinguish them thus," replied I: "As honour is +the reward of virtue, conferred upon a man by the choice and affection of +his fellow-citizens, he who obtains it by their free votes and suffrages +is to be considered, in my opinion, as an honourable member of the +community. But he who acquires his power and authority by taking advantage +of every unhappy incident, and without the consent of his fellow-citizens, +as Curio aimed to do, acquires only the name of honour, without the +substance. Whereas, if he had hearkened to me, he would have risen to the +highest dignity, in an honourable manner, and with the hearty approbation +of all men, by a gradual advancement to public offices, as his father and +many other eminent citizens had done before. I often gave the same advice +to P. Crassus, the son of Marcus, who courted my friendship in the early +part of his life; and recommended it to him very warmly, to consider +_that_ as the truest path to honour which had been already marked out to +him by the example of his ancestors. For he had been extremely well +educated, and was perfectly versed in every branch of polite literature: +he had likewise a penetrating genius, and an elegant variety of +expression; and appeared grave and sententious without arrogance, and +modest and diffident without dejection. But like many other young men he +was carried away by the tide of ambition; and after serving a short time +with reputation as a volunteer, nothing could satisfy him but to try his +fortune as a General,--an employment which was confined by the wisdom of +our ancestors to men who had arrived at a certain age, and who, even then, +were obliged to submit their pretensions to the uncertain issue of a +public decision. Thus, by exposing himself to a fatal catastrophe, while +he was endeavouring to rival the fame of Cyrus and Alexander, who lived to +finish their desperate career, he lost all resemblance of L. Crassus, and +his other worthy Progenitors. + +"But let us return to Calvus whom we have just mentioned,--an Orator who +had received more literary improvements than Curio, and had a more +accurate and delicate manner of speaking, which he conducted with great +taste and elegance; but, (by being too minute and nice a critic upon +himself,) while he was labouring to correct and refine his language, he +suffered all the force and spirit of it to evaporate. In short, it was so +exquisitely polished, as to charm the eye of every skilful observer; but +it was little noticed by the common people in a crowded Forum, which is +the proper theatre of Eloquence."--"His aim," said Brutus, "was to be +admired as an _Attic_ Orator: and to this we must attribute that accurate +exility of style, which he constantly affected."--"This, indeed, was his +professed character," replied I: "but he was deceived himself, and led +others into the same mistake. It is true, whoever supposes that to speak +in the _Attic_ taste, is to avoid every awkward, every harsh, every +vicious expression, has, in this sense, an undoubted right to refuse his +approbation to every thing which is not strictly _Attic_. For he must +naturally detest whatever is insipid, disgusting, or invernacular; while +he considers a correctness and propriety of language as the religion, and +good-manners of an Orator:--and every one who pretends to speak in public +should adopt the same opinion. But if he bestows the name of Atticism on a +half-starved, a dry, and a niggardly turn of expression, provided it is +neat, correct, and genteel, I cannot say, indeed, that he bestows it +improperly; as the Attic Orators, however, had many qualities of a more +important nature, I would advise him to be careful that he does not +overlook their different kinds and degrees of merit, and their great +extent and variety of character. The Attic Speakers, he will tell me, are +the models upon which he wishes to form his Eloquence. But which of them +does he mean to fix upon? for they are not all of the same cast. Who, for +instance, could be more unlike each other than Demosthenes and Lysias? or +than Demosthenes and Hyperides? Or who more different from either of them, +than Aeschines? Which of them, then, do you propose to imitate? If only +_one_, this will be a tacit implication, that none of the rest were true +masters of Atticism: if _all_, how can you possibly succeed, when their +characters are so opposite? Let me further ask you, whether Demetrius +Phalereus spoke in the Attic style? In my opinion, his Orations have the +very smell of Athens. But he is certainly more florid than either +Hyperides or Lysias; partly from the natural turn of his genius, and +partly by choice. There were likewise two others, at the time we are +speaking of, whose characters were equally dissimilar; and yet both of +them were truly _Attic_. The first (Charisius) was the author of a number +of speeches, which he composed for his friends, professedly in imitation +of Lysias:--and the other (Demochares, the nephew of Demosthenes) wrote +several Orations, and a regular History of what was transacted in Athens +under his own observation; not so much, indeed, in the style of an +Historian, as of an Orator. Hegesias took the former for his model, and +had so vain a conceit of his own taste for Atticism, that he considered +his predecessors, who were really masters of it, as mere rustics in +comparison of himself. But what can be more insipid, more frivolous, or +more puerile, than that very concinnity of expression which he actually +acquired?"--"_But still we wish to resemble the Attic Speakers_."--"Do so, +by all means. But were not those, then, true Attic Speakers, we have just +been mentioning?"--"_Nobody denies it; and these are the men we +imitate._"--"But how? when they are so very different, not only from each +other, but from all the rest of their contemporaries?"--"_True; but +Thucydides is our leading pattern_."--"This too I can allow, if you design +to compose histories, instead of pleading causes. For Thucydides was both +an exact, and a stately historian: but he never intended to write models +for conducting a judicial process. I will even go so far as to add, that I +have often commended the speeches which he has inserted into his history +in great numbers; though I must frankly own, that I neither _could_ +imitate them, if I _would,_ nor indeed _would,_ if I _could;_ like a man +who would neither choose his wine so new as to have been turned off in the +preceding vintage, nor so excessively old as to date its age from the +consulship of Opimius or Anicius."--"_The latter_, you'll say, _bears the +highest price_." "Very probable; but when it has too much age, it has lost +that delicious flavour which pleases the palate, and, in my opinion, is +scarcely tolerable."--"_Would you choose, then, when you have a mind to +regale yourself, to apply to a fresh, unripened cask?_" "By no means; but +still there is a certain age, when good wine arrives at its utmost +perfection. In the same manner, I would recommend neither a raw, +unmellowed style, which, (if I may so express myself) has been newly drawn +off from the vat; nor the rough, and antiquated language of the grave and +manly Thucydides. For even _he_, if he had lived a few years later, would +have acquired a much softer and mellower turn of expression."--"_Let us, +then, imitate Demosthenes_."--"Good Gods! to what else do I direct all my +endeavours, and my wishes! But it is, perhaps, my misfortune not to +succeed. These _Atticisers_, however, acquire with ease the paltry +character they aim at; not once recollecting that it is not only recorded +in history, but must have been the natural consequence of his superior +fame, that when Demosthenes was to speak in public, all Greece flocked in +crowds to hear him. But when our _Attic_ gentry venture to speak, they are +presently deserted not only by the little throng around them who have no +interest in the dispute, (which alone is a mortifying proof of their +insignificance) but even by their associates and fellow-advocates. If to +speak, therefore, in a dry and lifeless manner, is the true criterion of +Atticism, they are heartily welcome to enjoy the credit of it: but if they +wish to put their abilities to the trial, let them attend the Comitia, or +a judicial process of real importance. The open Forum demands a fuller, +and more elevated tone: and _he_ is the Orator for me, who is so +universally admired that when he is to plead an interesting cause, all the +benches are filled beforehand, the tribunal crowded, the clerks and +notaries busy in adjusting their seats, the populace thronging about the +rostra, and the judge brisk, and vigilant;--_he_, who has such a +commanding air, that when he rises up to speak, the whole audience is +hushed into a profound silence, which is soon interrupted by their +repeated plaudits, and acclamations, or by those successive bursts of +laughter, or violent transports of passion, which he knows how to excite +at his pleasure; so that even a distant observer, though unacquainted with +the subject he is speaking upon, can easily discover that his hearers are +pleased with him, and that a _Roscius_ is performing his part on the +stage. Whoever has the happiness to be thus followed and applauded is, +beyond dispute, an _Attic_ speaker: for such was Pericles,--such was +Hyperides, and Aeschines,--and such, in the most eminent degree, was the +great Demosthenes! If indeed, these connoisseurs, who have so much dislike +to every thing bold and ornamental, only mean to say that an accurate, a +judicious, and a neat, and compact, but unembellished style, is really an +_Attic_ one, they are not mistaken. For in an art of such wonderful extent +and variety as that of speaking, even this subtile and confined character +may claim a place: so that the conclusion will be, that it is very +possible to speak in the _Attic_ taste, without deserving the name of an +Orator; but that all in general who are truly eloquent, are likewise +_Attic_ Speakers.--It is time, however, to return to Hortensius."--" +Indeed, I think so," cried Brutus: "though I must acknowledge that this +long digression of yours has entertained me very agreeably." + +"But I made some remarks," said Atticus, "which I had several times a mind +to mention; only I was loath to interrupt you. As your discourse, however, +seems to be drawing towards an end, I think I may venture to out with +them."--"By all means," replied I.--"I readily grant, then," said he, +"that there is something very humourous and elegant in that continued +_Irony_, which Socrates employs to so much advantage in the dialogues of +Plato, Xenophon, and Aeschines. For when a dispute commences on the nature +of wisdom, he professes, with a great deal of humour and ingenuity, to +have no pretensions to it himself; while, with a kind of concealed +raillery, he ascribes the highest degree of it to those who had the +arrogance to lay an open claim to it. Thus, in Plato, he extols +Protagoras, Hippias, Prodicus, Gorgias, and several others, to the skies: +but represents himself as a mere ignorant. This in _him_ was peculiarly +becoming; nor can I agree with Epicurus, who thinks it censurable. But in +a professed History, (for such, in fact, is the account you have been +giving us of the Roman Orators) I shall leave you to judge, whether an +application of the _Irony_ is not equally reprehensible, as it would be in +giving a judicial evidence."--"Pray, what are you driving at," said I,-- +"for I cannot comprehend you."--"I mean," replied he, "in the first place, +that the commendations which you have bestowed upon some of our Orators, +have a tendency to mislead the opinion of those who are unacquainted with +their true characters. There were likewise several parts of your account, +at which I could scarcely forbear laughing: as, for instance, when you +compared old Cato to Lysias. He was, indeed, a great, and a very +extraordinary man. Nobody, I believe, will say to the contrary. But shall +we call him an Orator? Shall we pronounce him the rival of Lysias, who was +the most finished character of the kind? If we mean to jest, this +comparison of your's would form a pretty _Irony_: but if we are talking in +real earnest, we should pay the same scrupulous regard to truth, as if we +were giving evidence upon oath. As a Citizen, a Senator, a General, and, +in short, a man who was distinguished by his prudence, his activity, and +every other virtue, your favourite Cato has my highest approbation. I can +likewise applaud his speeches, considering the time he lived in. They +exhibit the out-lines of a great genius; but such, however, as are +evidently rude and imperfect. In the same manner, when you represented his +_Antiquities_ as replete with all the graces of Oratory, and compared Cato +with Philistus and Thucydides, did you really imagine, that you could +persuade me and Brutus to believe you? or would you seriously degrade +those, whom none of the Greeks themselves have been able to equal, into a +comparison with a stiff country, gentleman, who scarcely suspected that +there was any such thing in being, as a copious and ornamental style? You +have likewise said much in commendation of Galba;--if as the best Speaker +of his age, I can so far agree with you, for such was the character he +bore:--but if you meant to recommend him as an _Orator_, produce his +Orations (for they are still extant) and then tell me honestly, whether +you would wish your friend Brutus here to speak as _he_? Lepidus too was +the author of several Speeches, which have received your approbation; in +which I can partly join with you, if you consider them only as specimens +of our ancient Eloquence. The same might be said of Africanus and Laelius, +than whose language (you tell us) nothing in the world can be sweeter: +nay, you have mentioned it with a kind of veneration, and endeavoured to +dazzle our judgment by the great character they bore, and the uncommon +elegance of their manners. Divest it of these adventitious Graces, and +this sweet language of theirs will appear so homely, as to be scarcely +worth noticing. Carbo too was mentioned as one of our capital Orators; and +for this only reason,--that in speaking, as in all other professions, +whatever is the best of its kind, for the time being, how deficient soever +in reality, is always admired and applauded. What I have said of Carbo, is +equally true of the Gracchi: though, in some particulars, the character +you have given them was no more than they deserved. But to say nothing of +the rest of your Orators, let us proceed to Antonius and Crassus, your two +paragons of Eloquence, whom I have heard myself, and who were certainly +very able Speakers. To the extraordinary commendation you have bestowed +upon them, I can readily give my assent; but not, however, in such an +unlimited manner as to persuade myself that you have received as much +improvement from the Speech in support of the Servilian Law, as Lysippus +said he had done by studying the famous [Footnote: _Doryphorus_. A Spear- +man.] statue of Polycletus. What you have said on _this_ occasion I +consider as an absolute _Irony:_ but I shall not inform you why I think +so, lest you should imagine I design to flatter you. I shall therefore +pass over the many fine encomiums you have bestowed upon _these_; and what +you have said of Cotta and Sulpicius, and but very lately of your pupil +Caelius. I acknowledge, however, that we may call them Orators: but as to +the nature and extent of their merit, let your own judgment decide. It is +scarcely worth observing, that you have had the additional good-nature to +crowd so many daubers into your list, that there are some, I believe, who +will be ready to wish they had died long ago, that you might have had an +opportunity to insert _their_ names among the rest."--"You have opened a +wide field of enquiry," said I, "and started a subject which deserves a +separate discussion; but we must defer it to a more convenient time. For, +to settle it, a great variety of authors must be examined, and especially +_Cato_: which could not fail to convince you, that nothing was wanting to +complete his pieces, but those rich and glowing colours which had not then +been invented. As to the above Oration of Crassus, he himself, perhaps, +could have written better, if he had been willing to take the trouble; but +nobody else, I believe, could have mended it. You have no reason, +therefore, to think I spoke _ironically_, when I mentioned it as the guide +and _tutoress_ of my Eloquence: for though you seem to have a higher +opinion of my capacity, in its present state, you must remember that, in +our youth, we could find nothing better to imitate among the Romans. And +as to my admitting so _many_ into my list of Orators, I only did it (as I +have already observed) to shew how few have succeeded in a profession, in +which all were desirous to excel. I therefore insist upon it that you do +not consider _me_ in the present case, as an _Ironist_; though we are +informed by C. Fannius, in his History, that _Africanus_ was a very +excellent one."--"As you please about _that_," cried Atticus: "though, by +the bye, I did not imagine it would have been any disgrace to you, to be +what Africanus and Socrates have been before you."--"We may settle _this_ +another time," interrupted Brutus: "but will you be so obliging," said he, +(addressing himself to _me_) "as to give us a critical analysis of some of +the old speeches you have mentioned?"--"Very willingly," replied I; "but +it must be at Cuma, or Tusculum, when opportunity offers: for we are near +neighbours, you know, in both places. At present, let us return to +_Hortensius_, from whom we have digressed a second time." + +"Hortensius, then, who began to speak in public when he was very young, +was soon employed even in causes of the greatest moment: and though he +first appeared in the time of Cotta and Sulpicius, (who were only ten +years older) and when Crassus and Antonius, and afterwards Philip and +Julius, were in the height of their reputation, he was thought worthy to +be compared with either of them in point of Eloquence. He had such an +excellent memory as I never knew in any person; so that what he had +composed in private, he was able to repeat, without notes, in the very +same words he had made use of at first. He employed this natural advantage +with so much readiness, that he not only recollected whatever he had +written or premeditated himself, but remembered every thing that had been +said by his opponents, without the help of a prompter. He was likewise +inflamed with such a passionate fondness for the profession, that I never +saw any one, who took more pains to improve himself; for he would not +suffer a day to elapse, without either speaking in the Forum, or composing +something at home; and very often he did both in the same day. He had, +besides, a turn of expression which was very far from being low and +unelevated; and possessed two other accomplishments, in which no one could +equal him,--an uncommon clearness and accuracy in stating the points he +was to speak to; and a neat and easy manner of collecting the substance of +what had been said by his antagonist, and by himself. He had likewise an +elegant choice of words, an agreeable flow in his periods, and a copious +Elocution, which he was partly indebted for to a fine natural capacity, +and partly acquired by the most laborious rhetorical exercises. In short, +he had a most retentive view of his subject, and always divided and +parcelled it out with the greatest exactness; and he very seldom +overlooked any thing which the case could suggest, that was proper either +to support his _own_ allegations, or to refute those of his opponent. +Lastly, he had a sweet and sonorous voice; and his gesture had rather more +art in it, and was more exactly managed, than is requisite to an Orator. + +"While _he_ was in the height of his glory, Crassus died, Cotta was +banished, our public trials were intermitted by the Marsic war, and I +myself made my first appearance in the Forum. Hortensius joined the army, +and served the first campaign as a volunteer, and the second as a military +Tribune: Sulpicius was made a lieutenant general; and Antonius was absent +on a similar account. The only trial we had, was that upon the Varian Law; +the rest, as I have just observed, having been intermitted by the war. We +had scarcely any body left at the bar but L. Memmius, and Q. Pompeius, who +spoke mostly on their own affairs; and, though far from being Orators of +the first distinction, were yet tolerable ones, (if we may credit +Philippus, who was himself a man of some Eloquence) and in supporting an +evidence, displayed all the poignancy of a prosecutor, with a moderate +freedom of Elocution. The rest, who were esteemed our capital Speakers, +were then in the magistracy, and I had the benefit of hearing their +harangues almost every day. C. Curio was chosen a Tribune of the people; +though he left off speaking after being once deserted by his whole +audience. To him I may add Q. Metellus Celer, who, though certainly no +Orator, was far from being destitute of utterance: but Q. Varius, C. +Carbo, and Cn. Pomponius, were men of real Elocution, and might almost be +said to have lived upon the Rostra. C. Julius too, who was then a Curule +Aedile, was daily employed in making Speeches to the people, which were +composed with great neatness and accuracy. But while I attended the Forum +with this eager curiosity, my first disappointment was the banishment of +Cotta: after which I continued to hear the rest with the same assiduity as +before; and though I daily spent the remainder of my time in reading, +writing, and private declamation, I cannot say that I much relished my +confinement to these preparatory exercises. The next year Q. Varius was +condemned, and banished, by his own law: and I, that I might acquire a +competent knowledge of the principles of jurisprudence, then attached +myself to Q. Scaevola, the son of Publius, who, though he did not choose +to undertake the charge of a pupil, yet by freely giving his advice to +those who consulted him, he answered every purpose of instruction to such +as took the trouble to apply to him. In the succeeding year, in which +Sylla and Pompey were Consuls, as Sulpicius, who was elected a Tribune of +the people, had occasion to speak in public almost every day, I had an +opportunity to acquaint myself thoroughly with his manner of speaking. At +this time Philo, a philosopher of the first name _in the Academy_, with +many of the principal Athenians, having deserted their native home, and +fled to Rome, from the fury of Mithridates, I immediately became his +scholar, and was exceedingly taken with his philosophy; and, besides the, +pleasure I received from the great variety and sublimity of his matter, I +was still more inclined to confine, my attention to that study; because +there was reason to apprehend that our laws and judicial proceedings would +be wholly overturned by the continuance of the public disorders. In the +same year Sulpicius lost his life; and Q. Catulus, M. Antonius, and C. +Julius, three Orators, who were partly cotemporary with each other, were +most inhumanly put to death. Then also I attended the lectures of Molo the +Rhodian, who was newly come to Rome, and was both an excellent Pleader, +and an able Teacher of the Art. I have mentioned these particulars, which, +perhaps, may appear foreign to our purpose, that _you_, my Brutus, (for +Atticus is already acquainted with them) may be able to mark my progress, +and observe how closely I trod upon the heels of Hortensius. + +"The three following years the city was free from the tumult of arms; but +either by the death, the voluntary retirement, or the flight of our ablest +Orators (for even M. Crassus, and the two Lentuli, who were then in the +bloom of youth, had all left us) Hortensius, of course, was the first +Speaker in the Forum. Antistius too was daily rising into reputation,-- +Piso pleaded pretty often,--Pomponius not so frequently,--Carbo very +seldom,--and Philippus only once or twice. In the mean while I pursued my +studies of every kind, day and night, with unremitting application. I +lodged and boarded at my own house [where he lately died] Diodotus the +Stoic; whom I employed as my preceptor in various other parts of learning, +but particularly in Logic, which may be considered as a close and +contracted species of Eloquence; and without which, you yourself have +declared it impossible to acquire that full and perfect Eloquence, which +they suppose to be an open and dilated kind of Logic. Yet with all my +attention to Diodotus, and the various arts he was master of, I never +suffered even a single day to escape me, without some exercise of the +oratorial kind. I constantly declaimed in private with M. Piso, Q. +Pompeius, or some other of my acquaintance; pretty often in Latin, but +much oftener in Greek; because the Greek furnishes a greater variety of +ornaments, and an opportunity of imitating and introducing them into the +Latin; and because the Greek masters, who were far the best, could not +correct and improve us, unless we declaimed in that language. This time +was distinguished by a violent struggle to restore the liberty of the +Republic:--the barbarous slaughter of the three Orators, Scaevola, Carbo, +and Antistius;--the return of Cotta, Curio, Crassus, Pompey, and the +Lentuli;--the re-establishment of the laws and courts of judicature;--and +the intire restoration of the Commonwealth: but we lost Pomponius, +Censorinus, and Murena, from the roll of Orators. + +"I now began, for the _first_ time, to undertake the management of causes, +both private and public; not, as most did, with a view to learn my +profession, but to make a trial of the abilities which I had taken so much +pains to acquire. I had then a second opportunity of attending the +instructions of Molo; who came to Rome, while Sylla was Dictator, to +sollicit the payment of what was due to his countrymen, for their services +in the Mithridatic war. My defence of Sext. Roscius, which was the first +cause I pleaded, met with such a favourable reception, that, from that +moment, I was looked upon as an advocate of the first class, and equal to +the greatest and most important causes: and after this I pleaded many +others, which I pre-composed with all the care and accuracy I was master +of. + +"But as you seem desirous not so much to be acquainted with any incidental +marks of my character, or the first sallies of my youth, as to know me +thoroughly, I shall mention some particulars, which otherwise might have +seemed unnecessary. At this time my body was exceedingly weak and +emaciated; my neck long, and slender; a shape and habit, which I thought +to be liable to great risk of life, if engaged in any violent fatigue, or +labour of the lungs. And it gave the greater alarm to those who had a +regard for me, that I used to speak without any remission or variation, +with the utmost stretch of my voice, and a total agitation of my body. +When my friends, therefore, and physicians, advised me to meddle no more +with forensic causes, I resolved to run any hazard, rather than quit the +hopes of glory, which I had proposed to myself from pleading: but when I +considered, that by managing my voice, and changing my way of speaking, I +might both avoid all future danger of that kind, and speak with greater +ease, I took a resolution of travelling into Asia, merely for an +opportunity to correct my manner of speaking. So that after I had been two +years at the Bar, and acquired some reputation in the Forum, I left Rome. +When I came to Athens, I spent six months with Antiochus, the principal +and most judicious Philosopher of _the old Academy_; and under this able +master, I renewed those philosophical studies which I had laboriously +cultivated and improved from my earliest youth. At the same time, however, +I continued my _rhetorical Exercises_ under Demetrius the Syrian, an +experienced and reputable master of the Art of Speaking. + +"After leaving Athens, I traversed every part of Asia, where I was +voluntarily attended by the principal Orators of the country with whom I +renewed my rhetorical Exercises. The chief of them was Menippus of +Stratonica, the most eloquent of all the Asiatics: and if to be neither +tedious nor impertinent is the characteristic of an Attic Orator, he may +be justly ranked in that class. Dionysius also of Magnesia, Aeschilus of +Cnidos, and Xenocles of Adramyttus, who were esteemed the first +Rhetoricians of Asia, were continually with me. Not contented with these, +I went to Rhodes, and applied myself again to Molo, whom I had heard +before at Rome; and who was both an experienced pleader, and a fine +writer, and particularly judicious in remarking the faults of his +scholars, as well as in his method of teaching and improving them. His +principal trouble with me, was to restrain the luxuriancy of a juvenile +imagination, always ready to overflow its banks, within its due and proper +channel. Thus, after an excursion of two years, I returned to Italy, not +only much improved, but almost changed into a new man. The vehemence of my +voice and action was considerably abated; the excessive ardour of my +language was corrected; my lungs were strengthened; and my whole +constitution confirmed and settled. + +"Two Orators then reigned in the Forum; (I mean Cotta and Hortensius) +whose glory fired my emulation. Cotta's way of speaking was calm and easy, +and distinguished by the flowing elegance and propriety of his language. +The other was splendid, warm, and animated; not such as you, my Brutus, +have seen him when he had shed the blossom of his eloquence, but far more +lively and pathetic both in his style and action. As Hortensius, +therefore, was nearer to me in age, and his manner more agreeable to the +natural ardour of my temper, I considered him as the proper object of my +competition. For I observed that when they were both engaged in the same +cause, (as for instance, when they defended M. Canuleius, and Cn. +Dolabella, a man of consular dignity) though Cotta was generally employed +to open the defence, the most important parts of it were left to the +management of Hortensius. For a crowded audience, and a clamorous Forum, +require an Orator who is lively, animated, full of action, and able to +exert his voice to the highest pitch. The first year, therefore, after my +return from Asia, I undertook several capital causes; and in the interim I +put up as a candidate for the Quaestorship, Cotta for the Consulate, and +Hortensius for the Aedileship. After I was chosen Quaestor, I passed a +year in Sicily, the province assigned to me by lot: Cotta went as Consul +into Gaul: and Hortensius, whose new office required his presence at Rome, +was left of course the undisputed sovereign of the Forum. In the +succeeding year, when I returned from Sicily, my oratorial talents, such +as they were, displayed themselves in their full perfection and maturity. + +"I have been saying too much, perhaps, concerning myself: but my design in +it was not to make a parade of my eloquence and ability, which I have no +temptation to do, but only to specify the pains and labour which I have +taken to improve it. After spending the five succeeding years in pleading +a variety of causes, and with the ablest Advocates of the time, I was +declared an Aedile, and undertook the patronage of the Sicilians against +Hortensius, who was then one of the Consuls elect. But as the subject of +our conversation not only requires an historical detail of Orators, but +such preceptive remarks as may be necessary to elucidate their characters; +it will not be improper to make some observations of this kind upon that +of Hortensius. After his appointment to the consulship (very probably, +because he saw none of consular dignity who were able to rival him, and +despised the competition of others of inferior rank) he began to remit +that intense application which he had hitherto persevered in from his +childhood; and having settled himself in very affluent circumstances, he +chose to live for the future what he thought an _easy_ life, but which, in +truth, was rather an indolent one. In the three succeeding years, the +beauty of his colouring was so much impaired, as to be very perceptible to +a skilful connoisseur, though not to a common observer. After that, he +grew every day more unlike himself than before, not only in other parts of +Eloquence, but by a gradual decay of the former celerity and elegant +texture of his language. I, at the same time, spared no pains to improve +and enlarge my talents, such as they were, by every exercise that was +proper for the purpose, but particularly by that of writing. Not to +mention several other advantages I derived from it, I shall only observe, +that about this time, and but a very few years after my Aedileship, I was +declared the first Praetor, by the unanimous suffrages of my fellow- +citizens. For, by my diligence and assiduity as a Pleader, and my accurate +way of speaking, which was rather superior to the ordinary style of the +Bar, the novelty of my Eloquence had engaged the attention, and secured +the good wishes of the public. But I will say nothing of myself: I will +confine my discourse to our other Speakers, among whom there is not one +who has gained more than a common acquaintance with those parts of +literature, which feed the springs of Eloquence:--not one who has been +thoroughly nurtured at the breast of Philosophy, which is the mother of +every excellence either in deed or speech:--not one who has acquired an +accurate knowledge of the Civil Law, which is so necessary for the +management even of private causes, and to direct the judgment of an +Orator:--not one who is a complete master of the Roman History, which +would enable us, on many occasions, to appeal to the venerable evidence of +the dead:--not one who can entangle his opponent in such a neat and +humourous manner, as to relax the severity of the Judges into a smile or +an open laugh:--not one who knows how to dilate and expand his subject, by +reducing it from the limited considerations of time, and person, to some +general and indefinite topic;--not one who knows how to enliven it by an +agreeable digression: not one who can rouse the indignation of the Judge, +or extort from him the tear of compassion;--or who can influence and bend +his soul (which is confessedly the capital perfection of an Orator) in +such a manner as shall best suit his purpose. + +"When Hortensius, therefore, the once eloquent and admired Hortensius, had +almost vanished from the Forum, my appointment to the Consulship, which +happened about six years after his own promotion to that office, revived +his dying emulation; for he was unwilling that after I had equalled him in +rank and dignity, I should become his superior in any other respect. But +in the twelve succeeding years, by a mutual deference to each other's +abilities, we united our efforts at the Bar in the most amicable manner: +and my Consulship, which at first had given a short alarm to his jealousy, +afterward cemented our friendship, by the generous candor with which he +applauded my conduct. But our emulous efforts were exerted in the most +conspicuous manner, just before the commencement of that unhappy period, +when Eloquence herself was confounded and terrified by the din of arms +into a sudden and a total silence: for after Pompey had proposed and +carried a law, which allowed even the party accused but three hours to +make his defence, I appeared, (though comparatively as a mere _noviciate_ +by this new regulation) in a number of causes which, in fact, were become +perfectly the same, or very nearly so; most of which, my Brutus, you was +present to hear, as having been my partner and fellow-advocate in many of +them, though you pleaded several by yourself; and Hortensius, though he +died a short time afterwards, bore his share in these limited efforts. He +began to plead about ten years before the time of your birth; and in his +sixty-fourth year, but a very few days before his death, he was engaged +with you in the defence of Appius, your father-in-law. As to our +respective talents, the Orations we have published will enable posterity +to form a proper judgment of them. But if we mean to inquire, why +Hortensius was more admired for his Eloquence in the younger part of his +life, than in his latter years, we shall find it owing to the following +causes. The first was, that an _Asiatic_ style is more allowable in a +young man than in an old one. Of this there are two different kinds. + +"The former is sententious and sprightly, and abounds in those turns of +sentiment which are not so much distinguished by their weight and solidity +as by their neatness and elegance; of this cast was Timaeus the Historian, +and the two Orators so much talked of in our younger days, Hierocles the +Alabandean, and his brother Menecles, but particularly the latter; both +whose Orations may be reckoned master-pieces of the kind. The other sort +is not so remarkable for the plenty and richness of its sentiments, as for +its rapid volubility of expression, which at present is the ruling taste +in Asia; but, besides it's uncommon fluency, it is recommended by a choice +of words which are peculiarly delicate and ornamental:--of this kind were +Aeschylus the Cnidian, and my cotemporary Aeschines the Milesian; for they +had an admirable command of language, with very little elegance of +sentiment. These showy kinds of eloquence are agreeable enough in young +people; but they are entirely destitute of that gravity and composure +which befits a riper age. As Hortensius therefore excelled in both, he was +heard with applause in the earlier part of his life. For he had all that +fertility and graceful variety of sentiment which distinguished the +character of Menecles: but, as in Menecles, so in him, there were many +turns of sentiment which were more delicate and entertaining than really +useful, or indeed sometimes convenient. His language also was brilliant +and rapid, and yet perfectly neat and accurate; but by no means agreeable +to men of riper years. I have often seen it received by Philippus with the +utmost derision, and, upon some occasions, with a contemptuous +indignation: but the younger part of the audience admired it, and the +populace were highly pleased with it. In his youth, therefore, he met the +warmest approbation of the public, and maintained his post with ease as +the first Orator in the Forum. For the style he chose to speak in, though +it has little weight, or authority, appeared very suitable to his age: and +as it discovered in him the most visible marks of genius and application, +and was recommended by the numerous cadence of his periods, he was heard +with universal applause. But when the honours he afterwards rose to, and +the dignity of his years required something more serious and composed, he +still continued to appear in the same character, though it no longer +became him: and as he had, for some considerable time, intermitted those +exercises, and relaxed that laborious attention which had once +distinguished him, though his former neatness of expression, and +luxuriancy of sentiment still remained, they were stripped of those +brilliant ornaments they had been used to wear. For this reason, perhaps, +my Brutus, he appeared less pleasing to you than he would have done, if +you had been old enough to hear him, when he was fired with emulation and +flourished in the full bloom of his Eloquence. + +"I am perfectly sensible," said Brutus, "of the justice of your remarks; +and yet I have always looked upon Hortensius as a great Orator, but +especially when he pleaded for Messala, in the time of your absence."--"I +have often heard of it," replied I, "and his Oration, which was afterwards +published, they say, in the very same words in which he delivered it, is +no way inferior to the character you give it. Upon the whole, then, his +reputation flourished from the time of Crassus and Scaevola (reckoning +from the Consulship of the former) to the Consulship of Paullus and +Marcellus: and I held out in the same career of glory from the +Dictatorship of Sylla, to the period I have last, mentioned. Thus the +Eloquence of Hortensius was extinguished by his _own_ death, and mine by +that of the Commonwealth."--"Ominate more favourably, I beg of you," +cried Brutus.--"As favourably as you please," said I, "and that not so +much upon my own account, as your's. But _his_ death was truly fortunate, +who did not live to behold the miseries, which he had long foreseen. For +we often lamented, between ourselves, the misfortunes which hung over the +State, when we discovered the seeds of a civil war in the insatiable +ambition of a few private Citizens, and saw every hope of an accommodation +excluded by the rashness and precipitancy of our public counsels. But the +felicity which always marked his life, seems to have exempted him, by a +seasonable death, from the calamities that followed. But, as after the +decease of Hortensius, we seem to have been left, my Brutus, as the sole +guardians of an _orphan_ Eloquence, let us cherish her, within our own +walls at least, with a generous fidelity: let us discourage the addresses +of her worthless, and impertinent suitors; let us preserve her pure and +unblemished in all her virgin charms, and secure her, to the utmost of our +ability, from the lawless violence of every armed ruffian. I must own, +however, though I am heartily grieved that I entered so late upon the road +of life, as to be overtaken by a gloomy night of public distress, before I +had finished my journey; that I am not a little relieved by the tender +consolation which you administered to me in your very agreeable letters;-- +in which you tell me I ought to recollect my courage, since my past +transactions are such as will speak for me when I am silent, and survive +my death,--and such as, if the Gods permit, will bear an ample testimony +to the prudence and integrity of my public counsels, by the final +restoration of the Republic:--or, if otherwise, by burying me in the +ruins of my country. But when I look upon _you_, my Brutus, it fills me +with anguish to reflect that, in the vigour of your youth, and when you +was making the most rapid progress in the road to fame, your career was +suddenly stopped by the fatal overthrow of the Commonwealth. This unhappy +circumstance has stung me to the heart; and not _me_ only; but my worthy +friend here, who has the same affection for you, and the same esteem for +your merit which I have. We have the warmest wishes for your happiness, +and heartily pray that you may reap the rewards of your excellent virtues, +and live to find a Republic in which you will be able, not only to revive, +but even to add to the fame of your illustrious ancestors. For the Forum +was your birth-right, your native theatre of action; and you was the only +person that entered it, who had not only formed his Elocution by a +rigorous course of private practice, but enriched his Oratory with the +furniture of philosophical Science, and thus united the highest virtue to +the most consummate Eloquence. Your situation, therefore, wounds us with +the double anxiety, that _you_ are deprived of the _Republic_, and the +Republic of _you_. But still continue, my Brutus, (notwithstanding the +career of your genius has been checked by the rude shock of our public +distresses) continue to pursue your favourite studies, and endeavour (what +you have almost, or rather intirely effected already) to distinguish +yourself from the promiscuous crowd of Pleaders with which I have loaded +the little history I have been giving you. For it would ill befit you, +(richly furnished as you are with those liberal Arts, which, unable to +acquire at home, you imported from that celebrated city which has always +been revered as the seat of learning) to pass after all as an ordinary +Pleader. For to what purposes have you studied under Pammenes, the most +eloquent man in Greece; or what advantage have you derived from the +discipline of _the old_ Academy, and it's hereditary master Aristus (my +guest, and very intimate acquaintance) if you still rank yourself in the +common class of Orators? Have we not seen that a whole age could scarcely +furnish two Speakers who really excelled in their profession? Among a +crowd of cotemporaries, Galba, for instance, was the only Orator of +distinction: for old Cato (we are informed) was obliged to yield to his +superior merit, as were likewise his two juniors Lepidus, and Carbo. But, +in a public Harangue, the style of his successors the Gracchi was far more +easy and lively: and yet, even in their time, the Roman Eloquence had not +reached its perfection. Afterwards came Antonius, and Crassus; and then +Cotta, Sulpicius, Hortensius, and--but I say no more: I can only add, that +if I had been so fortunate, &c, &c,"--[_Caetera defunt._] + + + + +THE ORATOR, +BY MARCUS TULLIUS CICERO; +ADDRESSED TO MARCUS BRUTUS; +And now first translated from the Original Latin. + + + "Song charms the Sense, but Eloquence the Soul." + MILTON. + + + + +THE ORATOR. + + +Which, my Brutus, would be the most difficult talk,--to decline answering +a request which you have so often repeated, or to gratify it to your +satisfaction,--I have long been at a loss to determine. I should be +extremely sorry to deny any thing to a friend for whom I have the warmest +esteem, and who, I am sensible, has an equal affection for me;-- +especially, as he has only desired me to undertake a subject which may +justly claim my attention. But to delineate a character, which it would be +very difficult, I will not say to _acquire_, but even to _comprehend_ in +its full extent, I thought was too bold an undertaking for him who reveres +the censure of the wife and learned. For considering the great diversity +of manner among the ablest Speakers, how exceedingly difficult must it be +to determine which is best, and give a finished model of Eloquence? This, +however, in compliance with your repeated solicitations, I shall now +attempt;--not so much from any hopes of succeeding, as from a strong +inclination to make the trial. For I had rather, by yielding to your +wishes, give you room to complain of my insufficiency; than, by a +peremptory denial, tempt you to question my friendship. + +You desire to know, then, (and you have often repeated your request) what +kind of Eloquence I most approve, and can look upon to be so highly +finished, as to require no farther improvement. But should I be able to +answer your expectations, and display, in his full perfection, the Orator +you enquire after; I am afraid I shall retard the industry of many, who, +enfeebled by despair, will no longer attempt what they think themselves +incapable of attaining. It is but reasonable, however, that all those who +covet what is excellent, and which cannot be acquired without the greatest +application, should exert their utmost. But if any one is deficient in +capacity, and destitute of that admirable force of genius which Nature +bestows upon her favourites, or has been denied the advantages of a +liberal education, _let him make the progress he is able_. For while we +are driving to overtake the foremost, it is no disgrace to be found among +the _second_ class, or even the _third_. Thus, for instance, among the +poets, we respect the merit not only of a _Homer_ (that I may confine +myself to the Greeks) or of _Archilochus, Sophocles_, or _Pindar_, but of +many others who occupied the second, or even a lower place. In Philosophy +also the diffusive majesty of Plato has not deterred _Aristotle_ from +entering the list; nor has _Aristotle_ himself, with all his wonderful +knowledge and fertility of thought, disheartened the endeavours of others. +Nay, men of an elevated genius have not only disdained to be intimidated +from the pursuit of literary fame;--but the very artists and mechanics +have never relinquished their profession, because they were unable to +equal the beauty of that _Iasylus_ which we have seen at Rhodes, or of the +celebrated _Venus_ in the island of _Coos_:--nor has the noble image of +Olympian _Jove_, or the famous statue of the Man at Arms, deterred others +from making trial of their abilities, and exerting their skill to the +utmost. Accordingly, such a large number of them has appeared, and each +has performed so well in his own way, that we cannot help being pleased +with their productions, notwithstanding our admiration at the nobler +efforts of the great masters of the chissel. + +But among the Orators, I mean those of Greece, it is astonishing how much +one of them has surpassed the rest:--and yet, though there was a +_Demosthenes_, there were even _then_ many other Orators of considerable +merit;--and such there were before he made his appearance, nor have they +been wanting since. There is, therefore, no reason why those who have +devoted themselves to the study of Eloquence, should suffer their hopes to +languish, or their industry to flag. For, in the first place, even that +which is most excellent is not to be despaired of;--and, in all worthy +attempts, that which is next to what is best is great and noble. + +But in sketching out the character of a compleat Orator, it is possible I +may exhibit such a one as hath never _yet_ existed. For I am not to point +out the _Speaker_, but to delineate the _Eloquence_ than which nothing can +be more perfect of the kind:--an Eloquence which hath blazed forth through +a whole Harangue but seldom, and, it may be, never; but only here and +there like a transient gleam, though in some Orators more frequently, and +in others, perhaps, more sparingly. + +My opinion, then, is,--that there is no human production of any kind, so +compleatly beautiful, than which there is not a _something_ still more +beautiful, from which the other is copied like a portrait from real life, +and which can be discerned neither by our eyes nor ears, nor any of our +bodily senses, but is visible only to thought and imagination. Though the +statues, therefore, of Phidias, and the other images above-mentioned, are +all so wonderfully charming, that nothing can be found which is more +excellent of the kind; we may still, however, _suppose_ a something which +is more exquisite, and more compleat. For it must not be thought that the +ingenious artist, when he was sketching out the form of a Jupiter, or a +Minerva, borrowed the likeness from any particular object;--but a certain +admirable semblance of beauty was present to his mind, which he viewed and +dwelt upon, and by which his skill and his hand were guided. As, +therefore, in mere bodily shape and figure there is a kind of perfection, +to whose ideal appearance every production which falls under the notice of +the eye is referred by imitation; so the semblance of what is perfect in +Oratory may become visible to the mind, and the ear may labour to catch a +likeness. These primary forms of thing are by Plato (the father of science +and good language) called _Ideas_; and he tells us they have neither +beginning nor end, but are co-eval with reason and intelligence; while +every thing besides has a derived, and a transitory existence, and passes +away and decays, so as to cease in a short time to be the thing it was. +Whatever, therefore, may be discussed by reason and method, should be +constantly reduced to the primary form or semblance of it's respective +genus. + +I am sensible that this introduction, as being derived not from the +principles of Eloquence, but from the deepest recesses of Philosophy, will +excite the censure, or at least the wonder of many, who will think it both +unfashionable and intricate. For they will either be at a loss to discover +it's connection with my subject, (though they will soon be convinced by +what follows, that, if it appears to be far-fetched, it is not so without +reason;)--or they will blame me, perhaps, for deserting the beaten track, +and striking out into a new one. But I am satisfied that I often appear to +advance novelties, when I offer sentiments which are, indeed, of a much +earlier date, but happen to be generally unknown: and I frankly +acknowledge that I came forth an Orator, (if indeed I am one, or whatever +else I may be deemed) not from the school of the Rhetoricians, but from +the spacious walks of the Academy. For these are the theatres of +diversified and extensive arguments which were first impressed with the +foot-steps of Plato; and his Dissertations, with those of other +Philosophers, will be found of the greatest utility to an Orator, both for +his exercise and improvement; because all the fertility, and, as it were, +the materials of Eloquence, are to be derived from thence;--but not, +however, sufficiently prepared for the business of the Forum, which, as +themselves have frequently boasted, they abandoned to the _rustic Muses_ +of the vulgar! Thus the Eloquence of the Forum, despised and rejected by +the Philosophers, was bereaved of her greatest advantages:--but, +nevertheless, being arrayed in all the brilliance of language and +sentiment, she made a figure among the populace, nor feared the censure of +the judicious few. By this means, the learned became destitute of a +popular Eloquence, and the Orators of polite learning. + +We may, therefore, consider it as a capital maxim, (the truth of which +will be more easily understood in the sequel) that the eloquent Speaker we +are enquiring after, cannot be formed without the assistance of +Philosophy. I do not mean that this alone is sufficient; but only (for it +is sometimes necessary to compare great things to small) that it will +contribute to improve him in the same manner as the _Palaestra_ [Footnote: +The _Palaestra_ was a place set apart for public exercises, such as +wrestling, running, fencing, &c. the frequent performance of which +contributed much to a graceful carriage of the body, which is a necessary +accomplishment in a good Actor.] does an Actor; because without +Philosophy, no man can speak fully and copiously upon a variety of +important subjects which come under the notice of an Orator. Accordingly, +in the _Phaedrus_ of Plato, it is observed by Socrates that the great +_Pericles_ excelled all the Speakers of his time, because he had been a +hearer of _Anaxagoras_ the Naturalist, from whom he supposes that he not +only borrowed many excellent and sublime ideas, but a certain richness and +fertility of language, and (what in Eloquence is of the utmost +consequence) the various arts either of soothing or alarming each +particular passion. The same might be said of _Demosthenes_, whose letters +will satisfy us, how assiduously he attended the Lectures of Plato. For +without the instruction of Philosophy, we can neither discover what is the +_Genus_ or the _Species_ to which any thing belongs, nor explain the +nature of it by a just definition, or an accurate analysis of its parts;-- +nor can we distinguish between what is true and false, or foresee the +consequences, point out the inconsistencies, and dissolve the ambiguities +which may lie in the case before us. But as to Natural Philosophy (the +knowledge of which will supply us with the richest treasures of +Elocution;)--and as to life, and it's various duties, and the great +principles of morality,--what is it possible either to express or +understand aright, without a large acquaintance with these? To such +various and important accomplishments we must add the innumerable +ornaments of language, which, at the time above mentioned, were the only +weapons which the Masters of Rhetoric could furnish. This is the reason +why that genuine, and perfect Eloquence we are speaking of, has been yet +attained by no one; because the Art of _Reasoning_ has been supposed to be +one thing, and that of _Speaking_ another; and we have had recourse to +different Instructors for the knowledge of things and words. + +Antonius, [Footnote: A celebrated Orator, and grandfather to M. Antonius +The Triumvir.] therefore, to whom our ancestors adjudged the palm of +Eloquence, and who had much natural penetration and sagacity, has observed +in the only book he published, "_that he had seen many good Speakers, but +not a single Orator_." The full and perfect semblance of Eloquence had so +thoroughly possessed his mind, and was so completely visible there, though +no where exemplified in practice, that this consummate Genius, (for such, +indeed, he was) observing many defects in both himself and others, could +discover no one who merited the name of _eloquent_. But if he considered +neither himself, nor Lucius Crassus, as a genuine Orator, he must have +formed in his mind a sublime idea of Eloquence, under which, because there +was nothing wanting to compleat it, he could not comprehend those Speakers +who were any ways deficient. Let us then, my Brutus, (if we are able) +trace out the Orator whom Antonius never saw, and who, it may be, has +never yet existed; for though we have not the skill to copy his likeness +in real practice, (a talk which, in the opinion of the person above- +mentioned, would be almost too arduous for one of the Gods,) we may be +able, perhaps, to give some account of what he _ought_ to be. + +Good Speaking, then, may be divided into three characters, in each of +which there are some who have made an eminent figure: but to be equally +excellent in all (which is what we require) has been the happiness of few. + +The _lofty_ and _majestic_ Speaker, who distinguishes himself by the +energy of his sentiments, and the dignity of his expression, is +impetuous,--diversified,--copious,--and weighty,--and abundantly qualified +to alarm and sway the passions;--which some effect by a harsh, and a +rough, gloomy way of speaking, without any harmony or measure; and others, +by a smooth, a regular, and a well-proportioned style. + +On the other hand, the _simple_ and _easy_ Speaker is remarkably dexterous +and keen, and aiming at nothing but our information, makes every thing he +discourses upon, rather clear and open than great and striking, and +polishes it with the utmost neatness and accuracy. But some of this kind +of Speakers, who are distinguished by their peculiar artificie, are +designedly unpolished, and appear rude and unskilful, that they may have +the better opportunity of deceiving us:--while others, with the same +poverty of style, are far more elegant and agreeable,--that is, they are +pleasant and facetious, and sometimes even florid, with here and there an +easy ornament. + +But there is likewise a _middle_ kind of Oratory, between the two above- +mentioned, which neither has the keenness of the latter, nor hurls the +thunder of the former; but is a mixture of both, without excelling in +either, though at the same time it has something of each, or (perhaps, +more properly) is equally destitute of the true merit of both. This +species of Eloquence flows along in a uniform course, having nothing to +recommend it, but it's peculiar smoothness and equability; though at the +same time, it intermingles a number of decorations, like the tufts of +flowers in a garland, and embellishes a discourse from beginning to end +with the moderate and less striking ornaments of language and sentiment. + +Those who have attained to any degree of perfection in either of the above +characters, have been distinguished as eminent Orators: but the question +is whether any of them have compassed what we are seeking after, and +succeeded equally in all. For there have been several who could speak +nervously and pompously, and yet, upon occasion, could express themselves +with the greates address, and simplicity. I wish I could refer to such an +Orator, or at least to one who nearly resembles him, among the Romans; for +it would certainly have been more to our credit to be able to refer to +proper examples of our own, and not be necessitated to have recourse to +the Greeks. But though in another treatis of mine, which bears the name of +_Brutus_, [Footnote: A very excellent Treatise in the form of a Dialogue. +It contains a critical and very instructive account of all the noted +Orators of _Greece_ and _Rome_ and might be called, with great propriety, +_the History of Eloquence_. Though it is perhaps the most entertaining of +all Cicero's performances, the Public have never been obliged before with +a translation of it into English; which, I hope, will sufficiently plead +my excuse for preforming to undertake it.] I have said much in favour of +the Romans, partly to excite their emulation, and, in some measure, from a +partial fondness for my country; yet I must always remember to give the +preference to _Demosthenes_, who alone has adapted his genius to that +perfect species of Eloquence of which I can readily form an idea, but +which I have never yet seen exemplified in practice. Than _him_, there has +never hitherto existed a more nervous, and at the same time, a more subtle +Speaker, or one more cool and temperate. I must, therefore, caution those +whose ignorant discourse is become so common, and who wish to pass for +_Attic_ Speakers, or at least to express themselves in the _Attic_ taste, +--I must caution them to take _him_ for their pattern, than whom it is +impossible that Athens herself should be more completely Attic: and, as to +genuine Atticism, that them learn what it means, and measure the force of +Eloquence, not by their own weakness and incapacity, but by his wonderful +energy and strength. For, at present, a person bestows his commendation +upon just so much as he thinks himself capable of imitating. I therefore +flatter myself that it will not be foreign to my purpose, to instruct +those who have a laudable emulation, but are not thoroughly settled in +their judgment, wherein the merit of an Attic Orator consists. + +The taste of the Audience, then, has always governed and directed the +Eloquence of the Speaker: for all who wish to be applauded, consult the +character, and the inclinations of those who hear them, and carefully form +and accommodate themselves to their particular humours and dispositions. +Thus in Caria, Phrygia, and Mysia, because the inhabitants have no relish +for true elegance and politeness, the Orators have adopted (as most +agreeable to the ears of their audience) a luxuriant, and, if I may so +express myself, a corpulent style; which their neighbours the Rhodians, +who are only parted from them by a narrow straight, have never approved, +and much less the Greeks; but the Athenians have entirely banished it; for +their taste has always been so just and accurate that they could not +listen to any thing but what was perfectly correct and elegant. An Orator, +therefore, to compliment their delicacy, was forced to be always upon his +guard against a faulty or a distasteful expression. + +Accordingly, _he_, whom we have just mentioned as surpassing the rest, has +been careful in his Oration for Ctesiphon, (which is the best he ever +composed) to set out very cooly and modestly: when he proceeds to argue +the point of law, he grows more poignant and pressing; and as he advances +in his defence, he takes still greater liberties; till, at last, having +warmed the passions of his Judges, he exults at his pleasure through the +reamining part of his discourse. But even in _him_, thus carefully +weighing and poising his every word _Aeschines_ [Footnote: _Aeschines_ was +a cotemporary, and a professed rival of Demosthenes. He carried his +animosity so far as to commence a litigious suit against him, at a time +when the reputation of the latter was at the lowest ebb. But being +overpowered by the Eloquence of Demosthenes, he was condemned to perpetual +banishment.] could find several expressions to turn into ridicule:--for +giving a loose to his raillery, he calls them harsh, and detestable, and +too shocking to be endured; and styling the author of them a very +_monster_, he tauntingly asks him whether such expressions could be +considered as _words_ or not rather as absolute _frights_ and _prodigies_. +So that to AEschines not even _Demosthenes_ himself was perfectly _Attic_; +for it is an easy matter to catch a _glowing_ expression, (if I may be +allowed to call it so) and expose it to ridicule when the fire of +attention is extinguished. Demosthenes, therefore, when he endeavours to +excuse himself, condescends to jest, and denies that the fortune of Greece +was in the least affected by the singularity of a particular expression, +or by his moving his hand either this way or that. + +With what patience, then, would a Mysian or a Phrygian have been heard at +Athens, when even Demosthenes himself was reproached as a nuisance? But +should the former have begun his whining sing-song, after the manner of +the Asiatics, who would have endured it? or rather, who would not have +ordered him to be instantly torn from the Rostrum? Those, therefore, who +can accommodate themselves to the nice and critical ears of an Athenian +audience, are the only persons who should pretend to Atticism. + +But though Atticism may be divided into several kinds, these mimic +Athenians suspect but one. They imagine that to discourse plainly, and +without any ornament, provided it be done correctly, and clearly, is the +only genuine Atticism. In confining it to this alone, they are certainly +mistaken; though when they tell us that this is really Attic, they are so +far in the right. For if the only true Atticism is what they suppose to +be, not even _Pericles_ was an Attic Speaker, though he was universally +allowed to bear away the palm of Eloquence; nor, if he had wholly attached +himself to this plain and simple kind of language, would he ever have been +said by the Poet Aristophanes _to thunder and lighten, and throw all +Greece into a ferment_. + +Be it allowed, then, that Lysias, that graceful and most polite of +Speakers, was truly Attic: for who can deny it? But let it also be +remembered that Lysias claims the merit of Atticism, not so much for his +simplicity and want of ornament, as because he has nothing which is either +faulty or impertinent. But to speak floridly, nervously, and copiously, +this also is true Atticism:--otherwise, neither Aeschines nor even +Demosthenes himself were Attic Speakers. + +There are others who affect to be called _Thucydideans_,--a strange and +novel race of Triflers! For those who attach themselves to Lysias, have a +real Pleader for their pattern;--not indeed a stately, and striking +Pleader, but yet a dextrous and very elegant one, who might appear in the +Forum with reputation. + +Thucydides, on the contrary, is a mere Historian, who ('tis true) +describes wars, and battles with great dignity and precision; but he can +supply us with nothing which is proper for the Forum. For his very +speeches have so many obscure and intricate periods, that they are +scarcely intelligible; which in a public discourse is the greatest fault +of which an Orator can be guilty. But who, when the use of corn has been +discovered, would be so mad as to feed upon acorns? Or could the Athenians +improve their diet, and bodily food, and be incapable of cultivating their +language? Or, lastly, which of the Greek Orators has copied the style of +Thucydides? [Footnote: Demosthenes indeed took the pains to transcribe the +History of Thucydides several times. But he did this, no so much to copy +the _form_ as the energy of his language.] "True," they reply, "but +Thucydides was universally admired." And so, indeed, he was; but only as a +sensible, an exact, and a grave Historian;--not for his address in public +debates, but for his excellence in describing wars and battles. +Accordingly, he was never mentioned as an Orator; nor would his name have +been known to posterity, if he had not composed his History, +notwithstanding the dignity of his birth, and the honourable share he held +in the Government. But none of these Pretenders have copied his energy; +and yet when they have uttered a few mutilated and broken periods (which +they might easily have done without a master to imitate) we must rever +them, truly, as so many genuine _Thucydideses_. I have likewise met with a +few who were professed imitators of Xenophon; whose language, indeed, is +sweeter than honey, but totally unqualified to withstand the clamours of +the Forum. + +Let us return then to the Orator we are seeking after, and furnish him +with those powers of Elocution, which Antonius could not discover in any +one: an arduous task, my Brutus, and full of difficulty:--yet nothing, I +believe, is impossible to him whose breast is fired with the generous +flame of friendship! But I affectionately admire (and have always admired) +your genius, your inclinations, and your manners. Nay, I am daily more +inflamed and ravished, not only with a desire (which, I assure you, is a +violent one) to renew our friendly intercourses, our social repasts, and +your improving conversation, but by the wonderful fame of your incredible +virtues, which, though different in kind, are readily united by your +superior wisdom and good-sense. For what is so remote from severity of +manners as gentleness and affability? and yet who more venerable than +yourself, or who more agreeable? What can be more difficult than to decide +a number of suits, so as to be equally esteemed and beloved by the parties +on both sides? You, however, possess the admirable talent of sending away +perfectly easy and contented even those against whom your are forced to +give judgment: thus bringing it to bear that, while you do nothing from a +partial favour to any man, whatever you do is favourably received. Hence +it happens, that the only country upon earth, which is not involved in the +present confusion, is the province of Gaul; where you are now enjoying +yourself in a happy tranquillity, while you are universally respected at +home, and live in the hearts of the flower and strength of your fellow- +citizens. It is equally amazing, though you are always engaged in the most +important offices of Government, that your studies are never intermitted; +and that you are constantly either composing something of your own, or +finding employment for me! Accordingly I began this Essay, at your +request, as soon as I had finished my _Cato_; which last also I should +never have attempted (especially at a time when the enemies of virtue were +so numerous) if I had not considered it as a crime to disobey my friend, +when he only urged me to revive the memory of a man whom I always loved +and honoured in his life-time. But I have now ventured upon a task which +you have frequently pressed upon me, and I as often refused: for, if +possible, I would share the fault between us, that if I should prove +unequal to the subject, you may have the blame of loading me with a burden +which is beyond my strength, and I the censure of presuming to undertake +it:--though after all, the single merit of gratifying such a friend as +Brutus, will sufficiently atone for any defects I may fall into. + +But in every accomplishment which may become the object of pursuit, it is +excessively difficult to delineate the form (or, as the Greeks call it, +the _character_ [Footnote: [Greek: charachtaer].]) of what is _best_; +because some suppose it to consist in one thing, and some in another. +Thus, for instance, "I am for _Ennius_," says one; "because he confines +himself to the style of conversation:"--"and I," says another, "give the +preference to _Pacuvius_, because his verses are embellished and well- +wrought; whereas Ennius is rather too "negligent." In the same manner we +may suppose a third to be an admirer of Attius; for, as among the Greeks, +so it happens with us, "_different men have different opinions_;"--nor is +it easy to determine which is best. Thus also in painting, some are +pleased with a rough, a wild, and a dark and cloudy style; while others +prefer that which is clear, and lively, and well covered with light. How +then shall we strike out a general _rule_ or _model_, when there are +several manners, and each of them has a certain perfection of its own? But +this difficulty has not deterred me from the undertaking; nor have I +altered my opinion that in all things there is a _something_ which +comprehends the highest excellence of the kind, and which, though not +generally discernible, is sufficiently conspicuous to him, who is skilled +in the subject. + +"But as there are several kinds of Eloquence which differ considerably +from each other, and therefore cannot be reduced to one common form;--for +this reason, as to mere laudatory Orations, Essays, Histories, and such +suasory performances as the Panegyric of Isocrates, and the speeches of +many others who were called _Sophists_;--and, in short, as to every thing +which is unconnected with the Forum, and the whole of that species of +discourse which the Greeks call the _demonstrative_ [Footnote: The +_demonstrative_ species of Eloquence is that which was solely employed +either in _praising_ or _dispraising_. Besides this, there are two +others, viz. the _deliberative_, and the _judicial_; the former was +employed in political debates, where it's whole business was either +to _persuade_ or _dissuade_; and the latter, in judicial suits and +controversies, where the Speaker was either to _accuse_ or _defend_. +But, on many occasions, they were all three intermingled in the same +discourse.];--the form, or leading character of these I shall pass over; +though I am far from considering it as a mere trifle, or a subject of +no consequence; on the contrary, we may regard it as the nurse and +tutoress of the Orator we are now delineating. For _here_, a fluency +of expression is confessedly nourished and cultivated; and the easy +construction, and harmonious cadence of our language is more openly +attended to. _Here_, likewise, we both allow and recommend a studious +elegance of diction, and a continued flow of melodious and well-turned +periods;--and _here_, we may labour visibly, and without concealing +our art, to contrast word to word, and to compare similar, and oppose +contrary circumstances, and make several sentences (or parts of a +sentence) conclude alike, and terminate with the same cadence; +--ornaments, which in real pleadings, are to be used more sparingly, and +with less appearance of art. Isocrates, therefore, confesses in his +_Panathenaicus_, that these were beauties which he industriously pursued; +for he composed it not for victory in a suit at law (where such a +confession must have greatly injured his cause) but merely to gratify the +ear. + +"It is recorded that the first persons who practised this species of +composition [Footnote: The _composition_ here mentioned consisted of three +parts, The _first_ regarded the structure; that is, the _connection_ of +our words, and required that the last syllable of every preceding, and the +first of every succeeding word should be so aptly united as to produce an +agreeable sound; which was effected by avoiding a collision of vowels or +of inamicable consonants. It likewise required that those words should be +constantly made choice of, whose separate sounds were most harmonious and +most agreeable to the sense. The _second_ part consisted in the use of +particular forms of expression, such as contrasts and antithesises, which +have an appearance of order and regularity in their very texture. The +_third_ and last regarded that species of harmony which results not so +much from the sound, as from the time and quantity of the several +syllables in a sentence. This was called _number_, and sometimes _rhyme_; +and was in fact a kind of _prosaic metre_, which was carefully attended to +by the ancients in every part of a sentence, but more particularly at the +beginning and end of it. In this part they usually included the _period_, +or the rules for determining the length of their sentences. I thought it +necessary to give this short account of their composition, because our +author very frequently alludes to it, before he proceeds to explain it at +large.] were _Thrasymachus_ the Chalcedonian, and _Gorgias_ the Leontine; +and that these were followed by _Theodorus_ the Byzantine, and a number of +others, whom Socrates, in the Phaedrus of Plato, calls [Greek: +logodaidalos] _Speech-wrights_; many of whole discourses are sufficiently +neat and entertaining; but, being the first attempts of the kind, were too +minute and puerile, and had too poetical an air, and too much colouring. +On this account, the merit of _Herodotus_, and _Thucydides_ is the more +conspicuous: for though they lived at the time we are speaking of, they +carefully avoided those studied decorations, or rather futilities. The +former rolls along like a deep, still river without any rocks or shoals to +interrupt it's course; and the other describes wars and battles, as if he +was founding a charge on the trumpet; so that history (to use the words +of _Theophrastus_) caught the first alarm from these, and began to express +herself with greater dignity and spirit. + +"After these came _Socrates_, whom I have always recommended as the most +accomplished writer we have in the way I am speaking of; though sometimes, +my Brutus, you have objected to it with a great deal of pleasantry and +erudition. But when you are better informed for what it is I recommend +him, you will then think of him perhaps as favourably as I do. +Thrasymachus and Gorgias (who are said to have been the first who +cultivated the art of prosaic harmony) appeared to him to be too minutely +exact; and Thucydides, he thought, was as much too loose and rugged, and +not sufficiently smooth, and full-mouthed; and from hence he took the hint +to give a scope to his sentences by a more copious and unconfined flow of +language, and to fill up their breaks and intervals with the softer and +more agreeable numbers. By teaching this to the most celebrated Speakers, +and Composers of the age, his house came at last to be honoured as the +_School of Eloquence_. Wherefore as I bore the censure of others with +indifference, when I had the good fortune to be applauded by Cato; thus +Isocrates, with the approbation of Plato, may slight the judgment of +inferior critics. For in the last page of the Phaedrus, we find _Socrates_ +thus expressing himself;--'Now, indeed, my dear Phaedrus,' said he, +'Isocrates is but a youth: but I will discover to you what I think of +him.'--'And what is that?' replied the other.--'He appears to me,' said +the Philosopher, 'to have too elevated a genius to be placed on a level +with the arid speeches of Lysias. Besides, he has a stronger turn for +virtue; so that I shall not wonder, as he advances in years, if in the +species of Eloquence to which he now applies himself, he should exceed +all, who have hitherto pursued it, like so many infants. Or, if this +should not content him, I shall not be astonished to behold him with a +godlike ardour pursuing higher and more important studies; for I plainly +see that he has a natural bent to Philosophy!'" + +Thus Socrates presaged of him when he was but a youth. But Plato recorded +this eulogium when he was older; and he recorded it, though he was one of +his equals and cotemporaries, and a professed enemy to the whole tribe of +Rhetoricians! _Him_ he admires, and _him_ alone! So that such who despise +Isocrates, must suffer me to err with Socrates and Plato. + +The manner of speaking, then, which is observed in the _demonstrative_ or +ornamental species of Eloquence, and which I have before remarked, was +peculiar to the Sophists, is sweet, harmonious, and flowing, full of +pointed sentiments, and arrayed in all the brilliance of language. But it +is much fitter for the parade than the field; and being, therefore, +consigned to the Palaestra, and the schools, has been long banished from +the Forum. As Eloquence, however, after she had been fed and nourished +with this, acquires a fresher complexion, and a firmer constitution; it +would not be amiss, I thought, to trace our Orator from his very _cradle_. + +But these things are only for shew and amusement: whereas it is our +business to take the field in earnest, and prepare for action. As there +are three particulars, then, to be attended to by an Orator,--viz. _what_ +he is to say, in _what order_, and _how_; we shall consider what is most +excellent in each; but after a different manner from what is followed in +delivering a system of the Art. For we are not to furnish a set of +precepts (this not being the province we have undertaken) but to exhibit a +portrait of Eloquence in her full perfection: neither is it our business +to explain the methods by which we may acquire it, but only to shew what +opinion we ought to form of it. + +The two first articles are to be lightly touched over; for they have not +so much a remarkable as a necessary share in forming the character of a +compleat Orator, and are likewise common to _his_ with many other +professions;--and though, to invent, and judge with accuracy, what is +proper to be said, are important accomplishments, and the same as the soul +is to the body, yet they rather belong to _prudence_ than to Eloquence. In +what cause, however, can _prudence_ be idle? Our Orator, therefore, who is +to be all perfection, should be thoroughly acquainted with the sources of +argument and proof. For as every thing which can become the subject of +debate, must rest upon one or another of these particulars, viz.--whether +a fact has been really committed, or what name it ought to bear in law, or +whether it is agreeable or contrary to justice; and as the reality of a +fact must be determined by force of evidence, the true name of it by it's +definition, and the quality of it by the received notions of right and +wrong;--an Orator (not an ordinary one, but the finished Speaker we are +describing) will always turn off the controversy, as much as possible, +from particular persons and times, (for we may argue more at liberty +concerning general topics than about circumstances) in such a manner that +what is proved to be true _universally_, may necessarily appear to be so +in all _subordinate_ cases. The point in debate being thus abstracted from +particular persons and times, and brought to rest upon general principles, +is called a _thesis_. In _this_ the famous Aristotle carefully practised +his scholars;--not to argue with the formal precision of Philosophers, but +to canvass a point handsomely and readily on both sides, and with all the +copiousness so much admired in the Rhetoricians: and for this purpose he +delivered a set of _common places_ (for so he calls them) which were to +serve as so many marks or characters for the discovery of arguments, and +from which a discourse might be aptly framed on either side of a question. + +Our Orator then, (for I am not speaking of a mere school-declaimer, or a +noisy ranter in the Forum, but of a well-accomplished and a finished +Speaker)--our Orator, as there is such a copious variety of common-places, +will examine them all, and employ those which suit his purpose in as +general and indefinite a manner as his cause will permit, and carefully +trace and investigate them to their inmost sources. But he will use the +plenty before him with discretion, and weighing every thing with the +utmost accuracy, select what is best: for the stress of an argument does +not always, and in every cause, depend upon similar topics. He will, +therefore, exercise his judgment; and not only discover what _may_ be +said, but thoroughly examine the _force_ of it. For nothing is more +fertile than the powers of genius, and especially those which have been +blessed with the cultivation of science. But as a rich and fruitful soil +not only produces corn in abundance, but also weeds to choak and smother +it; so from the common-places we are speaking of, many arguments will +arise, which are either trivial, or foreign to our purpose, or entirely +useless. An Orator, therefore, should carefully examine each, that he may +be able to select with propriety. Otherwise, how can he enlarge upon those +which are most pertinent, and dwell upon such as more particularly affect +his cause? Or how can he soften a harsh circumstance, or conceal, and (if +possible) entirely suppress what would be deemed unanswerable, or steal +off the attention of the hearer to a different topic? Or how alledge +another argument in reply, which shall be still more plausible than that +of his antagonist? + +But after he has thus _invented_ what is proper to be said, with what +accuracy must he _methodize_ it? For this is the second of the three +articles above-mentioned. Accordingly, he will give the portal of his +Harangue a graceful appearance, and make the entrance to his cause as neat +and splendid as the importance of it will permit. When he has thus made +himself master of the hearer's good wishes at the first onset, he will +endeavour to invalidate what makes against him; and having, by this means, +cleared his way, his strongest arguments will appear some of them in the +front, and others at the close of his discourse; and as to those of more +trifling consequence, he will occasionally introduce [Footnote: In the +Original it is _inculcabit_, he will _tread them in_, (like the sand or +loose dust in a new pavement) to support and strengthen the whole.] them +here and there, where he judges them likely to be most serviceable. Thus, +then, we have given a cursory view of what he ought to be, in the two +first departments of Oratory. But, as we before observed, these, though +very important in their consequences, require less art and application. + +After he has thus invented what is proper to be said, and in what order, +the greatest difficulty is still behind;--namely to consider _how_ he is +to say it, and _in what manner_. For the observation of our favourite +_Carneades_ is well-known,--"That _Clitomachus_ had a perpetual sameness +of sentiment, and Charmidas a tiresome uniformity of expression." But if +it is a circumstance of so much moment in Philosophy, _in what manner_ we +express ourselves, where the matter, and not the language, is principally +regarded; what must we think of public debates, which are wholly ruled and +swayed by the powers of Elocution? Accordingly, my Brutus, I am sensible +from your letters, that you mean to inquire what are my notions of a +finished Speaker, not so much with respect to his Invention and +Disposition, as to his talents of _Elocution_:--a severe task! and the +most difficult you could have fixed upon! For as language is ever soft and +yielding, and so amazingly pliable that you may bend and form it at your +pleasure; so different natures and dispositions have given rise to +different kinds of Elocution. Some, for instance, who place the chief +merit of it in it's rapidity, are mightily pleased with a torrent of +words, and a volubility of expression. Others again are better pleased +with regular, and measured intervals, and frequent stops, and pauses. What +can be more opposite? and yet both have their proper excellence. Some also +confine their attention to the smoothness and equability of their periods, +and aim at a style which is perfectly neat and clear: while others affect +a harshness, and severity of diction, and to give a gloomy cast to their +language:--and as we have already observed that some endeavour to be +nervous and majestic, others neat and simple, and some to be smooth and +florid, it necessarily follows that there must be as many different kinds +of Orators, as there are of Eloquence. But as I have already enlarged the +talk you have imposed upon me;--(for though your enquiries related only to +Elocution, I have ventured a few hints on the arts of Invention and +Disposition;)--I shall now treat not only of _Elocution_, but of _action_. +By this means, every part of Oratory will be attended to: for as to +_memory_, which is common to this with many other arts, it is entirely out +of the question. + +The Art of Speaking then, so far as it regards only the _manner_ in which +our thoughts should be expressed, consists in _action_ and _Elocution_; +for action is the Eloquence of the body, and implies the proper management +of our _voice_ and _gesture_. As to the inflexions of the voice, they are +as numerous as the various passions it is capable of exciting. The +finished Orator, therefore, who is the subject of this Essay, in whatever +manner he would appear to be affected himself, and touch the heart of his +hearer, will employ a suitable and corresponding tone of voice:--a topic +which I could willingly enlarge upon, if delivering precepts was any part +of my present design, or of your request. I should likewise have treated +concerning _gesture_, of which the management of the countenance is a +material part: for it is scarcely credible of what great importance it is +to an Orator to recommend himself by these external accomplishments. For +even those who were far from being masters of good language, have many +times, by the sole dignity of their action, reaped the fruits of +Eloquence; while others who had the finest powers of Elocution, have too +often, by the mere awkwardness of their delivery, led people to imagine +that they were scarcely able to express themselves:--so that Demosthenes, +with sufficient reason, assigned the first place, and likewise the second +and third to _pronunciation_. For if Eloquence without this is nothing, +but this, even without Eloquence, has such a wonderful efficacy, it must +be allowed to bear the principal sway in the practice of Speaking. + +If an Orator, then, who is ambitious to win the palm of Eloquence, has any +thing to deliver which is warm and cutting, let his voice be strong and +quick;--if what is calm and gentle, let it be mild and easy;--if what is +grave and sedate, let it be cool and settled;--and if what is mournful and +affecting, let his accents be plaintive and flexible. For the voice may be +raised or depressed, and extended or contracted to an astonishing degree; +thus in Music (for instance) it's three tones, the _mean_, the _acute_, +and the _grave_, may be so managed by art, as to produce a pleasing and an +infinite variety of sounds. Nay, even in Speaking, there may be a +concealed kind of music:--not like the whining epilogue of a Phrygian or a +Carian declaimer, but such as was intended by _Aeschines_, and +_Demosthenes_, when the one upbraids and reproaches the other with the +artificial modulations of his voice. _Demosthenes_, however, says most +upon this head, and often speaks of his accuser as having a sweet and +clear pronunciation. There is another circumstance, which may farther +enforce our attention to the agreeable management of the voice; for Nature +herself, as if she meant to harmonize the speech of man, has placed an +accent on every word, and one accent only, which never lies farther than +the third syllable from the last. Why, therefore, should we hesitate to +follow her example, and to do our best to gratify the ear? A good voice, +indeed, though a desirable accomplishment, is not in our power to +acquire:--but to exercise, and improve it, is certainly in the power of +every person. + +The Orator, then, who means to be the prince of his profession, will +change and vary his voice with the most delicate propriety; and by +sometimes raising, and sometimes depressing it, pursue it gradually +through all it's different tones, and modulations. He will likewise +regulate his _gesture_, so as to avoid even a single motion which is +either superfluous or impertinent. His posture will be erect and manly:-- +he will move from his ground but seldom, and not even then too +precipitately; and his advances will be few and moderate. He will practise +no languishing, no effeminate airs of the head, no finical playing of the +fingers, no measured movement of the joints. The chief part of his gesture +will consist in the firm and graceful sway of his body, and in extending +his arm when his arguments are pressing, and drawing it again when his +vehemence abates. But as to the _countenance_, which next to the voice has +the greatest efficacy, what dignity and gracefulness is it not capable of +supporting! and when you have been careful that it may neither be +unmeaning, nor ostentatious, there is still much to be left to the +expression of the _eyes_. For if the countenance is the _image_ of the +mind, the eyes are it's _interpreters_, whose degree of pleasantry or +sadness must be proportioned to the importance of our subject. + +But we are to exhibit the portrait of a finished Orator, whose chief +excellence must be supposed, from his very name, to consist in his +_Elocution_; while his other qualifications (though equally complete) are +less conspicuous. For a mere inventor, a mere digester, or a mere actor, +are titles never made use of to comprize the whole character; but an +Orator derives his name, both in Greek and Latin, from the single talent +of Elocution. As to his other qualifications, every man of sense may claim +a share of them: but the full powers of language are exerted by himself +alone. Some of the philosophers, indeed, have expressed themselves in a +very handsome manner: for _Theophrastus_ derived his name from the +divinity of his style; _Aristotle_ rivalled the glory of _Isocrates_; and +the Muses themselves are said to have spoken from the lips of _Xenophon_; +and, to say no more, the great _Plato_ is acknowledged in majesty and +sweetness to have far exceeded all who ever wrote or spoke. But their +language has neither the nerves nor the sting which is required in the +Orator's, when he harangues the crowded Forum. They speak only to the +learned, whose passions they rather choose to compose than disturb; and +they discourse about matters of calm and untumultuous speculation, merely +as teachers, and not like eager antagonists: though even _here_, when they +endeavour to amuse and delight us, they are thought by some to exceed the +limits of their province. It will be easy, therefore, to distinguish this +species of Elocution from the Eloquence we are attempting to delineate. +For the language of philosophy is gentle and composed, and entirely +calculated for the shady walks of the Academy;--not armed with those +forcible sentiments, and rapid turns of expression, which are suited to +move the populace, nor measured by exact numbers and regular periods, but +easy, free, and unconfined. It has nothing resentful belonging to it, +nothing invidious, nothing fierce and flaming, nothing exaggerated, +nothing marvellous, nothing artful and designing; but resembles a chaste, +a bashful, and an unpolluted virgin. We may, therefore, consider it as a +kind of polite conversation, rather than a species of Oratory. + +As to the _Sophists_, whom I have already mentioned, the resemblance ought +to be more accurately distinguished: for they industriously pursue the +same flowers which are used by an Orator in the Forum. But they differ in +this,--that, as their principal aim is not to disturb the passions, but +rather to allay them, and not so much to persuade as to please,--they +attempt the latter more openly, and more frequently than we do. They seek +for agreeable sentiments, rather than probable ones; they use more +frequent digressions, intermingle tales and fables, employ more shewy +metaphors, and work them into their discourses with as much fancy and +variety as a painter does his colours; and they abound in contrasts and +antitheses, and in similar and corresponding cadences. + +Nearly allied to these is _History_, which conducts her narratives with +elegance and ease, and now and then sketches out a country, or a battle. +She likewise diversifies her story with short speeches, and florid +harangues: but in these, only neatness and fluency is to be expected, and +not the vehemence and poignant severity of an Orator [Footnote: In the +Original it is,--_sed in his tracta quaedam et fluens expetitur, nan haec +contorta, et acris Oratorio_; upon which Dr. Ward has made the following +remark:--"Sentences, with respect to their form or composition, are +distinguished into two sorts, called by Cicero _tracta_, strait or direct, +and _contorta_, bent or winding. By the former are meant such, whose +members follow each other in a direct order, without any inflexion; and by +the latter, those which strictly speaking are called periods."]. + +There is much the same difference between Eloquence and _Poetry_; for the +Poets likewise have started the question, What it is which distinguishes +them from the Orators? It was formerly supposed to be their _number_ and +_metre_: but numbers are now as familiar to the Orator, as to the Poet; +for whatever falls under the regulation of the ear, though it bears no +resemblance to verse (which in Oratory would be a capital fault) is called +_number_, and by the Greeks _rhyme_. [Footnote: [Greek: Ruthmos]] In the +opinion of some, therefore, the style of _Plato_ and _Democritus_, on +account of it's majestic flow, and the splendor of it's ornaments, though +it is far from being verse, has a nearer resemblance to poetry than the +style of the Comedians, who, excepting their metre, have nothing different +from the style of conversation. Metre, however, is far from being the +principal merit of the Poets; though it is certainly no small +recommendation, that, while they pursue all the beauties of Eloquence, the +harmony of their numbers is far more regular and exact. But, though the +language of Poetry is equally grand and ornamental with that of an Orator, +she undoubtedly takes greater liberties both in making and compounding +word; and frequently administers to the pleasure of her hearers, more by +the pomp and lustre of her expressions, than by the weight and dignity of +her sentiments. Though judgment, therefore, and a proper choice of words, +is alike common to both, yet their difference in other respects is +sufficiently discernible: but if it affords any matter of doubt (as to +some, perhaps, it may) the discussion of it is no way necessary to our +present purpose. + +We are, therefore, to delineate the Orator who differs equally from the +Eloquence of the Philosopher, the Sophist, the Historian, and the Poet. +He, then, is truly eloquent, (for after _him_ we must search, by the +direction of Antonius) who in the Forum, and in public debates, can so +speak, as to _prove_, _delight_, and _force the passions_. To _prove_, is +a matter of necessity:--to _delight_, is indispensably requisite to engage +the attention:--and to _force the passions_, is the surest means of +victory; for this contributes more effectually than both the others to get +a cause decided to our wishes. But as the duties of an Orator, so the +kinds of Elocution are three. The neat and accurate is used in _proving;_ +the moderately florid in _delighting_ apd the vehement and impetuous in +_forcing_ _the passions,_ in which alone all the power of Eloquence +consists. Great, therefore, must be the judgment, and wonderful the +talents of the man, who can properly conduct, and, as it were, temper this +threefold variety: for he will at once determine what is suitable to every +case; and be always able to express himself as the nature of his subject +may require. + +Discretion, therefore, is the basis of Eloquence, as well as of every +other accomplishment. For, as in the conduct of life, so in the practice +of Speaking, nothing is more difficult than to maintain a propriety of +character. This is called by the Greeks [Greek: to prepon], _the +becoming,_ but we shall call it _decorum;_--a subject which has been +excellently and very copiously canvassed, and richly merits our attention. +An unacquaintance with this has been the source of innumerable errors, not +only in the business of life, but in Poetry and Eloquence. An Orator, +therefore, should examine what is becoming, as well in the turn of his +language, as in that of his sentiments. For not every condition, not every +rank, not every character, nor every age, or place, or time, nor every +hearer is to be treated with the same invariable train either of sentiment +or expression:--but we should always consider in every part of a public +Oration, as well as of life, what will be most becoming,--a circumstance +which naturally depends on the nature of the subject, and the respective +characters of the Speaker and Hearer. Philosophers, therefore, have +carefully discussed this extensive and important topic in the doctrine of +Ethics, (though not, indeed, when they treat of right and wrong, because +those are invariably the fame:)--nor is it less attended to by the Critics +in their poetical Essays, or by men of Eloquence in every species and +every part of their public debates. For what would be more out of +character, than to use a lofty style, and ransack every topic of argument, +when we are speaking only of a petty trespass in some inferior court? Or, +on the other hand, to descend to any puerile subtilties, and speak with +the indifference and simplicity of a frivolous narrative, when we are +lashing treason and rebellion? + +_Here_, the indecorum would arise from the very nature and quality of the +subject: but others are equally guilty of it, by not adapting their +discourse either to their own characters, or to that of their hearers, +and, in some cafes, to that of their antagonists; and they extend the +fault not only to their sentiments, but to the turn of their expression. +It is true, indeed, that the force of language is a mere nothing, when it +is not supported by a proper solidity of sentiment: but it is also equally +true that the same thing will be either approved or rejected, according as +it is this or that way expressed. In all cases, therefore, we cannot be +too careful in examining the _how far_? for though every thing has it's +proper mean, yet an _excess_ is always more offensive and disgusting than +a proportionable _defect_. _Apelles_, therefore, justly censures some of +his cotemporary artists, because they never knew when they had performed +enough. + +This, my Brutus, as your long acquaintance with it must necessarily inform +you, is a copious subject, and would require an extensive volume to +discuss. But it is sufficient to our present purpose to observe, that in +all our words and actions, as well the smallest as the greatest, there is +a something which will appear either becoming or unbecoming, and that +almost every one is sensible of it's confluence. But what is becoming, and +what _ought to be_, are very different considerations, and belong to a +different topic:--for the _ought to be_ points out the perfection of duty, +which should be attended to upon all occasions, and by all persons: but +the _becoming_ denotes that which is merely _proper_, and suited to time +and character, which is of great importance not only in our actions and +language, but in our very looks, our gesture, and our walk; and that which +is contrary to it will always be _unbecoming_, and disagreeable. If the +Poet, therefore, carefully guards against any impropriety of the kind, and +is always condemned as guilty of a fault, when he puts the language of a +worthy man into the mouth of a ruffian, or that of a wife man into the +mouth of a fool:--if, moreover, the artist who painted the sacrifice of +_Iphigenia_, [Footnote: Agamemnon, one of the Grecian chiefs, having by +accident slain a deer belonging to Diana, the Goddess was so enraged at +this profanation of her honours, that she kept him wind-bound at Aulis +with the whole fleet. Under this heavy disaster, having recourse to the +Oracle, (their usual refuge in such cases) they were informed that the +only atonement which the angry Goddess would accept, was the sacrifice of +one of the offender's children. Ulysses having, by a stratagem, withdrawn +_Iphigenia_ from her mother for that purpose, the unhappy Virgin was +brought to the altar. But, as the story goes, the Goddess relenting at her +hard fate, substituted a deer in her stead, and conveyed her away to serve +her as a Priestess. It must be farther remarked that _Menelaus_ was the +Virgin's uncle, and Calchas the Priest who was to officiate at this horrid +sacrifice.] could see that _Chalcas_ should appear greatly concerned, +_Ulysses_ still more so, and _Menelaus_ bathed in tears, but that the head +of Agamemnon (the virgin's father) should be covered with his robe, to +intimate a degree of anguish which no pencil could express: lastly, if a +mere actor on the stage is ever cautious to keep up the character he +appears in, what must be done by the Orator? But as this is a matter of +such importance, let him consider at his leisure, what is proper to be +done in particular causes, and in their several parts and divisions:--for +it is sufficiently evident, not only that the different parts of an +Oration, but that entire causes ought to be managed, some in one manner, +and some in another. + +We must now proceed to delineate the form and character of each of the +three species of Eloquence above-mentioned; a great and an arduous talk, +as I have already observed more than once; But we should have considered +the difficulty of the voyage before we embarked: for now we have ventured +to set sail, we must run boldly before the wind, whether we reach our port +or not. + +The first character, then, to be described, is the Orator who, according +to some, is the only one that has any just pretensions to _Atticism_. He +is distinguished by his modest simplicity; and as he imitates the language +of conversation, he differs from those who are strangers to Eloquence, +rather in reality than in appearance. For this reason, those who hear him, +though totally unskilled in the art of Speaking, are apt to persuade +themselves that they can readily discourse in the same manner [Footnote: +There is a pretty remark to the same purpose in the fifteenth number of +_The Guardian_, which, as it may serve to illustrate the observation of +Cicero, I shall beg leave to insert. + +"From what I have advanced, it appears how difficult it is to write +_easily_. But when easy writings fall into the hands of an ordinary +reader, they appear to him so natural and unlaboured, that he immediately +resolves to write, and fancies that all he has to do is to take no pains. +Thus he thinks indeed simply, but the thoughts not being chosen with +judgment, are not beautiful. He, it is true, expresses himself plainly, +but flatly withal. Again, if a man of vivacity takes it into his head to +write this way, what self-denial must he undergo, when bright points of +wit occur to his fancy? How difficult will he find it to reject florid +phrases, and pretty embellishments of style? So true it is, that +simplicity of all things is the hardest to be copied, and case to be +acquired with the greatest labour."];--and the unaffected simplicity of +his language appears very imitable to an ignorant observer; though nothing +will be found less so by him who makes the trial. For, if I may so express +myself, though his veins are not over-stocked with blood, his juices must +be found and good; and though he is not possessed of any extraordinary +strength, he must have a healthy constitution. For this purpose, we must +first release him from the shackles of _number_; for there is (you know) a +kind of _number_ to be observed by an Orator, which we shall treat of in +the sequel:--but this is to be used in a different species of Eloquence, +and to be relinquished in the present. His language, therefore, must be +free and unconfined, but not loose and irregular, that he may appear to +walk at ease, without reeling or tottering. He will not be at the pains to +cement word to word with a scrupulous exactness: for those breaks which +are made by a collision of vowels, have now and then an agreeable effect, +and betray the not unpleasing negligence of a man who is more felicitous +about things than words. But though he is not to labour at a measured +flow, and a masterly arrangement of his words, he must be careful in other +respects. For even these limited and unaspiring talents are not to be +employed carelessly, but with a kind of industrious negligence: for as +some females are most becoming in a dishabille, so this artless kind of +Eloquence has her charms, though she appears in an undress. There is +something in both which renders them agreeable, without striking the eye. +Here, therefore, all the glitter of ornament, like that of jewels and +diamonds, must be laid aside; nor must we apply even the crisping-iron to +adjust the hair. There must be no colouring, no artful washes to heighten +the complexion: but elegance and neatness must be our only aim. Our style +muft be pure, and correct;--we must speak with clearness and perspicuity; +--and be always attentive to appear in character. There is one thing, +however, which must never be omitted, and which is reckoned by +Theophrastus to be one of the chief beauties of composition;--I mean that +sweet and flowing ornament, a plentiful intermixture of lively sentiments, +which seem to result from a natural fund of good sense, and are peculiarly +graceful in the Orator we are now describing. But he will be very moderate +in using the _furniture_ of Eloquence: for (if I may be allowed such an +expression) there is a species of furniture belonging to us, which +consists in the various ornaments of sentiment and language. The ornaments +of language are two-fold; the one sort relates to words as they stand +singly, and the other as they are connected together. A _single_ word (I +speak of those which are _proper_, and in common use) is then said to be +well chosen, when it founds agreeably, and is the best which could have +been taken to express our meaning. Among borrowed and _translatitious_ +[Footnote: Words which are transferred from their primitive meaning to a +metaphorical one.] words, (or those which are not used in their proper +sense) we may reckon the metaphor, the metonymy, and the rest of the +tropes; as also compounded and new-made words, and such as are obsolete +and out of date; but obsolete words should rather be considered as proper +ones, with this only difference, that we seldom make use of them. As to +words in connection, these also may be considered as ornamental, when they +have a certain gracefulness which would be destroyed by changing their +order, though the meaning would still remain the same. For as to the +ornaments of sentiment, which lose nothing of their beauty, by varying the +position of the words,--these, indeed, are very numerous, though only a +few of them are remarkably striking. + +The Orator, then, who is distinguished by the simplicity of his manner, +provided he is correct and elegant, will be sparing in the use of new +words; easy and modest in his metaphors; and very cautious in the use of +words which are antiquated;--and as to the other ornaments of language and +sentiment, here also he will be equally plain and reserved. But in the use +of metaphors, he will, perhaps, take greater liberties; because these are +frequently introduced in conversation, not only by Gentlemen, but even by +rustics, and peasants: for we often hear them say that the vine _shoots +out_ it's buds, that the fields are _thirsty_, the corn _lively_, and the +grain _rich_ and flourishing. Such expressions, indeed, are rather bold: +but the resemblance between the metaphor and the object is either +remarkably obvious; or else, when the latter has no proper name to express +it, the metaphor is so far from appearing to be laboured, that we seem to +use it merely to explain our meaning. This, therefore, is an ornament in +which our artless Orator may indulge himself more freely; but not so +openly as in the more diffusive and lofty species of Eloquence. For that +_indecorum_, which is best understood by comparing it with its opposite +quality, will even here be viable when a metaphor is too conspicuous;--or +when this simple and dispassionate sort of language is interrupted by a +bold ornament, which would have been proper enough in a different kind of +Elocution. + +As to that sort of ornament which regards the position of words, and +embellishes it with those studied graces, which are considered by the +Greeks as so many _attitudes_ of language, and are therefore called +_figures_, (a name which is likewise extended to the flowers of +sentiment;)--the Orator before us, who may justly be regarded as an +_Attic_ Speaker, provided the title is not confined to him, will make use +even of _this_, though with great caution and moderation. He will conduct +himself as if he was setting out an entertainment, and while he carefully +avoids a splendid magnificence, he will not only be plain and frugal, but +neat and elegant, and make his choice accordingly. For there is a kind of +genteel parsimony, by which his character is distinguished from that of +others. He will, therefore, avoid the more conspicuous ornaments above- +mentioned, such as the contracting word to word,--the concluding the +several members of a sentence with the same cadence, or confining them to +the same measure,--and all the studied prettiness which are formed by the +change of a letter, or an artful play of found;--that, if possible, there +may not be the slightest appearance, or even suspicion, of a design to +please. As to those repetitions which require an earnest and forcible +exertion of the voice, these also would be equally out of character in +this lower species of Eloquence; but he may use the other ornaments of +Elocution at his pleasure, provided he checks and interrupts the flow of +his language, and softens it off by using familiar expressions, and such +metaphors as are plain and obvious. Nay, even as to the figures of +sentiment, he may sometimes indulge himself in those which are not +remarkably bold and striking. Thus, for instance, we must not allow him to +introduce the Republic as speaking, nor to fetch up the dead from their +graves, nor to crowd a multitude of ideas into the same period. These +efforts demand a firmer constitution, and should be neither required nor +expected from the simple Orator before us; for as in his voice, so +likewise in his language, he should be ever easy and composed. But there +are many of the nobler ornaments which may be admitted even here, though +always in a plainer and more artless habit than in any other species of +Eloquence; for such is the character we have assigned him. His gesture +also will be neither pompous, nor theatrical, but consist in a moderate +and easy sway of the body, and derive much of it's efficacy from the +countenance,--not a stiff and affected countenance, but such a one as +handsomely corresponds with his sentiments. + +This kind of Oratory will likewise be frequently enlivened by those turns +of wit and pleasantry, which in Speaking have a much greater effect than +is imagined. There are two sorts of them; the one consisting in smart +sayings and quick repartees, and the other in what is called _humour_. Our +Orator will make use of both;--of the latter in his narratives, to make +them lively and entertaining;--and of the other, either in giving or +retorting a stroke of ridicule, of which there are several kinds; but at +present it is not our business to specify them. It will not be amiss, +however, to observe by way of caution, that the powers of _ridicule_ are +not to be employed too often, lest we sink into scurrility;--nor in loose +and indecent language, lest we degenerate into wantonness and buffoonery; +--nor with the least degree of petulance and abuse, lest we appear +audacious and ill-bred;--nor levelled against the unfortunate, lest we +incur the censure of inhumanity;--nor against atrocious crimes, lest we +raise a laugh where we ought to excite abhorrence;--nor, in the last +place, should they be used unseasonably, or when the characters either of +the Speaker, or the Hearer, and the circumstances of time and place forbid +it;--otherwise we should grossly fail in that decorum of which we have +already said so much. We should likewise avoid all affected witticisms, +which appear not to be thrown out occasionally, but to be dragged from the +closet; for such are generally cold and insipid. It is also improper to +jest upon our friends, or upon persons of quality, or to give any strokes +of wit which may appear ill-natured, or malicious. We should aim only at +our enemies; and even at these, not upon every occasion, or without any +distinction of character, or with the same invariable turn of ridicule. +Under these restrictions our artless Orator will play off his wit and +humour, as I have never seen it done by any of the modern pretenders to +Atticism, though they cannot deny that this is entirely in the Attic +taste. + +Such, then, is the idea which I have formed of a _simple and an easy +Speaker_, who is likewise a very masterly one, and a genuine Athenian; for +whatever is smart and pertinent is unquestionably _Attic_, though some of +the Attic Speakers were not remarkable for their wit. _Lysias_, indeed, +and _Hyperides_ were sufficiently so; and _Demades_, it is said, was more +so than all the others. Demosthenes, however, is thought by many to have +but little merit of the kind; but to me nothing can be more genteel than +he is; though, perhaps, he was rather smart than humourous. The one +requires a quicker genius, but the other more art and address. + +But there is a second character, which is more diffusive, and somewhat +stronger than the simple and artless, one we have been describing,--though +considerably inferior to that copious and all-commanding Eloquence we +shall notice in the sequel. In this, though there is but a moderate +exertion of the nerves and sinews of Oratory, there is abundance of melody +and sweetness. It is much fuller and richer than the close and accurate +style above-mentioned; but less elevated than the pompous and diffusive. +In _this_ all the ornaments of language may be employed without reserve; +and _here_ the flow of our numbers is ever soft and harmonious. Many of +the Greeks have pursued it with success: but, in my opinion, they must all +yield the palm to _Demetrius Phalereus_, whose Eloquence is ever mild and +placid, and bespangled with a most elegant variety of metaphors and other +tropes, like so many _stars_. By _metaphors_, as I have frequently +observed, I mean expressions which, either for the sake of ornament, or +through the natural poverty of our language, are removed and as it were +_transplanted_ from their proper objects to others, by way of similitude. +As to _tropes_ in general, they are particular forms of expression, in +which the proper name of a thing is supplied by another, which conveys the +same meaning, but is borrowed from its adjuncts or effects: for, though, +in this case, there is a kind of metaphor, (because the word is shifted +from its primary object) yet the remove is performed by _Ennius_ in a +different manner, when he says metaphorically,--"_You bereave the citadel +and the city of their offspring_,"--from what it would have been, if he +had put the citadel alone for the whole state: and thus again, when he +tells us that,--"_rugged Africa was shaken by a dreadful tumult_,"--he +puts Africa for the inhabitants. The Rhetoricians call this an +_Hypallage_, because one word is substituted for another: but the +Grammarians call it a _Metonymy_, because the words are shifted and +interchanged. Aristotle, however, subjoins it to the metaphor, as he +likewise does the _Abuse_ or _Catachresis_; by which, for instance, we say +a _narrow, contracted soul_, instead of a _mean_ one, and thus steal an +expression which has a kindred meaning with the proper one, either for the +sake of ornament or decency. When several metaphors are connected together +in a regular chain, the form of speaking is varied. The Greeks call this +an _Allegory_, which indeed is proper enough if we only attend to the +etymology; but if we mean to refer it to its particular _genus_ or kind, +he has done better who comprehends the whole under the general name of +metaphors. These, however, are frequently used by _Phalereus_, and have a +soft and pleasing effect: but though he abounds in the metaphor, he also +makes use of the other tropes with as much freedom as any writer whatever. + +This species of Eloquence (I mean the _middling_, or temperate) is +likewise embellished with all the brilliant figures of language, and many +of the figures of sentiment. By this, moreover, the most extensive and +refined topics of science are handsomely unfolded, and all the weapons of +argument are employed without violence. But what need have I to say more? +Such Speakers are the common offspring of Philosophy; and were the +nervous, and more striking Orator to keep out of sight, these alone would +fully answer our wishes. For they are masters of a brilliant, a florid, a +picturesque, and a well-wrought Elocution, which is interwoven with all +the beautiful embroidery both of language and sentiment. This character +first streamed from the limpid fountains of the _Sophists_ into the Forum; +but being afterwards despised by the more simple and refined kind of +Speakers, and disdainfully rejected by the nervous and weighty; it was +compelled to subside into the peaceful and unaspiring mediocrity we are +speaking of. + +The _third character_ is the extensive,--the copious,--the nervous,--the +majestic Orator, who possesses the powers of Elocution in their full +extent. _This_ is the man whose enchanting and diffusive language is so +much admired by listening nations, that they have tamely suffered +Eloquence to rule the world;--but an Eloquence whose course is rapid and +sonorous!--an Eloquence which every one gazes at, and admires, and +despairs to equal! This is the Eloquence that bends and sways the +passions!--_this_ the Eloquence that alarms or sooths them at her +pleasure! This is the Eloquence that sometimes tears up all before it like +a whirlwind; and, at other times, steals imperceptibly upon the senses, +and probes to the bottom of the heart!--the Eloquence which ingrafts +opinions that are new, and eradicates the old; but yet is widely different +from the two characters of Speaking before-mentioned. + +He who exerts himself in the simple and accurate character, and speaks +neatly and smartly without aiming any higher!--_he_, by this alone, if +carried to perfection, becomes a great, if not the greatest of Orators; +nor does he walk upon slippery ground, so that if he has but learned to +tread firm, he is in no danger of falling. Also the middle kind of Orator, +who is distinguished by his equability, provided he only draws up his +forces to advantage, fears not the perilous and doubtful hazards of a +public Harangue; and, though sometimes he may not succeed to his wishes, +yet he is never exposed to an absolute defeat; for as he never soars, his +fall must be inconsiderable. But the Orator, whom we regard as the prince +of his profession,--the nervous,--the fierce,--the flaming Orator, if he +is born for this alone, and only practices and applies himself to this, +without tempering his copiousness with the two inferior characters of +Eloquence, is of all others the most contemptible. For the plain and +simple Orator, as speaking acutely and expertly, has an appearance of +wisdom and good-sense; and the middle kind of Orator is sufficiently +recommended by his sweetness:--but the copious and diffusive Speaker, if +he has no other qualification, will scarcely appear to be in his senses. +For he who can say nothing calmly,--nothing gently--nothing methodically, +--nothing clearly, distinctly, or humourously, (though a number of causes +should be so managed throughout, and others in one or more of their +parts:)--he, moreover, who proceeds to amplify and exaggerate without +preparing the attention of his audience, will appear to rave before men of +understanding, and to vapour like a person intoxicated before the sober +and sedate. + +Thus then, my Brutus, we have at last discovered the finished Orator we +are seeking for: but we have caught him in imagination only;--for if I +could have seized him with my hands, not all his Eloquence should persuade +me to release him. We have at length, however, discovered the eloquent +Speaker, whom Antonius never saw.--But who, then, is he?--I will comprize +his character in a few words, and afterwards unfold it more at large.--He, +then, is an Orator indeed! who can speak upon trivial subjects with +simplicity and art, upon weighty ones with energy and pathos, and upon +those of middling import with calmness and moderation. You will tell me, +perhaps, that such a Speaker has never existed. Be it so:--for I am now +discoursing not upon what I _have_ seen, but upon what I could _wish_ to +see; and must therefore recur to that primary semblance or ideal form of +Plato which I have mentioned before, and which, though it cannot be seen +with our bodily eyes, may be comprehended by the powers of imagination. +For I am not seeking after a living Orator, or after any thing which is +mortal and perishing, but after that which confers a right to the title of +_eloquent_; in other words, I am seeking after Eloquence herself, who can +be discerned only by the eye of the mind. + +He then is truly an _Orator_, (I again repeat it,) who can speak upon +trivial subjects with simplicity, upon indifferent ones with moderation, +and upon weighty subjects with energy and pathos. [Footnote: Our Author is +now going to indulge himself in the _Egotism_,--a figure, which, upon many +occasions, he uses as freely as any of the figures of Rhetoric. How the +Reader will relish it, I know not; but it is evident from what follows, +and from another passage of the same kind further on, that Cicero had as +great a veneration for his own talents as any man living. His merit, +however, was so uncommon both as a Statesman, a Philosopher, and an +Orator, and he has obliged posterity with so many useful and amazing +productions of genius, that we ought in gratitude to forgive the vanity of +the _man_. Although he has ornamented the socket in which he has _set_ his +character, with an extravagant (and I had almost said ridiculous) +profusion of self-applause, it must be remembered that the diamond it +contains is a gem of inestimable value.] The cause I pleaded for Caecina +related entirely to the bare letter of the Interdict: here, therefore, I +explained what was intricate by a definition,--spoke in praise of the +Civil Law,--and dissolved the ambiguities which embarrassed the meaning of +the Statute.--In recommending the Manilian Law, I was to blazon the +character of _Pompey_, and therefore indulged myself in all that variety +of ornament which is peculiar to the second species of Eloquence. In the +cause of Rabirius, as the honour of the Republic was at stake, I blazed +forth in every species of amplification. But these characters are +sometimes to be intermingled and diversified. Which of them, therefore, is +not to be met with in my seven Invectives against _Verres_? or in the +cause of _Habitus_? or in that of _Cornelius_? or indeed in most of my +Defences? I would have specified the particular examples, did I not +believe them to be sufficiently known; or, at least, very easy to be +discovered by those who will take the trouble to seek for them. For there +is nothing which can recommend an Orator in the different characters of +speaking, but what has been exemplified in my Orations,--if not to +perfection, yet at least it has been attempted, and faintly delineated. I +have not, indeed, the vanity to think I have arrived at the summit; but I +can easily discern what Eloquence ought to be. For I am not to speak of +myself, but to attend to my subject; and so far am I from admiring my own +productions, that, on the contrary, I am so nice and difficult, as not to +be entirely satisfied with Demosthenes himself, who, though he rises with +superior eminence in every species of Eloquence, does not always fill my +ear;--so eager is it, and so insatiable, as to be ever coveting what is +boundless and immense. But as, by the assistance of _Pammenes_, who is +very fond of that Orator, you made yourself thoroughly acquainted with him +when you was at _Athens_, and to this day scarcely ever part with him from +your hands, and yet frequently condescend to peruse what has been written +by _me_; you must certainly have taken notice that he hath _done_ much, +and that I have _attempted_ much,--that he has been _happy_ enough, and I +_willing_ enough to speak, upon every occasion, as the nature of the +subject required. But he, beyond dispute, was a consummate Orator; for he +not only succeeded several eminent Speakers, but had many such for his +cotemporaries:--and I also, if I could have reached the perfection I aimed +at, should have made no despicable figure in a city, where (according to +Antonius) the voice of genuine Eloquence was never heard. + +But if to Antonius neither Crassus, nor even himself, appeared to be +_eloquent_, we may presume that neither Cotta, Sulpicius, nor Hortensius +would have succeeded any better. For _Cotta_ had no expansion, _Sulpicius_ +no temper, and _Hortensius_ too little dignity. But the two former (I mean +Crassus and Antonius) had a capacity which was better adapted to every +species of Oratory. I had, therefore, to address myself to the ears of a +city which had never been filled by that multifarious and extensive +Eloquence we are discoursing of; and I first allured them (let me have +been what you please, or what ever were my talents) to an incredible +desire of hearing the finished Speaker who is the subject of the present +Essay. For with what acclamations did I deliver that passage in my youth +concerning the punishment of parricides [Footnote: Those unnatural and +infamous wretches, among the Romans, were sown into a leathern sack, and +thus thrown into the sea; to intimate that they were unworthy of having +the lead communication with the common elements of water, earth, and +air.], though I was afterwards sensible it was too warm and extravagant? +--"What is so common, said I, as air to the living, earth to the dead, the +sea to floating corpses, and the shore to those who are caft upon it by +the waves! But these wretches, as long as life remains, so live as not to +breathe the air of heaven;--they so perish, that their limbs are not +suffered to touch the earth;--they are so tossed to and fro' by the waves, +as never to be warned by them;--and when they are cast on the shore, their +dead, carcases cannot rest upon the surface of the rocks!" All this, as +coming from a youth, was much applauded, not for it's ripeness and +solidity, but for the hopes it gave the Public of my future improvement. +From the same capacity came those riper expressions,--"She was the spouse +of her son-in-law, the step-mother of her own offspring? and the mistress +of her daughter's husband [Footnote: This passage occurs in the peroration +of his Defence of Cluentius]." + +But I did not always indulge myself in this excessive ardour of +expression, or speak every thing in the same manner: for even that +youthful redundance which was so visible in the defence of _Roscius_, had +many passages which were plain and simple, and some which were, tolerably +humourous. But the Orations in defence of _Habitus_, and _Cornelius_, and +indeed many others; (for no single Orator, even among the peaceful and +speculative Athenians, has composed such a number as I have;)--these, I +say, have all that variety which I so much approve. For have _Homer_ and +_Ennius_, and the rest of the Poets, but especially the tragic writers, +not expressed themselves at all times with the same elevation, but +frequently varied their manner, and sometimes lowered it to the style of +conversation; and shall I oblige myself never to descend from that highest +energy of language? Bit why do I mention the Poets whose talents are +divine! The very actors on the stage, who have most excelled in their +profession, have not only succeeded in very different characters, though +still in the same province; but a comedian has often acted tragedies, and +a tragedian comedies so as to give us universal satisfaction. Wherefore, +then, should not _I_ also exert my efforts? But when I say _myself_, my +worthy Brutus I mean _you_: for as to _me_, I have already done all, I was +capable of doing. Would _you_, then, plead every cause in the same manner? +Or is there any sort of causes which your genius would decline? Or even in +the same cause, would you always express yourself in the same strain, and +without any variety? Your favourite _Demosthenes_, whose brazen statue I +lately beheld among your own, and your family images, when I had the +pleasure to visit you at Tusculanum,--Demosthenes, I say, was nothing +inferior to _Lysias_ in simplicity; to _Hyperides_ in smartness and +poignancy, or to _Aeschines_ in the smoothness and splendor of his +language. There are many of his Orations which are entirely of the close +and simple character, as that against _Lepsines_; many which are all +nervous, and striking, as those against _Philip_; and many which are of a +mixed character, as that against _Aeschines_, concerning the false +embassy, and another against the same person in defence of _Ctesiphon_. At +other times he strikes into the _mean_ at his pleasure, and quitting the +nervous character, descends to this with all the ease imaginable. But he +raises the acclamations of his audience, and his Oratory is then most +weighty and powerful, when he applies himself to the _nervous_. + +But as our enquiries relate to the art, and not to the artist, let us +leave _him_ for the present, and consider the nature and the properties of +the object before us,--that is, of _Eloquence_. We must keep in mind, +however, what I have already hinted,--that we are not required to deliver +a system of precepts, but to write as judges and critics, rather than +teachers. But I have expatiated so largely upon the subject, because I +foresee that you (who are, indeed, much better versed in it, than I who +pretend to inform you) will not be my only reader; but that my little +essay, though not much perhaps to my credit, will be made public, and with +your name prefixed to it. + +I am of opinion, therefore, that a finished Orator should not only possess +the talent (which, indeed, is peculiar, to himself) of speaking copiously +and diffusively: but that he should also borrow the assistance of it's +nearest neighbour, the art of Logic. For though public speaking is one +thing, and disputing another; and though there is a visible difference +between a private controversy, and a public Harangue; yet both the one and +the other come under the notion of reasoning. But mere discourse and +argument belongs to the Logician, and the art of Speaking gracefully and +ornamentally is the prerogative of the Orator. _Zeno_, the father of the +_Stoics_, used to illustrate the difference between the two by holding up +his hand;--for when he clenched his fingers, and presented a close fist,-- +"_that_," he said, "was an emblem of Logic:"--but when he spread them out +again, and displayed his open hand,--"this," said he, "resembles +Eloquence." But Aristotle observed before him, in the introduction to his +Rhetoric, that it is an art which has a near resemblance to that of +Logic;--and that the only difference between them is, that the method of +reasoning in the former is more diffusive, and in the latter more close +and contracted. + +I, therefore, advise that our finished Orator make himself master of every +thing in the art of Logic, which is applicable to his profession:--an art +(as your thorough knowledge of it has already informed you) which is +taught after two methods. For Aristotle himself has delivered a variety of +precepts concerning the art of Reasoning:--and besides these, the +_Dialecticians_ (as they are called) have produced many intricate and +thorny speculations of their own. I am, therefore, of opinion, that he who +is ambitious to be applauded for his Eloquence, should not be wholly +unacquainted with this branch of Erudition; but that he ought (at least) +to be properly instructed either in the old method, or in that of +_Chrysippus_. In the first place, he should understand the force, the +extension, and the different species of words as they stand singly, or +connected into sentences. He should likewise be acquainted with the +various modes and forms in which any conception of the mind may be +expressed--the methods of distinguishing a true proposition from a false +one;--the different conclusions which result from different premises;--the +true consequences and opposites to any given proposition;--and, if an +argument is embarrassed by ambiguities, how to unravel each of them by an +accurate distinction. These particulars, I say, should be well understood +by an Orator, because they are such as frequently occur: but as they are +naturally rugged and unpleasing, they should be relieved in practice by an +easy brilliance of expression. + +But as in every topic which is discussed by reason and method, we should +first settle what it is we are to discourse upon,--(for unless the parties +in a dispute are agreed about the subject of it, they can neither reason +with propriety, nor bring the argument to an issue;)--it will frequently +be necessary to explain our notions of it, and, when the matter is +intricate, to lay it open by a _definition_;--for a _definition_ is only a +sentence, or explanation, which specifies, in as few words as possible, +the nature of the object we propose to consider. After the _genus_, or +kind, has been sufficiently determined, we must then proceed (you know) to +examine into it's different species, or subordinate parts, that our whole +discourse may be properly distributed among them. Our Orator, then, should +be qualified to make a just definition;--though not in such a close and +contracted form, as in the critical debates of the Academy, but more +explicitly and copiously, and as will be best adapted to the common way of +thinking, and the capacity of the vulgar. He is likewise, as often as +occasion requires, to divide the genus into it's proper species, so as to +be neither defective, nor redundant. But _how_ and _when_ this should be +done, is not our present business to consider: because, as I observed +before, I am not to assume the part of a teacher, but only of a critic and +a judge. + +But he ought to acquaint himself not only with the art of Logic, but with +all the common and most useful branches of Morality. For without a +competent knowledge of these, nothing can be advanced and unfolded with +any spirit and energy, or with becoming dignity and freedom, either +concerning religion,--death,--filial piety,--the love of our country,-- +things good or evil,--the several virtues and vices,--the nature of moral +obligation,--grief or pleasure, and the other emotions of the mind,--or +the various errors and frailties of humanity,--and a variety of important +topics which are often closely connected with forensic causes; though +_here_(it is true) they must be touched upon more slightly and +superficially. I am now speaking of the _materials_ of Eloquence, and not +of the _art_ itself:--for an Orator should always be furnished with a +plentiful stock of sentiments,--(I mean such as may claim the attention of +the learned, as well as of the vulgar)--before he concerns himself about +the language and the manner in which he ought to express himself. + +That he may make a still more respectable and elevated figure (as we have +already observed of _Pericles_) he should not be unacquainted with the +principles of Natural Philosophy. For when he descends, as it were, from +the starry heavens, to the little concerns of humanity, he will both think +and speak with greater dignity and splendor. But after acquainting himself +with those divine and nobler objects of contemplation, I would have him +attend to human concerns. In particular, let him make himself master of +the _Civil Law_, which is of daily, and indeed necessary use in every kind +of causes. For what can be more scandalous, than to undertake the +management of judicial suits and controversies, without a proper knowledge +of the laws, and of the principles of Equity and Jurisprudence? He +should also be well versed in History and the venerable records of +Antiquity, but particularly those of his own country: not neglecting, +however, to peruse the annals of other powerful nations, and illustrious +monarchs;--a toil which has been considerably shortened by our friend +_Atticus_, who (though he has carefully specified the time of every +event, and omitted no transaction of consequence) has comprized the +history of seven hundred years in a single volume. To be unacquainted with +what has passed in the world, before we came into it ourselves, is to be +always children. For what is the age of a single mortal, unless it is +connected, by the aid of History, with the times of our ancestors? +Besides, the relation of past occurrences, and the producing pertinent and +striking examples, is not only very entertaining, but adds a great deal of +dignity and weight to what we say. + +Thus furnished and equipped our Orator may undertake the management of +causes. But, in the first place, he should be well acquainted with their +different kinds. He should know, for instance, that every judicial +controversy must turn either upon a matter of _fact_, or upon the meaning +of some particular expression. As to the former, this must always relate +either to the _reality_ of a fast, the _equity_ of it, or the _name_ it +bears in law. As to forms of expression, these may become the subject of +controversy, when they are either _ambiguous_, or _contradictory_. For +when the _spirit_ of a law appears to be at variance with the _letter_ of +it, this must cause an ambiguity which commonly arises from some of the +preceding terms; so that in this case (for such is the nature of an +ambiguity) the law will appear to have a double meaning. + +As the kinds of causes are so few, the rules for the invention of +arguments must be few also. The topics, or common places from which those +arguments are derived, are twofold,--the one _inherent_ in the subject, +and the other _assumptive_. A skilful management of the former contributes +most to, give weight to a discourse, and strike the attention of the +hearer: because they are easy, and familiar to the understanding. + +What farther remains (within the province of the Art) but that we should +begin our discourses so as to conciliate the hearer's good-will, or raise +his expectation, or prepare him to receive what follows?--to state the +case before us so concisely, and yet so plausibly and clearly, as that the +substance of it may be easily comprehended?--to support our own proofs, +and refute those of our antagonist, not in a confused and disorderly +manner, but so that every inference may be fairly deducible from the +premises?--and, in the last place, to conclude the whole with a peroration +either to inflame or allay the passions of the audience? How each of these +parts should be conducted is a subject too intricate and extensive for our +present consideration: for they are not always to be managed in the same +manner. + +But as I am not seeking a pupil to instruct, but an Orator who is to be +the model of his profession, _he_ must have the preference who can always +discern what is proper and becoming. For Eloquence should, above all, +things, have that kind of discretion which makes her a _perfect mistress +of time and character_: because we are not to speak upon every occasion, +or before every audience, or against every opponent, or in defence of +every client, and to every Judge, in the same invariable manner. He, +therefore, is the man of genuine Eloquence, who can adapt his language to +what is most suitable to each. By doing this, he will be sure to say every +thing as it ought to be said. He will neither speak drily upon copious +subjects, nor without dignity and spirit upon things of importance; but +his language will always be proportioned, and equal to his subject. His +introduction will be modest,--not flaming with all the glare of +expression, but composed of quick and lively turns of sentiment, either to +wound the cause of his antagonist, or recommend his own. His narratives +will be clear and plausible,--not delivered with the grave formality of an +Historian, but in the style of polite conversation. If his cause be +slight, the thread of his argument, both in proving and refuting, will be +so likewise, and he will so conduct it in every part, that his language +may rise and expand itself, as the dignity of his subject encreases. But +when his cause will admit a full exertion of the powers of Eloquence, he +will then display himself more openly;--he will then rule, and bend the +passions, and direct them, at his pleasure,--that is, as the nature of his +cause and the circumstances of the time shall require. + +But his powers of ornament will be chiefly exerted upon two occasions; I +mean that striking kind of ornament, from which Eloquence derives her +greatest glory. For though every part of an Oration should have so much +merit, as not to contain a single word but what is either weighty or +elegant; there are two very interesting parts which are susceptible of the +greatest variety of ornament. The one is the discussion of an indefinite +question, or general truth, which by the Greeks (as I have before +observed) is called a _thesis_: and the other is employed in amplifying +and exaggerating, which they call an _auxesis_. Though the latter, indeed, +should diffuse itself more or less through the whole body of a discourse, +it's powers will be more conspicuous in the use and improvement of the +_common places_:--which are so called, as being alike _common_ to a number +of causes, though (in the application of them) they are constantly +appropriated to a single one. But as to the other part, which regards +universal truths, or indefinite questions, this frequently extends through +a whole cause:--for the leading point in debate, or that which the +controversy hinges upon, is always most conveniently discussed when it can +be reduced to a general question, and considered as an universal +proposition:--unless, indeed, when the mere truth of a matter of fact: is +the object: of disquisition: for then the case must be wholly conjectural. +We are not, however, to argue like the _Peripatetics_ (who have a neat +method of controversy which they derive from _Aristotle_) but more +nervously and pressingly; and general sentiments must be so applied to +particular cases, as to leave us room to say many extenuating things in +behalf of the Defendant, and many severe ones against the Plaintiff. But +in heightening or softening a circumstance, the powers of language are +unlimited, and may be properly exerted, even in the middle of an argument, +as often as any thing presents itself which may be either exaggerated, or +extenuated; but, in, controul. + +There are two parts, however, which must not be omitted;--for when these +are judiciously conducted, the sorce of Eloquence will be amazing. The one +is a certain _propriety of manner_ (called the _ethic_ by the Greeks) +which readily adapts itself to different dispositions and humours, and to +every station of life:--and the other is the pathetic, which rouses and +alarms the passions, and may be considered as the _scepter_ of Eloquence. +The former is mild and insinuating, and entirely calculated to conciliate +the good-will of the hearer: but the latter is all energy and fire, and +snatches a cause by open violence;--and when it's course is rapid and +unrestrained, the shock is irresistible. I [footnote: Here follows the +second passage above-referred to, in which there is a long string of +_Egotisms_. But as they furnish some very instructive hints, the Reader +will peruse them with more pleasure than pain] myself have possessed a +tolerable share of this, or, it may be, a trifling one:--but as I always +spoke with uncommon warmth and impetuosity, I have frequently forced my +antagonist to relinquish the field. _Hortensius_, an eminent Speaker, once +declined to answer me, though in defence of an intimate friend. +_Cataline_, a most audacious traitor, being publicly accused by me in the +Senate-house, was struck dumb with shame: and _Curio_, the father, when he +attempted to reply to me in a weighty and important cause which concerned +the honour of his family, sat suddenly down, and complained that I had +_bewitched_ him out of his memory. As to moving the pity of my audience, +it will be unnecessary to mention this. I have frequently attempted it +with good success, and when several of us have pleaded on the same side, +this part of the defence was always resigned to me; in which my supposed +excellence was not owing to the superiority of my genius, but to the real +concern I felt for the distresses of my client. But what in this respect +have been my talents (for I have had no reason to complain of them) may be +easily discovered in my Orations:--though a book, indeed, must lose much +of the spirit which makes a speech delivered in public appear to greater +advantage than when it is perused in the closet. + +But we are to raise not only the pity of our judges, (which I have +endeavoured so passionately, that I once took up an infant in my arms +while I was speaking;--and, at another time, calling up the nobleman in +whose defence I spoke, and holding up a little child of his before the +whole assembly, I filled the Forum with my cries and lamentations:)--but +it is also necessary to rouse the judge's indignation, to appease it, to +excite his jealousy, his benevolence, his contempt, his wonder, his +abhorrence, his love, his desire, his aversion, his hope, his fear, his +joy, and his grief:--in all which variety, you may find examples, in many +accusatory speeches, of rousing the harsher passions; and my Defences will +furnish instances enough of the methods of working upon the gentler. For +there is no method either of alarming or soothing the passions, but what +has been attempted by _me_. I would say I have carried it to perfection, +if I either thought so, or was not afraid that (in this case) even truth +itself might incur the charge of arrogance. But (as I have before +observed) I have been so much transported, not by the force of my genius, +but by the real fervor of my heart, that I was unable to restrain myself: +--and, indeed, no language will inflame the mind of the hearer, unless the +Speaker himself first catches the ardor, and glows with the importance of +his subject. I would refer to examples of my own, unless you had seen them +already; and to those of other Speakers among the Romans, if I could +produce any, or among the Greeks, if I judged it proper. But _Crassus_ +will only furnish us with a few, and those not of the forensic kind:-- +_Antonius, Cotta_, and _Sulpicius_ with none:--and as to _Hortensius_, he +spoke much better than he wrote. We may, therefore, easily judge how +amazing must be the force of a talent, of which we have so few examples:-- +but if we are resolved to seek for them, we must have recourse to +_Demosthenes_, in whom we find almost a continued succession of them, in +that part of his Oration for _Ctesiphon_, where he enlarges on his own +actions, his measures, and his good services to the State, For that +Oration, I must own, approaches so near to the primary form or semblance +of Eloquence which exists in my mind, that a more complete and exalted +pattern is scarcely desirable. But still, there will remain a general +model or character, the true nature and excellence of which may be easily +collected from the hints I have already offered. + +We have slightly touched upon the ornaments +of language, both in single words, and in words as they stand connected +with each other;--in which our Orator will so indulge himself, that not a +single expression may escape him, but what is either elegant or weighty. +But he will most abound in the _metaphor_; which, by an aptness of +similitude, conveys and transports the mind from object to object, and +hurries it backwards and forwards through a pleasing variety of images;--a +motion which, in its own nature, (as being full of life and action) can +never fail to be highly delightful. As to the other ornaments of language +which regard words as they are connected with each other, an Oration will +derive much of its lustre from these. They are like the decorations in the +Theatre, or the Forum, which not only embellish, but surprize. [Footnote: +In the following Abstract of the Figures of _Language_ and _Sentiment_, I +have often paraphrased upon my author, to make him intelligible to the +English reader;--a liberty which I have likewise taken in several other +places, where I judged it necessary.] For such also is the effect of the +various _figures_ or decorations of language;--such as the doubling or +repetition of the same word;--the repeating it with a slight variation; +--the beginning or concluding several sentences in the same manner, or +both at once;--the making a word, which concludes a preceding sentence, to +begin the following;--the concluding a sentence with the same expression +which began it;--the repeating the same word with a different meaning; +--the using several corresponding words in the same case, or with the same +termination;--the contrasting opposite expressions;--the using words whose +meaning rises in gradation;--the leaving out the conjunctive particles to +shew our earnestness;--the passing by, or suddenly dropping a circumstance +we were going to mention, and assigning a reason for so doing; +--[Footnote: We have an instance of this, considered as a figure of +language, in the following line of Virgil; + Quos ego--, sed praestat motos componere fluctus. + Aeneid. I. + Whom I--, but let me still the raging waves. +This may likewise serve as an example of the figure which is next +mentioned.] the pretending to correct or reprove ourselves, that we may +seem to speak without artifice or partiality;--the breaking out into a +sudden exclamation, to express our wonder, our abhorrence, or our grief;-- +and the using the same noun in different cases. + +But the figures of _sentiment_ are more weighty and powerful; and there +are some who place the highest merit of _Demosthenes_ in the frequent use +he makes of them. For be his subject what it will, almost all his +sentences have a figurative air: and, indeed, a plentiful intermixture of +this sort of figures is the very life and soul of a popular Eloquence. But +as you are thoroughly acquainted with these, my Brutus, what occasion is +there to explain and exemplify them? The bare mention of them will be +sufficient.--Our Orator, then, will sometimes exhibit an idea in different +points of view, and when he has started a good argument, he will dwell +upon it with an honest exultation;--he will extenuate what is +unfavourable, and have frequent recourse to raillery;--he will sometimes +deviate from his plan, and seem to alter his first purpose:--he will +inform his audience beforehand, what are the principal points upon which +he intends to rest his cause;--he will collect and point out the force of +the arguments he has already discussed; he will check an ardent +expression, or boldly reiterate what he has said;--he will close a lively +paragraph with some weighty and convincing sentiment;--he will press upon +his adversary by repeated interrogations;--he will reason with himself, +and answer questions of his own proposing;--he will throw out expressions +which he designs to be otherwise understood than they seem to mean;--he +will pretend to doubt what is most proper to be said, and in what order;-- +he will divide an action, &c. into its several parts and circumstances, to +render it more striking;--he will pretend to pass over and relinquish a +circumstance which might have been urged to advantage;--he will secure +himself against the known prejudices of his audience;--he will turn the +very circumstance which is alledged against him to the prejudice of his +antagonist;--he will frequently appeal to his hearers, and sometimes to +his opponent;--he will represent the very language and manners of the +persons he is speaking of;--he will introduce irrational and even +inanimate beings, as addressing themselves to his audience;--he will (to +serve some necessary purpose) steal off their attention from the point in +debate;--he will frequently move them to mirth and laughter;--he will +answer every thing which he foresees will be objected;--he will compare +similar incidents,--refer to past examples,--and by way of amplification +assign their distinguishing qualities to opposite characters and +circumstances;--he will check an impertinent plea which may interrupt his +argument;--he will pretend not to mention what he might have urged to good +purpose;--he will caution his hearers against the various artifices and +subterfuges which may be employed to deceive them;--he will sometimes +appear to speak with an honest, but unguarded freedom;--he will avow his +resentment;--he will entreat;--he will earnestly supplicate;--he will +apologize;--he will seem for a moment to forget himself;--he will express +his hearty good wishes for the deserving, and vent his execrations against +notorious villainy;--and now and then he will descend imperceptibly to the +most tender and insinuating familiarities. There are likewise Other +beauties of composition which he will not fail to pursue;--such as brevity +where the subject requires it;--a lively and pathetic description of +important occurrences;--a passionate exaggeration of remarkable +circumstances;--an earnestness of expression which implies more than is +said;--a well-timed variety of humour;--and a happy imitation of different +characters and dispositions. Assisted and adorned by such figures as +these, which are very numerous, the force of Eloquence will appear in its +brightest lustre. But even these, unless they are properly formed and +regulated, by a skilful disposition of their constituent words, will never +attain the merit we require;--a subject which I shall be obliged to treat +of in the sequel, though I am restrained partly by the circumstances +already mentioned, but much more so by the following. For I am sensible +not only that there are some invidious people, to whom every improvement +appears vain and superfluous; but that even those, who are well-wishers to +my reputation, may think it beneath the dignity of a man whose public +services have been so honourably distinguished by the Senate, and the +whole body of the Roman people, to employ my pen so largely upon the art +of Speaking. [Footnote: The long apology which our author is now going to +make for bestowing his time in composing a treatise of Oratory, is in fact +a very artful as well as an elegant digression; to relieve the dryness and +intricacy of the abstract he has just given us of the figures of rhetoric, +and of the subsequent account of the rules of prosaic harmony. He has also +enlivened that account (which is a very long one) in the same manner, by +interspersing it, at convenient distances, with fine examples, agreeable +companions, and short historical digressions to elucidate the subject.] + +If, however, I was to return no other answer to the latter, but that I was +unwilling to deny any thing to the request of Brutus, the apology must be +unexceptionable; because I am only aiming at the satisfaction of an +intimate friend, and a worthy man, who desires nothing of me but what is +just and honourable. + +But was I even to profess (what I wish I was capable of) that I mean to +give the necessary precepts, and point out the road to Eloquence to those +who are desirous to qualify themselves for the Forum, what man of sense +could blame me for it? For who ever doubted that in the decision of +political matters, and in time of peace, Eloquence has always borne the +sway in the Roman state, while Jurisprudence has possessed only the second +post of honour? For whereas the former is a constant source of authority +and reputation, and enables us to defend ourselves and our friends in the +most effectual manner;--the other only furnishes us with formal rules for +indictments, pleas, protests, &c. in conducting which she is frequently +obliged to sue for the assistance of Eloquence;--but if the latter +condescends to oppose her, she is scarcely able to maintain her ground, +and defend her own territories. If therefore to teach the Civil Law has +always been reckoned a very honourable employment, and the houses of the +most eminent men of that profession, have been crowded with disciples; who +can be reasonably censured for exciting our youth to the study of +Eloquence, and furnishing them with all the assistance in his power? If it +is a fault to speak gracefully, let Eloquence be for ever banished from +the state. But if, on the contrary, it reflects an honour, not only upon +the man who possesses it, but upon the country which gave him birth, how +can it be a disgrace to _learn_, what it is so glorious to _know_? Or why +should it not be a credit to _teach_ what it is the highest honour to +have _learned_? + +But, in one case, they will tell me, the practice has been sanctified by +custom, and in the other it has not. This I grant: but We may easily +account for both. As to the gentlemen of the law, it was sufficient to +hear them, when they decided upon such cases as were laid before them in +the course of business;--so that when they taught, they did not set apart +any particular time for that purpose, but the same answers satisfied their +clients and their pupils. On the other hand, as our Speakers of eminence +spent their time, while at home, in examining and digesting their causes, +and while in the Forum in pleading them, and the remainder of it in a +seasonable relaxation, what opportunity had they for teaching and +instructing others? I might venture to add that most of our Orators have +been more distinguishied by their _genius_, than by their _learning_; and +for that reason were much better qualified to be _Speakers_ than +_Teachers_; which it is possible may be the reverse of my case.--"True," +say they; "but teaching is an employment which is far from being +recommended by its dignity." And so indeed it is, if we teach like mere +pedagogues. But if we only direct, encourage, examine, and inform our +pupils; and sometimes accompany them in reading or hearing the +performances of the most eminent Speakers;--if by these means we are able +to contribute to their improvement, what should hinder us from +communicating a few instructions, as opportunity offers? Shall we deem it +an honourable employment, as indeed with us it is, to teach the form of a +legal process, or an excommunication from the rites and privileges of our +religion; and shall it not be equally honourable to teach the methods by +which those privileges may be defended and secured?--"Perhaps it may," +they will reply; "but even those who know scarcely any thing of the law +are ambitious to be thought masters of it; whereas those who are well +furnished with the powers of Eloquence pretend to be wholly unacquainted +with them; because they are sensible that useful knowledge is a valuable +recommendation, whereas an artful tongue is suspected by every one." But +is it possible, then, to exert the powers of Eloquence without discovering +them? Or is an Orator really thought to be no Orator, because he disclaims +the title? Or is it likely that, in a great and noble art, the world will +judge it a scandal to _teach_ what it is the greatest honour to _learn_? +Others, indeed, may have been more reserved; but, for my part, I have +always owned my profession. For how could I do otherwise, when, in my +youth, I left my native land, and crossed the sea, with no other view but +to improve myself in this kind of knowledge; and, when afterwards my house +was crowded with the ablest professors, and my very style betrayed some +traces of a liberal education? Nay, when my own writings were in every +body's hands, with what face could I pretend that I had not studied? Or +what excuse could I have for submitting my abilities to the judgment of +the public, if I had been apprehensive that they would think I had studied +to no purpose? [Footnote: This sentence in the original runs thus;--_Quid +erat cur probarem_ (i.e. scripta nostra), _nisi quod parum fortasse +profeceram_?--"Wherefore did I approve of them," (that is, of my writings, +so far as to make them public) "but because I had," (in my own opinion) +"made a progress, though perhaps a small one, in useful literature?" This, +at least, is the only meaning I am able to affix to it; and I flatter +myself, that the translation I have given of it, will be found to +correspond with the general sense of my author.] But the points we have +already discussed are susceptible of greater dignity and elevation, than +those which remain to be considered. For we are next to treat of the +arrangement of our words; and, indeed, I might have said, of the art of +numbering and measuring our very syllables; which, though it may, in +reality, be a matter of as much consequence as I judge it to be, cannot +however be supposed to have such a striking appearance in precept as in +practice. This, indeed, might be said of every other branch of useful +knowledge; but it is more remarkably true with respect to this. For the +actual growth and improving height of all the sublimer arts, like that of +trees, affords a pleasing prospect; whereas the roots and stems are +scarcely beheld with indifference: and yet the former cannot subsist +without the latter. But whether I am restrained from dissembling the +pleasure I take in the subject, by the honest advice of the Poet, who +says, + + "Blush not to own the art you love to practise." + +or whether this treatise has been extorted from me by the importunity of +my friend, it was proper to obviate the censures to which it will probably +expose me. And yet, even supposing that I am mistaken in my sentiments, +who would shew himself so much of a savage, as to refuse me his indulgence +(now all my forensic employments and public business are at an end) for +not resigning myself to that stupid inactivity which is contrary to my +nature, or to that unavailing sorrow which I do my best to overcome, +rather than devote myself to my favourite studies? These first conducted +me into the Forum and the Senate-House, and they are now the chief +comforts of my retirement. I have, however, applied myself not only to +such speculations as form the subject of the present Essay, but to others +more sublime and interesting; and if I am able to discuss them in a proper +manner, my private studies will be no disparagement to my forensic +employments. + +But it is time to return to our subject.--Our words, then, should be so +disposed that every following one may be aptly connected with the +preceding, so as to make an agreeable sound;--or that the mere form and +_concinnity_ of our language may give our sentences their proper measure +and dimensions;--or, lastly, that our periods may have a numerous and +measured cadence. + +The first thing, then, to be attended to, is the _structure_ of our +language, or the agreeable connection of one word with another; which, +though it certainly requires care, ought not to be practised with a +laborious nicety. For this would be an endless and puerile attempt, and is +justly ridiculed by _Lucilius_, when he introduces _Scaevola_ thus +reflecting upon _Albucius_: + + "As in the checquer'd pavement ev'ry square + Is nicely fitted by the mason's care: + So all thy words are plac'd with curious art, + And ev'ry syllable performs its part." + +But though we are not to be minutely exact in the _structure_ of our +language, a moderate share of practice will habituate us to every thing of +this nature which is necessary. For as the eye in _reading_, so the mind +in _speaking_, will readily discern what ought to follow,--that, in +connecting our words, there may neither be a chasm, nor a disagreeable +harshness. The most lively and interesting sentiments, if they are harshly +expressed, will offend the ear, that delicate and fastidious judge of +rhetorical harmony. This circumstance, therefore, is so carefully attended +to in the Roman language, that there is scarcely a rustic among us who is +not averse to a collision of vowels,--a defect which, in the opinion of +some, was too scrupulously avoided by _Theopompus_, though his master +_Isocrates_ was equally cautious. But _Thucydides_ was not so exact; nor +was Plato, (though a much better writer)--not only in his _Dialogues_, in +which it was necessary to maintain an easy negligence, to resemble the +style of conversation, but in the famous _Panegyric_, in which (according +to the custom of the Athenians) he celebrated the praises of those who +fell in battle, and which was so greatly esteemed, that it is publicly +repeated every year. In that Oration a collision of vowels occurs very +frequently; though _Demosthenes_ generally avoids it as a fault. + +But let the Greeks determine for themselves: we Romans are not allowed to +interrupt the connection of our words. Even the rude and unpolished +Orations of _Cato_ are a proof of this; as are likewise all our poets, +except in particular instances, in which they were obliged to admit a few +breaks, to preserve their metre. Thus we find in _Naevius_, + + "_Vos_ QUI ACCOLITIS _histrum_ FLUVIUM ATQUE ALGIDUM." + +And in another place, + + "_Quam nunquam vobis_ GRAII ATQUE _Barbari_." + +But _Ennius_ admits it only once, when he says, + + "_Scipio invicte_;" + +and likewise I myself in + + "_Hoc motu radiantis_ ETESIAE IN _Vada Ponti_." + +This, however, would seldom be suffered among us, though the Greeks often +commend it as a beauty. + +But why do I speak of a collision of vowels? for, omitting this, we have +frequently _contracted_ our words for the sake of brevity; as in _multi' +modis, vas' argenteis, palm' et crinibus, tecti' fractis_, &c. We have +sometimes also contracted our proper _names_, to give them a smoother +sound: for as we have changed _Duellum_ into _Bellum_, and _duis_ into +_bis_, so _Duellius_, who defeated the Carthagenians at sea, was called +_Bellius_, though all his ancestors were named _Duellii_. We likewise +abbreviate our words, not only for convenience, but to please and gratify +the ear. For how otherwise came _axilla_ to be changed into _ala_, but by +the omission of an unweildy consonant, which the elegant pronunciation of +our language has likewise banished from the words _maxillae, taxillae, +vexillum_, and _paxillum_? + +Upon the same principle, two or more words have been contracted into one, +as _sodes_ for _si audes_, _sis_ for _si vis_, _capsis_ for _cape si vis_, +_ain'_ for _aisne_, _nequire_ for _non quire_, _malle_ for _magis velle_, +and _nolle_ for _non velle_; and we often say _dein'_ and _exin'_ for +_deinde_ and _exinde_. It is equally evident why we never say _cum nobis_, +but _nobiscum_; though we do not scruple to say _cum illis_;--_viz._ +because, in the former case, the union of the consonants _m_ and _n_ would +produce a jarring sound: and we also say _mecum_ and _tecum_, and not _cum +me_ and _cum te_, to correspond with _nobiscum_ and _vobiscum_. But some, +who would correct antiquity rather too late, object to these contractions: +for, instead of _prob_ DEUM _atque hominum fidem_, they say _Deorum_. They +are not aware, I suppose, that custom has sanctified the licence. The same +Poet, therefore, who, almost without a precedent, has said _patris mei +MEUM FACTUM pudet_, instead of _meorum factorum_,--and _textitur exitium +examen rapit_ for _exitiorum_, does not choose to say _liberum_, as we +generally do in the expressions _cupidos liberum_, and _in liberum loco_, +but, as the literary virtuosos above-mentioned would have it, + + _neque tuum unquam in gremium extollas_ + LIBERORUM _ex te genus_, + +and, + + _namque Aesculapi_ LIBERORUM. + +But the author before quoted says in his Chryses, not only + + _Cives, antiqui amici majorum_ MEUM, + +which was common enough--, but more harshly still, + + CONSILIUM, AUGURIUM, _atque_ EXTUM _interpretes_; + +and in another place, + + _Postquam_ PRODIGIUM HORRIFERUM PORTENTUM _pavos_. + +a licence which is not customary in all neuters indifferently: for I +should not be so willing to say armum _judicium_, as _armorum_; though in +the same writer we meet with _nihilne ad te de judicio_ armum _accidit_? +And yet (as we find it in the public registers) I would venture to say +_fabrum_, and _procum_, and not _fabrorum_ and _procorum_. But I would +never say duorum virorum _judicium_, or _trium_ virorum _capitalium_, or +_decem_ virorum _litibus judicandis_. In Accius, however, we meet with + + _Video sepulchra duo_ duorum _corporum_; + +though in another place he says, + + _Mulier una_ duum virum. + +I know, indeed, which is most conformable to the rules of grammar: but yet +I sometimes express myself as the freedom of our language allows me, as +when I say at pleasure, either _prob deum_, or _prob deorum_;--and, at +other times, as I am obliged by custom, as when I say _trium_ virum for +_virorum_, or sestertium nummum for _nummorum_: because in the latter case +the mode of expression is invariable. + +But what shall we say when these humourists forbid us to say _nosse_ and +_judicasse_ for _novisse_ and _judicavisse_; as if we did not know, as +well as themselves, that, in these instances, the verb at full length is +most agreeable to the laws of grammar, though custom has given the +preference to the contracted verb? Terence, therefore, has made use of +both, as when he says, _eho tu cognatum tuum non noras_? and afterwards, + + _Stilphonem, inquam, noveras_? + +Thus also, _fiet_ is a perfect verb, and _fit_ a contracted one; and +accordingly we find in the same Comedian, + + _Quam cara_ SINTQUE _post carendo intelligunt_, + +and + + _Quamque attinendi magni dominatus_ SIENT. + +In the same manner I have no objection to _scripsere alii rem_, though I +am sensible that _scripserunt_ is more grammatical; because I submit with +pleasure to the indulgent laws of custom which delights to gratify the +ear. _Idem campus habet_, says Ennius; and in another place, _in templis +isdem_; _eisdem_, indeed, would have been more grammatical, but not +sufficiently harmonious; and _iisdem_ would have sounded still worse. + +But we are allowed by custom even to dispense with the rules of etymology +to improve the sweetness of our language; and I would therefore rather +say, _pomeridianas Quadrigas_, than _postmeridianas_; and _mehercule_, +than _mehercules_. For the same reason _non scire_ would now be deemed a +barbarism, becaule _nescire_ has a smoother sound; and we have likewise +substituted _meridiem_ for _medidiem_, because the latter was offensive to +the ear. Even the preposition _ab_, which so frequently occurs in our +compound verbs is preserved entire only in the formality of a Journal, +and, indeed, not always there: in every other sort of language it is +frequently altered. Thus we say _amovit_, _abegit_, and _abstulit_; so +that you can scarcely determine whether the primitive preposition should +be _ab_ or _abs_. We have likewise rejected even _abfugit_, and _abfer_, +and introduced _aufugit_ and _aufer_ in their stead;--thus forming a new +preposition, which is to be found in no other verb but these. _Noti_, +_navi_, and _nari_, have all been words in common use: but when they were +afterwards to be compounded with the preposition _in_, it was thought more +harmonious to say _ignoti_, _ignavi_, and _ignari_, than to adhere +strictly to the rules of etymology. We likewise say _ex usu_, and _e +Republica_; because, in the former case, the preposition is followed by a +vowel, and, in the latter, it would have sounded harshly without omitting +the consonant; as may also be observed in _exegit, edixit, refecit, +retulit_, and _reddidit_. + +Sometimes the preposition alters or otherwise affects the first letter of +the verb with which it happens to be compounded; as in _subegit, +summutavit_, and _sustutit_. At other times it changes one of the +subsequent letters; as when we say _insipientem_ for _insapientem_, +_iniquum_ for inaequum_, _tricipitem_ for _tricapitem_, and _concisum_ for +_concaesum_: and from hence some have ventured to say _pertisum_ for +_pertaesum_, which custom has never warranted. + +But what can be more delicate than our changing even the natural quantity +of our syllables to humour the ear? Thus in the adjectives _inclytus_, and +_inhumanus_, the first syllable after the preposition is short, whereas +_insanus_ and _infelix_ have it long; and, in general, those words whose +first letters are the same as in _sapiens_ and _felix_, have their first +syllable long in composition, but all others have the same syllable short, +as _composuit, consuevit, concrepuit, confecit_. Examine these liberties +by the strict rules of etymology, and they must certainly be condemned; +but refer them to the decision of the ear, and they will be instantly +approved.--What is the reason? Your ear will inform you they have an +easier sound; and every language must submit to gratify the ear. I myself, +because our ancestors never admitted the aspirate, unless where a syllable +began with a vowel, used to say _pulcros, Cetegos, triumpos_, and +_Cartaginem_: but some time afterwards, though not very soon, when this +grammatical accuracy was wrested from me by the censure of the ear, I +resigned the mode of language to the vulgar, and reserved the theory to +myself. But we still say, without any hesitation, _Orcivios, Matones, +Otones, coepiones, sepulcra, coronas_, and _lacrymas_, because the ear +allows it. _Ennius_ always uses _Burrum_, and never _Pyrrhum_; and the +ancient copies of the same author have + + _Vi patefecerunt BRUGES_, + +not _Phryges_; because the Greek vowel had not then been adopted, though +we now admit both that and the aspirate:--and, in fact, when we had +afterwards occasion to say _Phrygum_ and _Phrygibus_, it was rather absurd +to adopt the Greek letter without adopting their cases, [Footnote: This +passage, as it stands in the original, appears to me unintelligible: I +have therefore taken the liberty to give it a slight alteration.] or at +least not to confine it to the nominative; and yet (in the accusative) we +say _Phryges_, and _Pyrrhum_, to please the ear. Formerly it was esteemed +an elegancy, though it would now be considered as a rusticism, to omit the +_s_ in all words which terminate in _us_, except when they were followed +by a vowel; and the same elision which is so carefully avoided by the +modern Poets, was very far from being reckoned a fault among the ancient: +for they made no scruple to say, + + _Qui est OMNIBU' princeps_, + +not, as we do, OMNIBUS princeps; and, + + _Vita illa DIGNU' locoque_, + +not _dignus_. + +But if untaught custom has been so ingenious in the formation of agreeable +sounds, what may we not expect from the improvements of art and erudition? +I have, however, been much shorter upon this subject, than I should have +been if I had written upon it professedly: for a comparison of the natural +and customary laws of language would have opened a wide field for +speculation: but I have already enlarged upon it sufficiently, and more, +perhaps, than the nature of my design required. + +To proceed then;--as the choice of proper matter, and of suitable words to +express it, depends upon the judgment of the Speaker, but that of +agreeable sounds, and harmonious numbers, upon the decision of the ear; +and because the former is intended for information, and the latter for +pleasure; it is evident that reason must determine the rules of art in one +case, and mere sensation in the other. For we must either neglect the +gratification of those by whom we wish to be approved, or apply ourselves +to invent the most likely methods to promote it. + +There are two things which contribute to gratify the ear,--agreeable +_sounds_, and harmonious _numbers_. We shall treat of numbers in the +sequel, and at present confine ourselves to _sound_.--Those words, then, +as we have already observed, are to have the preference which sound +agreeably;--not such as are exquisitely melodious, like those of the +Poets, but such as can be found to our purpose in common language.--_Qua +Pontus Helles_ is rather beyond the mark:--but in + + _Auratos aries Colchorum_, + +the verse glitters with a moderate harmony of expression; whereas the +next, as ending with a letter which is remarkably flat, is unmusical, + + _Frugifera et ferta arva Alfiae tenet_, + +Let us, therefore, rather content ourselves with the agreeable mediocrity +of our own language, than emulate the splendor of the Greeks; unless we +are so bigotted to the latter as to hesitate to say with the poet, + + _Qua tempestate Paris Helenam, &c_. + +we might even imitate what follows, and avoid, as far as possible, the +smallest asperity of sound, + + _habeo istam ego PERTERRICREPAM_; + +or say, with the same author, in another passage, + + _versutiloquas MALITIAS_. + +But our words must have a proper _compass_, as well as be connected +together in an agreeable manner; for this, we have observed, is another +circumstance which falls under the notice of the ear. They are confined to +a proper compass, either by certain rules of composition, as by a kind of +natural pause, or by the use of particular forms of expression, which have +a peculiar _concinnity_ in their very texture; such as a succession of +several words which have the same termination, or the comparing similar, +and contrasting opposite circumstances, which will always terminate in a +measured cadence, though no immediate pains should be taken for that +purpose. Gorgias, it is said, was the first Orator who practised this +species of _concinnity_. The following passage in my Defence of _Milo_ is +an example. + +"Est enim, Judices, haec non _scripta_, fed _nata_ Lex; quam non +_didicimus, accepimus, legimus_, verum ex Natura ipsa _arripuimus, +hausimus, expressimus_; ad quam non _docti_, sed _facti_; non +_instituti_, sed _imbuti_ simus." + +"For this, my Lords, is a law not written upon tables, but impressed upon +our hearts;--a law which we have not learned, or heard, or read, but +eagerly caught and imbibed from the hand of Nature;--a law to which we +have not been train'd, but originally form'd; and with the principles of +which we have not been furnished by education, but tinctured and +impregnated from the moment of our birth." + +In these forms of expression every circumstance is so aptly referred to +some other circumstance, that the regular turn of them does not appear to +have been studied, but to result entirely from the sense. The same effect +is produced by contrasting opposite circumstances; as in the following +lines, where it not only forms a measured sentence, but a verse: + + _Eam, quam nihil accusas, damnas,_ + +Her, whom you ne'er accus'd, you now condemn; + +(in prose we should say _condemnas_) and again, + + _Bene quam meritam esse autumas, dicis male mereri_, + +Her merit, once confess'd, you now deny; and, + + _Id quod scis, prodest nihil; id quod nescis, obest_, + +From what you've learnt no real good accrues, +But ev'ry ill your ignorance pursues. + +Here you see the mere opposition of the terms produces a verse; but in +prosaic composition, the proper form of the last line would be, _quod scis +nihil prodest; quod nescis multum obest_. This contrasting of opposite +circumstances, which the Greeks call an Antithesis, will necessarily +produce what is styled _rhetorical metre_, even without our intending it. +The ancient Orators, a considerable time before it was practised and +recommended by _Isocrates_, were fond of using it; and particularly +_Gorgias_, whose measured cadences are generally owing to the mere +_concinnity_ of his language. I have frequently practised it myself; as, +for instance, in the following passage of my fourth Invective against +_Verres_: + +"Conferte _hanc Pacem_ cum _illo Bello_;--_hujus_ Praetoris _Adventum_, +cum _illius_ Imperatoris _Victoria_;--hujas _Cohortem impuram_, cum illius +_Exercitu invicto_;--hujus _Libidines_, cum illius _Continentia_;--ab illo +qui cepit _conditas_; ab hoc, qui constitutas accepit, _captas_ dicetis +Syracusas." + +"Compare this detestable _peace_ with that glorious _war_,--the _arrival_ +of this governor with the _victory_ of that commander,--his _ruffian +guards_, with the _invincible forces_ of the other;--the brutal luxury of +the former, with the modest temperance of the latter;--and you will say, +that Syracuse was really _founded_ by him who _stormed_ it, and _stormed_ +by him who received it already _founded_ to his hands."--So much, then, +for that kind of measure which results from particular forms of +expression, and which ought to be known by every Orator. + +We must now proceed to the third thing proposed,--that _numerous_ and +well-adjusted style; of the beauty of which, if any are so insensible as +not to feel it, I cannot imagine what kind of ears they have, or what +resemblance of a human Being! For my part, my ears are always fond of a +complete and full-measured flow of words, and perceive in an instant what +is either defective or redundant. But wherefore do I say _mine_? I have +frequently seen a whole assembly burst into raptures of applause at a +happy period: for the ear naturally expects that our sentences should be +properly tuned and measured. This, however, is an accomplishment which is +not to be met with among the ancients. But to compensate the want of it, +they had almost every other perfection: for they had a happy choice of +words, and abounded in pithy and agreeable sentiments, though they had not +the art of harmonizing and completing their periods. This, say some, is +the very thing we admire. But what if they should take it into their heads +to prefer the ancient _peinture_, with all its poverty of colouring, to +the rich and finished style of the moderns? The former, I suppose, must be +again adopted, to compliment their delicacy, and the latter rejected. But +these pretended connoisseurs regard nothing but the mere _name_ of +antiquity. It must, indeed, be owned that antiquity has an equal claim to +authority in matters of imitation, as grey hairs in the precedence of age. +I myself have as great a veneration for it as any man: nor do I so much +upbraid antiquity with her defects, as admire the beauties she was +mistress of:--especially as I judge the latter to be of far greater +consequence than the former. For there is certainly more real merit in a +masterly choice of words and sentiments, in which the ancients are allowed +to excell, than in those measured periods with which they were totally +unacquainted. This species of composition was not known among the Romans +till lately: but the ancients, I believe, would readily have adopted it, +if it had then been discovered: and we accordingly find, that it is now +made use of by all Orators of reputation. "But when _number_, or (as the +Greeks call it) prosaic _metre_, is professedly introduced into judicial +and forensic discourses, the very name, say they, has a suspicious sound: +for people will conclude that there is too much artifice employed to sooth +and captivate their ears, when the Speaker is so over-exact as to attend +to the harmony of his periods." Relying upon the force of this objection, +these pretenders are perpetually grating our ears with their broken and +mutilated sentences; and censure those, without mercy, who have the +presumption to utter an agreeable and a well-turned period. If, indeed, it +was our design to spread a varnish over empty words and trifling +sentiments, the censure would be just: but when the matter is good, and +the words are proper and expressive, what reason can be assigned why we +should prefer a limping and imperfect period to one which terminates and +keeps pace with the sense? For this invidious and persecuted _metre_ aims +at nothing more than to adapt the compass of our words to that of our +thoughts; which is sometimes done even by the ancients,--though generally, +I believe, by mere accident, and often by the natural delicacy of the ear; +and the very passages which are now most admired in them, commonly derive +their merit from the agreeable and measured flow of the language. + +This is an art which was in common use among the Greek Orators, about four +hundred years ago, though it has been but lately introduced among the +Romans. Ennius, therefore, when he ridicules the inharmonious numbers of +his predecessors, might be allowed to say, + + "_Such verses as the rustic Bards and Satyrs sung_:" + +But I must not take the same liberty; especially as I cannot say with him, + + _Before this bold adventurer_, &c. + +(meaning himself:) nor, as he afterwards exults to the same purpose, + + _I first have dar'd t'unfold_, &c. + +for I have both read and heard several who were almost complete masters of +the numerous and measured style I am speaking of: But many, who are still +absolute strangers to it, are not content to be exempted from the ridicule +they deserve, but claim a right to our warmest applause. I must own, +indeed, that I admire the venerable patterns, of which those persons +pretend to be the faithful imitators, notwithstanding the defects I +observe in them: but I can by no means commend the folly of those who copy +nothing but their blemishes, and have no pretensions even to the most +distant resemblance in what is truly excellent. + +But if their own ears are so indelicate and devoid of taste, will they pay +no deference to the judgment of others, who are universally celebrated for +their learning? I will not mention _Isocrates_, and his two scholars, +_Ephorus_ and _Naucrates_; though they may claim the honour of giving the +richest precepts of composition, and were themselves very eminent Orators. +But who was possessed of a more ample fund of erudition?--who more subtle +and acute?--or who furnished with quicker powers of invention, and a +greater strength of understanding, than _Aristotle_? I may add, who made a +warmer opposition to the rising fame of _Isocrates_? And yet _he_, though +he forbids us to versify in prose, recommends the use of _numbers_. His +hearer _Theodectes_ (whom he often mentions as a polished writer, and an +excellent artist) both approves and advises the same thing: and +_Theophrastus_ is still more copious and explicit. Who, then, can have +patience with those dull and conceited humourists, who dare to oppose +themselves to such venerable names as these? The only excuse that can be +made for them is, that they have never perused their writings, and are +therefore ignorant that they actually recommend the prosaic _metre_ we are +speaking of. If this is the case with them (and I cannot think otherwise) +will they reject the evidence of their own sensations? Is there nothing +which their ears will inform them is defective?--nothing which is harsh +and unpolished?--nothing imperfect?--nothing lame and mutilated?--nothing +redundant? In dramatic performances, a whole theatre will exclaim against +a verse which has only a syllable either too short or too long: and yet +the bulk of an audience are unacquainted with _feet_ and _numbers_, and +are totally ignorant what the fault is, and where it lies: but Nature +herself has taught the ear to measure the quantity of sound, and determine +the propriety of its various accents, whether grave, or acute. + +Do you desire, then, my Brutus, that we should discuss the subject more +fully than those writers who have already elucidated this, and the other +parts of rhetoric? Or shall we content ourselves with the instructions +which _they_ have provided for us? But wherefore do I offer such a +question, when your elegant letters have informed me, that this is the +chief object of your request? We shall proceed, therefore, to give an +account of the commencement, the origin, and the nature and use of +_prosaic numbers_. + +The admirers of Isocrates place the first invention of numbers among those +other improvements which do honour to his memory. For observing, say they, +that the Orators were heard with a kind of sullen attention, while the +Poets were listened to with pleasure, he applied himself to introduce a +species of metre into prose, which might have a pleasing effect upon the +ear, and prevent that satiety which will always arise from a continued +uniformity of sound. This, however, is partly true, and partly otherwise; +for though it must be owned that no person was better skilled in the +subject than _Isocrates_; yet the first honour of the invention belongs to +_Thrasymachus_, whose style (in all his writings which are extant) is +_numerous_ even to a fault. But _Gorgias_, as I have already remarked, was +the original inventor of those measured forms of expression which have a +kind of spontaneous harmony,--such as a regular succession of words with +the same termination, and the comparing similar, or contracting opposite +circumstances: though it is also notoriously true that he used them to +excess. This, however, is one of the three branches of composition above- +mentioned. But each of these authors was prior to _Isocrates_: so that the +preference can be due to _him_ only for his _moderate use_, and not for +the _invention_ of the art: for as he is certainly much easier in the turn +of his metaphors, and the choice of his words, so his numbers are more +composed and sedate. But _Gorgias_, he observed, was too eager, and +indulged himself in this measured play of words to a ridiculous excess. +He, therefore, endeavoured to moderate and correct it; but not till he had +first studied in his youth under the same _Gorgias_, who was then in +Thessaly, and in the last decline of life. Nay, as he advanced in years +(for he lived almost a hundred) he corrected _himself_, and gradually +relaxed the over-strict regularity of his numbers; as he particularly +informs us in the treatise which he dedicated to Philip of Macedon, in the +latter part of his life; for he there says, that he had thrown off that +servile attention to his numbers, to which he was before accustomed:--so +that he discovered and corrected his _own_ faults, as well as those of his +predecessors. + +Having thus specified the several authors and inventors, and the first +commencement of prosaic harmony, we must next enquire what was the natural +source and origin of it. But this lies so open to observation, that I am +astonished the ancients did not notice it: especially as they often, by +mere accident, threw out harmonious and measured sentences, which, when +they had struck the ears and the passions with so much force, as to make +it obvious that there was something particularly agreeable in what chance +alone had uttered, one would imagine that such a singular species of +ornament would have been immediately attended to, and that they would have +taken the pains to imitate what they found so pleasing in themselves. For +the ear, or at least the mind by the intervention of the ear, has a +natural capacity to measure the harmony of language: and we accordingly +feel that it instantly determines what is either too short or too long, +and always expects to be gratified with that which is complete and well- +proportioned. Some expressions it perceives to be imperfect, and +mutilated; and at these it is immediately offended, as if it was defrauded +of it's natural due. In others it discovers an immoderate length, and a +tedious superfluity of words; and with these it is still more disgusted +than with the former; for in this, as in most other cases, an excess is +always more offensive than a proportional defect. As versification, +therefore, and poetic competition was invented by the regulation of the +ear, and the successive observations of men of taste and judgment; so in +prose (though indeed long afterwards, but still, however, by the guidance +of nature) it was discovered that the career and compass of our language +should be adjusted and circumscribed within proper limits. + +So much for the source, or natural origin of prosaic harmony. We must next +proceed (for that was the third thing proposed) to enquire into the nature +of it, and determine it's essential principles;--a subject which exceeds +the limits of the present essay, and would be more properly discussed in a +professed and accurate system of the art. For we might here inquire what +is meant by prosaic _number_, wherein it consists, and from whence it +arises; as likewise whether it is simple and uniform, or admits of any +variety, and in what manner it is formed, for what purpose, and when and +where it should be employed, and how it contributes to gratify the ear. +But as in other subjects, so in this, there are two methods of +disquisition;--the one more copious and diffusive, and the other more +concise, and, I might also add, more easy and comprehensible. In the +former, the first question which would occur is, whether there is any such +thing as _prosaic number_: some are of opinion there is not; because no +fixed and certain rules have been yet assigned for it, as there long have +been for poetic numbers; and because the very persons, who contend for +it's existence, have hitherto been unable to determine it. Granting, +however, that prose is susceptible of numbers, it will next be enquired of +what kind they are;--whether they are to be selected from those of the +poets, or from a different species;--and, if from the former, which of +them may claim the preference; for some authors admit only one or two, and +some more, while others object to none. We might then proceed to enquire +(be the number of them to be admitted, more or less) whether they are +equally common to every kind of style; for the narrative, the persuasive, +and the didactic have each a manner peculiar to itself; or whether the +different species of Oratory should be accommodated with their different +numbers. If the same numbers are equally common to all subjects, we must +next enquire what those numbers are; and if they are to be differently +applied, we must examine wherein they differ, and for what reason they are +not to be used so openly in prose as in verse. It might likewise be a +matter of enquiry, whether a _numerous_ style is formed entirely by the +use of numbers, or not also in some measure by the harmonious juncture of +our words, and the application of certain figurative forms of expression; +--and, in the next place, whether each of these has not its peculiar +province, so that number may regard the time or _quantity_, composition +the _sound_, and figurative expression the _form_ and _polish_ of our +language,--and yet, in fact, composition be the source and fountain of all +the rest, and give rise both to the varieties of _number_, and to those +figurative and luminous dashes of expression, which by the Greeks, as I +have before observed, are called ([Greek: _schaemaia_],) _attitudes_ or +_figures_. But to me there appears to be a real distinction between what +is agreeable in _sound_, exact in _measure_, and ornamental in the mode of +_expression_; though the latter, it must be owned, is very closely +connected with _number_, as being for the most part sufficiently numerous +without any labour to make it so: but composition is apparently different +from both, as attending entirely either to the _majestic_ or _agreeable_ +sound of our words. Such then are the enquiries which relate to the +_nature_ of prosaic harmony. + +From what has been said it is easy to infer that prose is susceptible of +_number_. Our sensations tell us so: and it would be excessively unfair to +reject their evidence, because we cannot account for the fact. Even poetic +metre was not discovered by any effort of reason, but by mere natural +taste and sensation, which reason afterwards correcting, improved and +methodized what had been noticed by accident; and thus an attention to +nature, and an accurate observation of her various feelings and sensations +gave birth to art. But in verse the use of _number_ is more obvious; +though some particular species of it, without the assistance of music, +have the air of harmonious prose, and especially the lyric poetry, and +that even the best of the kind, which, if divested of the aid of music, +would be almost as plain and naked as common language. We have several +specimens of this nature in our own poets [Footnote: It must here be +remarked, that the Romans had no lyric poet before _Horace_, who did not +flourish till after the times of _Cicero_.]; such as the following line in +the tragedy of _Thyestes_, + + "_Quemnam te esse dicam? qui in tarda senectute_; + +"Whom shall I call thee? who in tardy age," &c.; + +which, unless when accompanied by the lyre, might easily be mistaken for +prose. But the iambic verses of the comic poets, to maintain a resemblance +to the style of conversation, are often so low and simple that you can +scarcely discover in them either number or metre; from whence it is +evident that it is more difficult to adapt numbers to prose than to verse. + +There are two things, however, which give a relish to our language,--well- +chosen words, and harmonious _numbers_. Words may be considered as the +_materials_ of language, and it is the business of _number_ to smooth and +polish them. But as in other cases, what was invented to serve our +necessities was always prior to that which was invented for pleasure; so, +in the present, a rude and simple style which was merely adapted to +express our thoughts, was discovered many centuries before the invention +of _numbers_, which are designed to please the ear. Accordingly +_Herodotus_, and both his and the preceding age had not the least idea of +prosaic _number_, nor produced any thing of the kind, unless at random, +and by mere accident:--and even the ancient masters of rhetoric (I mean +those of the earliest date) have not so much as mentioned it, though they +have left us a multitude of precepts upon the conduct and management of +our style. For what is easiest, and most necessary to be known, is, for +that reason, always first discovered. Metaphors, therefore, and new-made +and compounded words, were easily invented, because they were borrowed +from custom and conversation: but _number_ was not selected from our +domestic treasures, nor had the least intimacy or connection with common +language; and, of consequence, not being noticed and understood till every +other improvement had been made, it gave the finishing grace, and the last +touches to the style of Eloquence. + +As it may be remarked that one sort of language is interrupted by frequent +breaks and intermissions, while another is flowing and diffusive; it is +evident that the difference cannot result from the natural sounds of +different letters, but from the various combinations of long and short +syllables, with which our language, being differently blended and +intermingled, will be either dull and motionless, or lively and fluent; so +that every circumstance of this nature must be regulated by _number_. For +by the assistance of _numbers_, the _period_, which I have so often +mentioned before, pursues it's course with greater strength and freedom +till it comes to a natural pause. It is therefore plain that the style of +an Orator should be measured and harmonized by _numbers_, though entirely +free from verse; but whether these numbers should be the same as those of +the poets, or of a different species, is the next thing to be considered. +In my opinion there can be no sort of numbers but those of the poets; +because they have already specified all their different kinds with the +utmost precision; for every number may be comprized in the three following +varieties:--_viz_. a _foot_ (which is the measure we apply to numbers) +must be so divided, that one part of it will be either equal to the other, +or twice as long, or equal to three halves of it. Thus, in a _dactyl_ +(breve-macron-macron) (long-short-short) the first syllable, which is the +former part of the foot, is equal to the two others, in the _iambic_ +(macron-breve)(short-long) the last is double the first, and in the +_paeon_ (macron-macron-macron-breve, or breve-macron-macron-macron)(short- +short-short-long, or long-short-short-short) one of its parts, which is +the long syllable, is equal to two-thirds of the other. These are feet +which are unavoidably incident to language; and a proper arrangement of +them will produce a _numerous_ style. + +But it will here be enquired, What numbers should have the preference? To +which I answer, They must all occur promiscuously; as is evident from our +sometimes speaking verse without knowing it, which in prose is reckoned a +capital fault; but in the hurry of discourse we cannot always watch and +criticise ourselves. As to _senarian_ and _hipponactic_ [Footnote: Verses +chiefly composed of iambics] verses, it is scarcely possible to avoid +them; for a considerable part, even of our common language, is composed of +_iambics_. To these, however, the hearer is easily reconciled; because +custom has made them familiar to his ear. But through inattention we are +often betrayed into verses which are not so familiar;--a fault which may +easily be avoided by a course of habitual circumspection. _Hieronymus_, an +eminent Peripatetic, has collected out of the numerous writings of +Isocrates about thirty verses, most of them senarian, and some of them +anapest, which in prose have a more disagreeable effect than any others. +But he quotes them with a malicious partiality: for he cuts off the first +syllable of the first word in a sentence, and annexes to the last word the +first syllable of the following sentence; and thus he forms what is called +an _Aristophanean_ anapest, which it is neither possible nor necessary to +avoid entirely. But, this redoubtable critic, as I discovered upon a +closer inspection, has himself been betrayed into a senarian or iambic +verse in the very paragraph in which he censures the composition of +_Isocrates_. + +Upon the whole, it is sufficiently plain that prose is susceptible of +_numbers_, and that the numbers of an Orator must be the same as those of +a Poet. The next thing to be considered is, what are the numbers which are +most suitable to his character, and, for that reason, should occur more +frequently than the rest? Some prefer the _Iambic_ (macron-breve)(short- +long) as approaching the nearest to common language; for which reason, +they say, it is generally made use of in fables and comedies, on account +of it's resemblance to conversation; and because the dactyl, which is the +favourite number of hexameters, is more adapted to a pompous style. +_Ephorus_, on the other hand, declares for the paeon and the dactyl; and +rejects the spondee and the trochee (long short). For as the paeon +has three short syllables, and the dactyl two, he thinks their shortness +and celerity give a brisk and lively flow to our language; and that a +different effect would be produced by the trochee and the spondee, the one +consisting of short syllables, and the other of long ones;--so that by +using the former, the current of our words would become too rapid, and too +heavy by employing the latter, losing, in either case, that easy +moderation which best satisfies the ear. But both parties seem to be +equally mistaken: for those who exclude the paeon, are not aware that they +reject the sweetest and fullest number we have. Aristotle was far from +thinking as they do: he was of opinion that heroic numbers are too +sonorous for prose; and that, on the other hand, the iambic has too much +the resemblance of vulgar talk:--and, accordingly, he recommends the style +which is neither too low and common, nor too lofty and extravagant, but +retains such a just proportion of dignity, as to win the attention, and +excite the admiration of the hearer. He, therefore, calls the _trochee_ +(which has precisely the same quantity as the _choree_) _the rhetorical +jigg_ [Footnote: _Cordacem appellat_. The _cordax_ was a lascivious dance +very full of agitation.]; because the shortness and rapidity of it's +syllables are incompatible with the majesty of Eloquence. For this reason +he recommends the _paeon_, and says that every person makes use of it, +even without being sensible when he does so. He likewise observes that it +is a proper medium between the different feet above-mentioned:--the +proportion between the long and short syllables, in every foot, being +either sesquiplicate, duple, or equal. + +The authors, therefore, whom I mentioned before attended merely to the +easy flow of our language, without any regard to it's dignity. For the +iambic and the dactyl are chiefly used in poetry; so that to avoid +versifying in prose, we must shun, as much as possible, a continued +repetition of either; because the language of prose is of a different +cast, and absolutely incompatible with verse. As the paeon, therefore, is +of all other feet the most improper for poetry, it may, for that reason be +more readily admitted into prose. But as to _Ephorus_, he did not reflect +that even the _spondee_, which he rejects, is equal in time to his +favourite dactyl; because he supposed that feet were to be measured not by +the quantity, but the number of their syllables;--a mistake of which he is +equally guilty when he excludes the _trochee_, which, in time and +quantity, is precisely equal to the iambic; though it is undoubtedly +faulty at the end of a period, which always terminates more agreeably in a +long syllable than a short one. As to what Aristotle has said of the +_paeon_, the same has likewise been said by _Theophrastus_ and +_Theodectes_. + +But, for my part, I am rather of opinion that our language should be +intermingled and diversified with all the varieties of number; for should +we confine ourselves to any particular feet, it would be impossible to +escape the censure of the hearer; because our style should neither be so +exactly measured as that of the poets, nor entirely destitute of number, +like that of the common people. The former, as being too regular and +uniform, betrays an appearance of art; and the other, which is as much too +loose and undetermined, has the air of ordinary talk; so that we receive +no pleasure from the one, and are absolutely disgusted with the other. Our +style, therefore, as I have just observed, should be so blended and +diversified with different numbers, as to be neither too vague and +unrestrained, nor too openly numerous, but abound most in the paeon (so +much recommended by the excellent author above-mentioned) though still in +conjunction with many other feet which he entirely omits. + +But we must now consider what number like so many dashes of purple, should +tincture and enrich the rest, and to what species of style they are each +of them best adapted. The iambic, then, should be the leading number in +those subjects which require a plain and simple style;--the paeon in such +as require more compass and elevation; and the dactyl is equally +applicable to both. So that in a discourse of any length and variety, it +will be occasionally necessary to blend and intermingle them all. By this +means, our endeavours to modulate our periods, and captivate the ear, will +be most effectually concealed; especially, if we maintain a suitable +dignity both of language and sentiment. For the hearer will naturally +attend to these (I mean our words and sentiments) and to them alone +attribute the pleasure he receives; so that while he listens to these with +admiration, the harmony of our numbers will escape his notice: though it +must indeed be acknowledged that the former would have their charms +without the assistance of the latter. But the flow of our numbers is not +to be so exact (I mean in prose, for in poetry the case is different) as +that nothing may exceed the bounds of regularity; for this would be to +compose a poem. On the contrary, if our language neither limps nor +fluctuates, but keeps an even and a steady pace, it is sufficiently +_numerous_; and it accordingly derives the title, not from its consisting +entirely of numbers, but from its near approach to a numerous form. This +is the reason why it is more difficult to make elegant prose, than to make +verses; because there are fixed and invariable rules for the latter; +whereas nothing is determined in the former, but that the current of our +language should be neither immoderate nor defective, nor loose and +unconfined. It cannot be supposed, therefore, to admit of regular beats +and divisions, like a piece of music; but it is only necessary that the +general compass and arrangement of our words should be properly restrained +and limited,--a circumstance which must be left entirely to the decision +of the ear. + +Another question which occurs before us, is--whether an attention to our +numbers should be extended to every part of a sentence, or only to the +beginning and the end. Most authors are of opinion that it is only +necessary that our periods should end well, and have a numerous cadence. +It is true, indeed, that this ought to be principally attended to, but not +solely: for the whole compass of our periods ought likewise to be +regulated, and not totally neglected. As the ear, therefore, always +directs it's view to the close of a sentence, and there fixes it's +attention, it is by no means proper that this should be destitute of +_number_: but it must also be observed that a period, from it's first +commencement, should run freely on, so as to correspond to the conclusion; +and the whole advance from the beginning with such an easy flow, as to +make a natural, and a kind of voluntary pause. To those who have been +we'll practised in the art, and who have both written much; and often +attempted to discourse _extempore_ with the same accuracy which they +observe in their writings, this will be far less difficult than is +imagined. For every sentence is previously formed and circumscribed in the +mind of the Speaker, and is then immediately attended by the proper words +to express it, which the same mental faculty (than which there is nothing +more lively and expeditious) instantly dismisses, and sends off each to +its proper post: but, in different sentences, their particular order and +arrangement will be differently terminated; though, in every sentence, the +words both in the beginning and the middle of it, should have a constant +reference to the end. Our language, for instance, must sometimes advance +with rapidity, and at other times it's pace must be moderate and easy; so +that it will be necessary at the very beginning of a sentence, to resolve +upon the manner in which you would have it terminate; but we must avoid +the least appearance of poetry, both in our numbers, and in the other +ornaments of language; though it is true, indeed, that the labours of the +Orator must be conducted on the same principles as those of the Poet. For +in each we have the same materials to work upon, and a similar art of +managing them; the materials being words, and the art of managing them +relating, in both cases, to the manner in which they ought to be disposed. +The words also in each may be divided into three classes,--the +__metaphorical_,--the new-coined,--and the antique;--for at present we +have no concern with words _proper_:--and three parts may also be +distinguished in the art of disposing them; which, I have already +observed, are _juncture_, _concinnity_, and _number_. The poets make use +both of one and the other more frequently, and with greater liberty than +we do; for they employ the _tropes_ not only much oftener, but more boldly +and openly; and they introduce _antique_ words with a higher taste, and +new ones with less reserve. The same may be said in their numbers, in the +use of which they are subjected to invariable rules, which they are +scarcely ever allowed to transgress. The two arts, therefore, are to be +considered neither as wholly distinct, nor perfectly conjoined. This is +the reason why our numbers are not to be so conspicuous in prose as in +verse; and that in prose, what is called a _numerous_ style, does not +always become so by the use of numbers, but sometimes either by the +concinnity of our language, or the smooth juncture of our words. + +To conclude this head; If it should be enquired, "What are the numbers to +be used in prose?" I answer, "_All_; though some are certainly better, and +more adapted to it's character than others."--If "_Where_ is their proper +seat?"--"In the different quantity of our syllables:"--If "From whence +their _origin_?"--"From the sole pleasure of the ear:"--If "What the +method of blending and intermingling them?"--"This shall be explained in +the sequel, because it properly relates to the manner of using them, which +was the fourth and last article in my division of the subject." If it be +farther enquired, "For what purpose they are employed?" I answer,--"To +gratify the ear:"--If "_When_?" I reply, "At all times:"--If "In what part +of a sentence?" "Through the whole length of it:"--and if "What is the +circumstance which gives them a pleasing effect?" "The same as in poetical +compositions, whose metre is regulated by art, though the ear alone, +without the assistance of art, can determine it's limits by the natural +powers of sensation." Enough, therefore, has been said concerning the +nature and properties of _number_. The next article to be considered is +the manner in which our numbers should be employed,--a circumstance which +requires to be accurately discussed. + +Here it is usual to enquire, whether it is necessary to attend to our +numbers through the whole compass of a period, [Footnote: Our author here +informs us, that what the Greeks called [Greek: periodos], a _period_, was +distinguished among the Romans by the words _ambitus, circuitus, +comprehensio, continuatio_, and _circumscriptio_. As I thought this remark +would appear much better in the form of a note, than in the body of the +work, I have introduced it accordingly.] or only at the beginning or end +of it, or equally in both. In the next place, as _exact number_ seems to +be one thing, and that which is merely _numerous_ another, it might be +enquired wherein lies the difference. We might likewise consider whether +the members of a sentence should all indifferently be of the same length, +whatever be the numbers they are composed of;--or whether, on this +account, they should not be sometimes longer, and sometimes shorter;--and +when, and for what reasons, they should be made so, and of what numbers +they should be composed;--whether of several sorts, or only of one; and +whether of equal or unequal numbers;--and upon what occasions either the +one or the other of these are to be used;-and what numbers accord best +together, and in what order; or whether, in this respect, there is no +difference between them;--and (which has still a more immediate reference +to our subject) by what means our style may be rendered _numerous_. It +will likewise be necessary to specify the rise and origin of a +_periodical_ form of language, and what degree of compass should be +allowed to it. After this, we may consider the members or divisions of a +period, and enquire of how many kinds, and of what different lengths they +are; and, if they vary in these respects, _where_ and _when_ each +particular sort is to be employed: and, in the last place, the _use_ and +application of the whole is to be fully explained;--a very extensive +subject, and which is capable of being accommodated not only to one, but +to many different occasions. But without adverting to particulars, we may +discuss the subject at large in such a manner as to furnish a satisfactory +answer in all subordinate cases. + +Omitting, therefore, every other species of composition, we shall attend +to that which is peculiar to forensic causes. For in those performances +which are of a different kind, such as history, panegyric, and all +discourses which are merely ornamental, every sentence should be +constructed after the exact manner of _Isocrates_ and _Theopompus_; and +with that regular compass, and measured flow of language, that our words +may constantly run within the limits prescribed by art, and pursue a +uniform course, till the period is completed. We may, therefore, observe +that after the invention of this, _periodical_ form, no writer of any +account has made a discourse which was intended as a mere display of +ornament, and not for the service of the Forum, without _squaring_ his +language, (if I may so express myself) and confining every sentence of it +to the strictest laws of _number_. For as, in this case, the hearer has no +motive to alarm his suspicions against the artifice of the speaker, he +will rather think himself obliged to him than otherwise, for the pains he +takes to amuse and gratify his ear. But, in forensic causes, this accurate +species of composition is neither to be wholly adopted, nor entirely +rejected. For if we pursue it too closely, it will create a satiety, and +our attention to it will be discovered by the most illiterate observer. We +may add, it will check the pathos and force of action, restrain the +sensibility of the Speaker, and destroy all appearance of truth and open +dealing. But as it will sometimes be necessary to adopt it, we must +consider _when_, and _how long_, this ought to be done, and how many ways +it may be changed and varied. + +A _numerous_ style, then, may be properly employed, either when any thing +is to be commended in a free and ornamental manner, (as in my second +Invective against _Verres_, where I spoke in praise of _Sicily_, and in my +Speech before the Senate, in which I vindicated the honour of my +consulship;)--or; in the next place, when a narrative is to be delivered +which requires more dignity than pathos, (as in my fourth Invective, where +I described the Ceres of the Ennensians, the Diana of the Segestani, and +the situation of Syracuse.) It is likewise often allowable to speak in a +numerous and flowing style, when a material circumstance is to be +amplified. If I myself have not succeeded in this so well as might be +wished, I have at least attempted it very frequently; and it is still +visible in many of my Perorations, that I have exerted all the talents I +was master of for that purpose. But this will always have most efficacy, +when the Speaker has previously possessed himself of the hearer's +attention, and got the better of his judgment. For then he is no longer +apprehensive of any artifice to mislead him; but hears every thing with a +favourable ear, wishes the Orator to proceed, and, admiring the force of +his Eloquence, has no inclination to censure it. + +But this measured and numerous flow of language is never to be continued +too long, I will not say in the peroration, (of which the hearer himself +will always be a capable judge) but in any other part of a discourse: for, +except in the cases above-mentioned, in which I have shewn it is +allowable, our style must be wholly confined to those clauses or divisions +which we erroneously call _incisa_ and _membra_; but the Greeks, with more +propriety, the _comma_ and _colon_ [Footnote: The ancients apply these +terms to the sense, and not to any points of distinction. A very short +member, whether simple or compound, with them is a _comma_; and a longer, +a _colon_; for they have no such term as a _semicolon_. Besides, they call +a very short sentence, whether simple or compound, a _comma_; and one of +somewhat a greater length, a _colon_. And therefore, if a person expressed +himself either of these ways, in any considerable number of sentences +together, he was said to speak by _commas_, or _colons_. But a sentence +containing more words than will consist with either of these terms, they +call a simple _period_; the least compound period with them requiring the +length of two colons. + +Ward's Rhetoric, volume 1st, page 344.]. For it is impossible that the +names of things should be rightly applied, when the things themselves are +not sufficiently understood: and as we often make use of metaphorical +terms, either for the sake of ornament, or to supply the place of proper +ones, so in other arts, when we have occasion to mention any thing which +(through our unacquaintance with it) has not yet received a name, we are +obliged either to invent a new one, or to borrow it from something +similar. We shall soon consider what it is to speak in _commas_ and +_colons_, and the proper method of doing it: but we must first attend to +the various numbers by which the cadence of our periods should be +diversified. + +Our numbers will advance more rapidly by the use of short feet, and more +coolly and sedately by the use of long ones. The former are best adapted +to a warm and spirited style, and the latter to sober narratives and +explanations. But there are several numbers for concluding a period, one +of which (called the _dichoree_, or double _choree_, and consisting of a +long and a short syllable repeated alternately) is much in vogue with the +Asiatics; though among different people the same feet are distinguished by +different names. The _dichoree_, indeed, is not essentially bad for the +close of a sentence: but in prosaic numbers nothing can be more faulty +than a continued or frequent repetition of the same cadence: as the +_dichoree_, therefore, is a very sonorous number, we should be the more +sparing in the use of it, to prevent a satiety. _C. Carbo_, the son of +_Caius_, and a Tribune of the people, once said in a public trial in which +I was personally engaged,--"_O Marce Druse, Patrem appello_;" where you +may observe two _commas_, each consisting of two feet. He then made use of +the two following _colons_, each consisting of three feet,--"_Tu dicere +solebas, sacram esse Rempublicam:"--and afterwards of the period,-- +"_Quicunque eam violavissent, ab omnibus esse ei poenas persolutas_" which +ends with a _dichoree_; for it is immaterial whether the last syllable is +long or short. He added, "_Patris dictum sapiens, temeritas filii +comprobavit_" concluding here also with a _dichoree_; which was received +with such a general burst of applause, as perfectly astonished me. But was +not this the effect of _number_?--Only change the order of the words, and +say,--"_Comprobavit filii temeritas_" and the spirit of them will be lost, +though the word _temeritas_ consists of three short syllables and a long +one, which is the favourite number of Aristotle, from whom, however, I +here beg leave to dissent. The words and sentiments are indeed the fame in +both cases; and yet, in the latter, though the understanding is satisfied, +the ear is not. But these harmonious cadences are not to be repeated too +often: for, in the first place, our _numbers_ will be soon discovered,--in +the next, they will excite the hearer's disgust,--and, at last, be +heartily despised on account of the apparent facility with which they are +formed. + +But there are several other cadences which will have a numerous and +pleasing effect: for even the _cretic_, which consists of a long, a short, +and a long syllable, and it's companion the _paeon_, which is equal to it +in quantity, though it exceeds it in the number of syllables, is reckoned +a proper and a very useful ingredient in harmonious prose: especially as +the latter admits of two varieties, as consisting either of one long and +three short syllables, which will be lively enough at the beginning of a +sentence, but extremely flat at the end;--or of three short syllables and +a long one, which was highly approved of by the ancients at the _close_ of +a sentence, and which I would not wholly reject, though I give the +preference to others. Even the sober _spondee_ is not to be entirely +discarded; for though it consists of two long syllables, and for that +reason may seem rather dull and heavy, it has yet a firm and steady step, +which gives it an air of dignity, and especially in the _comma_ and the +_colon_; so that it sufficiently compensates for the slowness of it's +motion, by it's peculiar weight and solemnity. When I speak of feet at the +close of a period, I do not mean precisely the last. I would be +understood, at least, to include the foot which immediately precedes it; +and, in many cases, even the foot before _that_. The _iambic_, therefore, +which consists of a long syllable and a short one, and is equal in time, +though not in the number of it's syllables, to a _choree_, which has three +short ones; or even the _dactyl_, which consists of one long and two short +syllables, will unite agreeably enough with the last foot of a sentence, +when that foot is either a _choree_ or a _spondee_; for it is immaterial +which of them is employed. But the three feet I am mentioning, are neither +of them very proper for closing a period, (that is, to form the last foot +of it) unless when a _dactyl_ is substituted for a _cretic_, for you may +use either of them at pleasure; because, even in verse, it is of no +consequence whether the last syllable is long or short. He, therefore, who +recommended the _paeon_, as having the long syllable last, was certainly +guilty of an oversight; because the quantity of the last syllable is never +regarded. The _paeon_, however, as consisting of four syllables, is +reckoned by some to be only a _number_, and not a _foot_. But call it +which you please, it is in general, what all the ancients have represented +it, (such as _Aristotle, Theophrastus, Theodectes_, and _Euphorus_) the +fittest of all others both for the beginning and the middle of a period. +They are likewise of opinion, that it is equally proper at the end; where, +in my opinion, the _cretic_ deserves the preference. The _dochimus_, which +consists of five syllables, (i.e. a short and two long ones, and a short, +and a long one, as in _amicos tenes_) may be used indifferently in any +part of a sentence, provided it occurs but once: for if it is continued or +repeated, our attention to our numbers will be discovered, and alarm the +suspicion of the hearer. On the other hand, if we properly blend and +intermingle the several varieties above-mentioned, our design will not be +so readily noticed; and we shall also prevent that satiety which would +arise from an elaborate uniformity of cadence. + +But the harmony of language does not result entirely from the use of +_numbers_, but from the _juncture_ and _composition_ of our words; and +from that neatness and _concinnity_ of expression which I have already +mentioned. By _composition_, I here mean when our words are so judiciously +connected as to produce an agreeable sound (independent of _numbers_) +which rather appears to be the effect of nature than of art; as in the +following passage from Crassus, _Nam ubi lubido dominatur, innocentiae +leve praesidium est_ [Footnote: In the sentence which is here quoted from +Crassus, every word which ends with a consonant is immediately succeeded +by another which begins with a vowel; and, _vice versa_, if the preceding +word ends with a vowel, the next begins with a consonant.]: for here the +mere order in which the words are connected, produces a harmony of sound, +without any visible attention of the Speaker. When the ancients, +therefore, (I mean _Herodotus_, and _Thucydides_, and all who flourished +in the same age) composed a numerous and a musical period, it must rather +be attributed to the casual order of their words, than to the labour and +artifice of the writer. + +But there are likewise certain forms of expression, which have such a +natural concinnity, as will necessarily have a similar effect to that of +regular numbers. For when parallel circumstances are compared, or opposite +ones contrasted, or words of the same termination are placed in a regular +succesion, they seldom fail to produce a numerous cadence. But I have +already treated of these, and subjoined a few examples; so that we are +hereby furnished with an additional and a copious variety of means to +avoid the uniformity of cadence above-mentioned; especially as these +measured forms of expression may be occasionally relaxed and dilated. +There is, however, a material difference between a style which is merely +_numerous_, (or, in other words, which has a moderate resemblance to +_metre_) and that which is entirely composed of _numbers_: the latter is +an insufferable fault; but our language, without the former, would be +absolutely vague, unpolished, and dissipated. + +But as a numerous style (strictly so called) is not frequently, and indeed +but seldom admissible in forensic causes,--it seems necessary to enquire, +in the next place, what are those _commas_ and _colons_ before-mentioned, +and which, in real causes, should occupy the major part of an Oration. The +_period_, or complete sentence, is usually composed of four divisions, +which are called _members_, (or _colons_) that it may properly fill the +ear, and be neither longer nor shorter than is requisite for that purpose. +But it sometimes, or rather frequently happens, that a sentence either +falls short of, or exceeds the limits of a regular period, to prevent it +from fatiguing the ear on the one hand, or disappointing it on the other. +What I mean is to recommend an agreeable mediocrity: for we are not +treating of verse, but of rhetorical prose, which is confessedly more free +and unconfined. A full period, then, is generally composed of four parts, +which may be compared to as many hexameter verses, each of which have +their proper points, or particles of continuation, by which they are +connected so as to form a perfect period. But when we speak by _colons_, +we interupt their union, and, as often as occasion requires (which indeed +will frequently be the case) break off with ease from this laboured and +suspicious flow of language; but yet nothing should be so numerous in +reality as that which appears to be least so, and yet has a forcible +effect. Such is the following passage in Crassus:--"_Missos faciant +patronos; ipsi prodeant_." "Let them dismiss their patrons: let them +answer for themselves." Unless "_ipsi prodeant_" was pronounced after a +pause, the hearer must have discovered a complete iambic verse. It would +have had a better cadence in prose if he had said "_prodeant ipsi_." But I +am only to consider the species, and not the cadence of the sentence. He +goes on, "_Cur clandestinis consiliis nos oppugnant? cur de perfugis +nostris copias comparant contra nos_?" "Why do they attack us by +clandestine measures? why do they collect forces against us from our own +deserters?" In the former passage there are two _commas_: in the latter he +first makes use of the _colon_, and afterwards of the _period_: but the +period is not a long one, as only consisting of two _colons_, and the +whole terminates in _spondees_. In this manner Crassus generally expressed +himself; and I much approve his method. But when we speak either in +_commas_, or _colons_, we should be very attentive to the harmony of their +cadence: as in the following instance.--"_Domus tibi deerat? at habebas. +Pecunia superabat? at egebas_." "Was you without a habitation? You had a +house of your own. Was your pocket well provided? You was not master of a +farthing." These are four _commas_; but the two following members are both +_colons_;--"_Incurristi omens in columnas, in alienos insanus insanisti_." + +"You rushed like a madman upon your best supporters; you vented your fury +on your enemies withput mercy." The whole is afterwards supported by a +full period, as by a solid basis;--"Depressam, caecam, jacentem domum, +pluris quam te, et fortunas tuas aestimasti." "You have shewn more regard +to an unprosperous, an obscure, and a fallen family, than to your own +safety and reputation." This sentence ends with a _dichoree_, but the +preceeding one in a _double spondee_. For in those sentences which are to +be used like daggers for close-fighting, their very shortness makes our +numbers less exceptionable. They frequently consist of a single number;-- +generally of _two_, with the addition perhaps of half a foot to each: and +very seldom of more than three. To speak in _commas_ or _colons_ has a +very good effect in real causes; and especially in those parts of an +Oration where it is your business either to prove or refute: as in my +second defence of Cornelius, where I exclaimed, "O callidos homines! O rem +excogitatam! O ingenia metuenda!" "What admirable schemers! what a curious +contrivance! what formidable talents!" Thus far I spoke in _colons_; and +afterwards by _commas_; and then returned to the colon, in "_Testes dare +volumus_," "We are willing to produce our witnesses." This was succeeded +by the following _period_, consisting of two _colons_, which is the +shortest that can be formed,--"_Quem, quaeso, nostrum sesellit ita vos +esse facturos?_" "Which of us, think you, had not the sense to foresee +that you would proceed in this manner?" + +There is no method of expressing ourselves which, if properly timed, is +more agreeable or forcible, than these rapid turns, which are completed in +two or three words, and sometimes in a single one; especially, when they +are properly diversified, and intermingled here and there with a +_numerous_ period; which _Egesias_ avoids with such a ridiculous nicety, +that while he affects to imitate _Lysias_ (who was almost a second +_Demosthenes_) he seems to be continually cutting capers, and clipping +sentence after sentence. He is as frivolous in his sentiments as in his +language: so that no person who is acquainted with his writings, need to +seek any farther for a coxcomb. But I have selected several examples from +Crassus, and a few of my own, that any person, who is so inclined, may +have an opportunity of judging with his own ears, what is really +_numerous_, as well in the shortest as in any other kind of sentences. + +Having, therefore, treated of a _numerous_ style more copiously than any +author before me, I shall now proceed to say something of it's _utility_. +For to speak handsomely, and like an Orator (as no one, my Brutus, knows +better than yourself) is nothing more than to express the choicest +sentiments in the finest language. The noblest thoughts will be of little +service to an orator, unless he is able to communicate them in a correct +and agreeable style: nor will the splendor of our expressions appear to a +proper advantage, unless they are carefully and judiciously ranged. Permit +me to add, that the beauty of both will be considerably heightened by the +harmony of our numbers:--such numbers (for I cannot repeat it too often) +as are not only not cemented together, like those of the poets, but which +avoid all appearance of metre, and have as little resemblance to it as +possible; though it is certainly true that the numbers themselves are the +same, not only of the Poets and Orators, but of all in general who +exercise the faculty of speech, and, indeed, of every instrument which +produces a sound whose time can be measured by the ear. It is owing +entirely to the different arrangement of our feet that a sentence assumes +either the easy air of prose, or the uniformity of verse. Call it, +therefore, by what name you please (_Composition, Perfection_, or +_Number_) it is a necessary restraint upon our language; not only (as +_Aristotle_ and _Theophrastus_ have observed) to prevent our sentences +(which should be limited neither by the breath of the speaker, nor the +pointing of a transcriber, but by the sole restraint of _number_) from +running on without intermission like a babbling current of water; but +chiefly, because our language, when properly measured, has a much greater +effect than when it is loose and unconfined. For as Wrestlers and +Gladiators, whether they parry or make an assault, have a certain grace in +their motions, so that every effort which contributes to the defence or +the victory of the combatants, presents an agreeable attitude to the eye: +so the powers of language can neither give nor evade an important blow, +unless they are gracefully exerted. That style, therefore, which is not +regulated by _numbers_, is to me as unbecoming as the motions of a +Gladiator who has not been properly trained and exercised: and so far is +our language from being _enervated_ by a skilful arrangement of our words +(as is pretended by those who, for want either of proper instructors, +capacity, or diligence, have not been able to attain it) that, on the +contrary, without this, it is impossible it should have any force or +efficacy. + +But it requires a long and attentive course of practice to avoid the +blemishes of those who were unacquainted with this numerous species of +composition, so as not to transpose our words too openly to assist the +cadence and harmony of our periods; which _L. Caelius Antipater_, in the +Introduction to his Punic War, declares he would never attempt, unless +when compelled by necessity. "_O virum simplicem_," (says he, speaking of +himself) "_qui nos nihil celat; sapientem, qui serviendum necessitati +putet_." "O simple man, who has not the skill his art to conceal; and yet +to the rigid laws of necessity he has the wisdom to submit." But he was +totally unskilled in composition. By us, however, both in writing and +speaking, necessity is never admitted as a valid plea; for, in fact, there +is no such thing as an absolute constraint upon the order and arrangement +of our words; and, if there was, it is certainly unnecessary to own it. +But _Antipater_, though he requests the indulgence of Laelius, to whom he +dedicates his work, and attempts to excuse himself, frequently transposes +his words without contributing in the least either to the harmony, or +agreeable cadence of his periods. + +There are others, and particularly the _Asiatics_, who are such slaves to +_number_, as to insert words which have no use nor meaning to fill up the +vacuities in a sentence. There are likewise some who, in imitation of +_Hegesias_ (a notorious trifler as well in this as in every other respect) +curtail and mince their numbers, and are thus betrayed into the low and +paltry style of the Sicilians. Another fault in composition is that which +occurs in the speeches of _Hierocles_ and _Menecles_, two brothers, who +may be considered as the princes of Asiatic Eloquence, and, in my opinion, +are by no means contemptible: for though they deviate from the style of +nature, and the strict laws of Atticism, yet they abundantly compensate +the defect by the richness and fertility of their language. But they have +no variety of cadence, and their sentences are almost always terminated in +the same manner. He therefore, who carefully avoids these blemishes, and +who neither transposes his words too openly,--nor inserts any thing +superfluous or unmeaning to fill up the chasms of a period,--nor curtails +and clips his language, so as to interrupt and enervate the force of it,-- +nor confines himself to a dull uniformity of cadence,--_he_ may justly be +said to avoid the principal and most striking defects of prosaic harmony. +As to its positive graces, these we have already specified; and from +thence the particular blemishes which are opposite to each, will readily +occur to the attentive reader. + +Of what consequence it is to regulate the structure of our language, may +be easily tried by selecting a well-wrought period from some Orator of +reputation, and changing the arrangement of the words; [Footnote: +Professor _Ward_ has commented upon an example of this kind from the +preface to the Vth volume of the Spectator:--"_You have acted in so much +consistency with yourself, and promoted the interests of your country in +so uniform a manner; that even those, who would misrepresent your generous +designs for the public good, cannot but approve the steadiness and +intredipity, with which you pursue them_." I think, says the Doctor, this +may be justly esteemed an handsome period. It begins with ease, rises +gradually till the voice is inflected, then sinks again, and ends with a +just cadency, And perhaps there is not a word in it, whole situation would +be altered to an advantage. Let us now but shift the place of one word in +the last member, and we shall spoil the beauty of the whole sentence. For +if, instead of saying, as it now stands, _cannot but approve the +steadiness and intrepidity, with which you pursue them_; we put it thus, +_cannot but approve the steadiness and intrepidity which you pursue them +with_; the cadency will be flat and languid, and the harmony of the period +entirely lost. Let us try it again by altering the place of the two last +members, which at present stand in this order, _that even those who would +misrepresent your generous designs for the public good, cannot but approve +the steadiness and intrepidity, with which you pursue them_. Now if the +former member be thrown last, they will run thus, _that even those cannot +but approve the steadiness and intrepidity, with which you pursue them, +who would misrepresent your generous designs for the public good_. Here +the sense is much obscured by the inversion of the relative _them_, which +ought to refer to something that went before, and not to the words +_generous designs_, which in this situation of the members are placed +after it. WARD'S Rhetoric. Vol. 1, p. 338, 339.] the beauty of it would +then be mangled and destroyed. Suppose, for instance, we take the +following passage from my Defence of _Cornelius,--"Neque me divitae +movent, quibus omnes Africanos et Laelios, multi venalitii mercatoresque +superarunt._" "Nor am I dazzled by the splendor of wealth, in which many +retailers, and private tradesmen have outvied all the _Africani_ and the +_Lelii_" Only invert the order a little, and say,--"_Multi superarunt +mercatores, venatitiique_," and the harmony of the period will be loft. +Try the experiment on the next sentence;--"_Neque vestes, aut celatum +aurum, & argentum, quo nostros veteres Marcellos, Maximosque multi eunuchi +e Syria Egyptoque vicerunt_:" Nor do. I pay the least regard to costly +habits, or magnificent services of plate, in which many eunuchs, imported +from Syria and Egypt, have far surpassed the illustrious _Marcelli_, and +the _Maximi_. Alter the disposition of the words into, "_vicerunt eunuchi +e Syria, Egyptoque,_" and the whole beauty of the sentence will be +destroyed. Take a third passage from the same paragraph;--"_Neque vero +ornamenta ista villarum, quibus Paulum & L. Mummium, qui rebus his urbem, +Italiamque omnem reserserunt, ab aliquo video perfacile Deliaco aut Syro +potuisse superari:"--"Nor the splendid ornaments of a rural villa, in +which I daily behold every paltry Delian and Syrian outvying the dignity +of Paulus and Lucius Mummius, who, by their victories, supplied the whole +city, and indeed every part of Italy, with a super- fluity of these +glittering trifles!" Only change the latter part of the sentence into,-- +"_potuisse superari ab aliquo Syro aut Deliaco,_" and you will see, though +the meaning and the words are still the same, that, by making this slight +alteration in the order, and breaking the form of the period, the whole +force and spirit of it will be lost. + +On the other hand, take one of the broken sentences of a writer unskilled +in composition, and make the smallest alteration in the arrangement of the +words,--and that which before was loose and disordered, will assume a +just and a regular form. Let us, for instance, take the following passage +from the speech of Gracchus to the Censors;--"_Abesse non potest, quin +ejusdem hominis fit, probos improbare, qui improbos probet_;" "There is no +possibility of doubting that the same person who is an enemy to virtue, +must be a friend to vice." How much better would the period have +terminated if he had said,--"_quin ejusdem hominis fit, qui improbos +probet, probos improbare_!"--"that the same person who is a friend to +vice, must be an enemy to virtue!" There is no one who would object to the +last:--nay, it is impossible that any one who was able to speak thus, +should have been willing to express himself otherwise. But those who have +pretended to speak in a different manner, had not skill enough to speak as +they ought; and for that reason, truly, we must applaud them for their +_Attic_ taste;--as if the great DEMOSTHENES could speak like an _Asiatic_ +[Footnote: Quasi vero Trallianus fuerit Demosthenes.] _Trallianus_ +signifies an inhabitant of _Tralles_, a city in the lesser Asia, between +_Caria_ and _Lydia_. The Asiatics, in the estimation of Cicero, were not +distinguished by the delicacy of their taste.,--that Demosthenes, whose +thunder would have lost half it's force, if it's flight had not been +accelerated by the rapidity of his numbers. + +But if any are better pleased with a broken and dissipated style, let them +follow their humour, provided they condescend to counterbalance it by the +weight, and dignity of their sentiments: in the same manner, as if a +person should dash to pieces the celebrated shield of _Phidias_, though he +would destroy the symmetry of the whole, the fragments would still retain +their separate beauty;--or, as in the history of Thucydides, though we +discover no harmony in the structure of his periods, there are yet many +beauties which excite our admiration. But these triflers, when they +present us with one of their rugged and broken sentences, in which there +is neither a thought, nor word, but what is low and puerile, appear to me +(if I may venture on a comparison which is not indeed very elevated, but +is strictly applicable to the case in hand) to have untied a besom, that +we may contemplate the scattered twigs. If, however, they wish to convince +us that they really despise the species of composition which I have now +recommended, let them favour us with a few lines in the taste of +Isocrates, or such as we find in the orations of _Aeschines_ and +_Demosthenes_. I will then believe they decline the use of it, not from a +consciousness of their inability to put it in practice, but from a real +conviction of it's futility; or, at least, I will engage to find a person, +who, on the same condition, will undertake either to speak or write, in +any language they may please to fix upon, in the very manner they propose. +For it is much easier to disorder a good period, than to harmonize a bad +one. + +But, to speak my whole meaning at once, to be scrupulously attentive to +the measure and harmony of our periods, without a proper regard to our +sentiments, is absolute madness:--and, on the other hand, to speak +sensibly and judiciously, without attending to the arrangement of our +words, and the regularity of our periods, is (at the best) to speak very +awkwardly; but it is such a kind of awkwardness that those who are guilty +of it, may not only escape the title of blockheads, but pass for men of +good-sense and understanding;--a character which those speakers who are +contented with it, are heartily welcome to enjoy! But an Orator who is +expected not only to merit the approbation, but to excite the wonder, the +acclamations, and the plaudits of those who hear him, must excel in every +part of Eloquence, and be so thoroughly accomplished, that it would be a +disgrace to him that any thing should be either seen or heard with greater +pleasure than himself. + + * * * * * + +Thus, my Brutus, I have given you my opinion of a complete Orator; which +you are at liberty either to adopt or reject, as your better judgment +shall incline you. If you see reason to think differently, I shall have no +objection to it; nor so far indulge my vanity as to presume that my +sentiments, which I have so freely communicated in the present Essay, are +more just and accurate than yours. For it is very possible not only that +you and I may have different notions, but that what appears true even to +myself at one time, may appear otherwise at another. Nor only in the +present case, which be determined by the taste of the multitude, and the +capricious pleasure of the ear (which are, perhaps, the most uncertain +judges we can fix upon)--but in the most important branches of science, +have I yet been able to discover a surer rule to direct my judgment, than +to embrace that which has the greatest appearance of probability: for +_Truth_ is covered with too thick a veil to be distinguished to a +certainty. I request, therefore, if what I have advanced should not have +the happiness to merit your approbation, that you will be so much my +friend as to conclude, either that the talk I have attempted is +impracticable, or that my unwillingness to disoblige you has betrayed me +into the rash presumption of undertaking a subject to which my abilities +are unequal. + + + + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK, CICERO'S BRUTUS OR HISTORY OF FAMOUS ORATORS; ALSO HIS ORATOR, OR ACCOMPLISHED SPEAKER. *** + +This file should be named 7cbho10.txt or 7cbho10.zip +Corrected EDITIONS of our eBooks get a new NUMBER, 7cbho11.txt +VERSIONS based on separate sources get new LETTER, 7cbho10a.txt + +Project Gutenberg eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the US +unless a copyright notice is included. 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Please do not remove it. Do not change or edit the +header without written permission. + +Please read the "legal small print," and other information about the +eBook and Project Gutenberg at the bottom of this file. Included is +important information about your specific rights and restrictions in +how the file may be used. You can also find out about how to make a +donation to Project Gutenberg, and how to get involved. + + +**Welcome To The World of Free Plain Vanilla Electronic Texts** + +**eBooks Readable By Both Humans and By Computers, Since 1971** + +*****These eBooks Were Prepared By Thousands of Volunteers!***** + + +Title: Cicero's Brutus or History of Famous Orators; also His Orator, or Accomplished Speaker. + +Author: Marcus Tullius Cicero + +Release Date: January, 2006 [EBook #9776] +[This file was first posted on October 15, 2003] + +Edition: 10 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK, CICERO'S BRUTUS OR HISTORY OF FAMOUS ORATORS; ALSO HIS ORATOR, OR ACCOMPLISHED SPEAKER. *** + + + + +E-text prepared by Anne Soulard, Ted Garvin, and the Project Gutenberg +Online Distributed Proofreading Team + + + + + + + +CICERO'S BRUTUS, + +OR + +HISTORY OF FAMOUS ORATORS: + +ALSO, + +HIS ORATOR, + +OR + +ACCOMPLISHED SPEAKER. + +Now first translated into English by E. Jones + + + + + + + +PREFACE. + + +As the following Rhetorical Pieces have never appeared before in the +English language, I thought a Translation of them would be no unacceptable +offering to the Public. The character of the Author (Marcus Tullius +Cicero) is so universally celebrated, that it would be needless, and +indeed impertinent, to say any thing to recommend them. + +The first of them was the fruit of his retirement, during the remains of +the _Civil War_ in Africa; and was composed in the form of a Dialogue. It +contains a few short, but very masterly sketches of all the Speakers +who had flourished either in Greece or Rome, with any reputation of +Eloquence, down to his own time; and as he generally touches the principal +incidents of their lives, it will be considered, by an attentive reader, +as a _concealed epitome of the Roman history_. The conference is supposed +to have been held with Atticus, and their common friend Brutus, in +Cicero's garden at Rome, under the statue of Plato, whom he always +admired, and usually imitated in his dialogues: and he seems in this to +have copied even his _double titles_, calling it _Brutus, or the History +of famous Orators_. It was intended as a _supplement_, or _fourth book_, +to three former ones, on the qualifications of an Orator. + +The second, which is intitled _The Orator_, was composed a very short time +afterwards (both of them in the 61st year of his age) and at the request +of Brutus. It contains a plan, or critical delineation, of what he himself +esteemed the most finished Eloquence, or style of Speaking. He calls it +_The Fifth Part, or Book_, designed to complete his _Brutus_, and _the +former three_ on the same subject. It was received with great approbation; +and in a letter to Lepta, who had complimented him upon it, he declares, +that whatever judgment he had in Speaking, he had thrown it all into that +work, and was content to risk his reputation on the merit of it. But it is +particularly recommended to our curiosity, by a more exact account of the +rhetorical _composition_, or _prosaic harmony_ of the ancients, than is to +be met with in any other part of his works. + +As to the present Translation, I must leave the merit of it to be decided +by the Public; and have only to observe, that though I have not, to my +knowledge, omitted a single sentence of the original, I was obliged, in +some places, to paraphrase my author, to render his meaning intelligible +to a modern reader. My chief aim was to be clear and perspicuous: if I +have succeeded in _that_, it is all I pretend to. I must leave it to abler +pens to copy the _Eloquence_ of Cicero. _Mine_ is unequal to the task. + + + + +BRUTUS, OR THE HISTORY OF ELOQUENCE. + + +When I had left Cilicia, and arrived at Rhodes, word was brought me of the +death of Hortensius. I was more affected with it than, I believe, was +generally expected. For, by the loss of my friend, I saw myself for ever +deprived of the pleasure of his acquaintance, and of our mutual +intercourse of good offices. I likewise reflected, with Concern, that the +dignity of our College must suffer greatly by the decease of such an +eminent augur. This reminded me, that _he_ was the person who first +introduced me to the College, where he attested my qualification upon +oath; and that it was _he_ also who installed me as a member; so that I +was bound by the constitution of the Order to respect and honour him as a +parent. My affliction was increased, that, in such a deplorable dearth of +wife and virtuous citizens, this excellent man, my faithful associate in +the service of the Public, expired at the very time when the Commonwealth +could least spare him, and when we had the greatest reason to regret the +want of his prudence and authority. I can add, very sincerely, that in +_him_ I lamented the loss, not (as most people imagined) of a dangerous +rival and competitor, but of a generous partner and companion in the +pursuit of same. For if we have instances in history, though in studies of +less public consequence, that some of the poets have been greatly +afflicted at the death of their contemporary bards; with what tender +concern should I honour the memory of a man, with whom it is more glorious +to have disputed the prize of eloquence, than never to have met with an +antagonist! especially, as he was always so far from obstructing _my_ +endeavours, or I _his_, that, on the contrary, we mutually assisted each +other, with our credit and advice. + +But as _he_, who had a perpetual run of felicity, left the world at a +happy moment for himself, though a most unfortunate one for his fellow- +citizens; and died when it would have been much easier for him to lament +the miseries of his country, than to assist it, after living in it as long +as he _could_ have lived with honour and reputation;--we may, indeed, +deplore his death as a heavy loss to _us_ who survive him. If, however, we +consider it merely as a personal event, we ought rather to congratulate +his fate, than to pity it; that, as often as we revive the memory of this +illustrious and truly happy man, we may appear at least to have as much +affection for him as for ourselves. For if we only lament that we are no +longer permitted to enjoy him, it must, indeed, be acknowledged that this +is a heavy misfortune to _us_; which it, however, becomes us to support +with moderation, less our sorrow should be suspected to arise from motives +of interest, and not from friendship. But if we afflict ourselves, on the +supposition that _he_ was the sufferer;--we misconstrue an event, which to +_him_ was certainly a very happy one. + +If Hortensius was now living, he would probably regret many other +advantages in common with his worthy fellow-citizens. But when he beheld +the Forum, the great theatre in which he used to exercise his genius, no +longer accessible to that accomplished eloquence, which could charm the +ears of a Roman, or a Grecian audience; he must have felt a pang of which +none, or at least but few, besides himself, could be susceptible. Even _I_ +am unable to restrain my tears, when I behold my country no longer +defensible by the genius, the prudence, and the authority of a legal +magistrate,--the only weapons which I have learned to weild, and to which +I have long been accustomed, and which are most suitable to the character +of an illustrious citizen, and of a virtuous and well-regulated state. + +But if there ever was a time, when the authority and eloquence of an +honest individual could have wrested their arms from the hands of his +distracted fellow-citizens; it was then when the proposal of a compromise +of our mutual differences was rejected, by the hasty imprudence of some, +and the timorous mistrust of others. Thus it happened, among other +misfortunes of a more deplorable nature, that when my declining age, after +a life spent in the service of the Public, should have reposed in the +peaceful harbour, not of an indolent, and a total inactivity, but of a +moderate and becoming retirement; and when my eloquence was properly +mellowed, and had acquired its full maturity;--thus it happened, I say, +that recourse was then had to those fatal arms, which the persons who had +learned the use of them in honourable conquest, could no longer employ to +any salutary purpose. Those, therefore, appear to me to have enjoyed a +fortunate and a happy life, (of whatever State they were members, but +especially in _our's_) who held their authority and reputation, either for +their military or political services, without interruption: and the sole +remembrance of them, in our present melancholy situation, was a pleasing +relief to me, when we lately happened to mention them in the course of +conversation. + +For, not long ago, when I was walking for my amusement, in a private +avenue at home, I was agreeably interrupted by my friend Brutus, and T. +Pomponius, who came, as indeed they frequently did, to visit me;--two +worthy citizens who were united to each other in the closest friendship, +and were so dear and so agreeable to me, that, on the first sight of them, +all my anxiety for the Commonwealth subsided. After the usual +salutations,--"Well, gentlemen," said I, "how go the times? What news have +you brought?" "None," replied Brutus, "that you would wish to hear, or +that I can venture to tell you for truth."--"No," said Atticus; "we are +come with an intention that all matters of state should be dropped; and +rather to hear something from you, than to say any thing which might serve +to distress you." "Indeed," said I, "your company is a present remedy for +my sorrow; and your letters, when absent, were so encouraging, that they +first revived my attention to my studies."--"I remember," replied +Atticus, "that Brutus sent you a letter from Asia, which I read with +infinite pleasure: for he advised you in it like a man of sense, and gave +you every consolation which the warmest friendship could suggest."-- +"True," said I, "for it was the receipt of that letter which recovered me +from a growing indisposition, to behold once more the cheerful face of +day; and as the Roman State, after the dreadful defeat near Cannae, first +raised its drooping head by the victory of Marcellus at Nola, which was +succeeded by many other victories; so, after the dismal wreck of our +affairs, both public and private, nothing occurred to me before the letter +of my friend Brutus, which I thought to be worth my attention, or which +contributed, in any degree, to the anxiety of my heart."--"That was +certainly my intention," answered Brutus; "and if I had the happiness to +succeed, I was sufficiently rewarded for my trouble. But I could wish to +be informed, what you received from Atticus which gave you such uncommon +pleasure."--"That," said I, "which not only entertained me; but, I hope, +has restored me entirely to myself."--"Indeed!" replied he; "and what +miraculous composition could that be?"--"Nothing," answered I; "could have +been a more acceptable, or a more seasonable present, than that excellent +Treatise of his which roused me from a state of languor and despondency." +--"You mean," said he, "his short, and, I think, very accurate abridgment +of Universal History."--"The very same," said I; "for that little Treatise +has absolutely saved me."--"I am heartily glad of it," said Atticus; "but +what could you discover in it which was either new to you, or so +wonderfully beneficial as you pretend?"--"It certainly furnished many +hints," said I, "which were entirely new to me: and the exact order of +time which you observed through the whole, gave me the opportunity I had +long wished for, of beholding the history of all nations in one regular +and comprehensive view. The attentive perusal of it proved an excellent +remedy for my sorrows, and led me to think of attempting something on your +own plan, partly to amuse myself, and partly to return your favour, by a +grateful, though not an equal acknowledgment. We are commanded, it is +true, in that precept of Hesiod, so much admired by the learned, to return +with the same measure we have received; or, if possible, with a larger. As +to a friendly inclination, I shall certainly return you a full proportion +of it; but as to a recompence in kind, I confess it to be out of my power, +and therefore hope you will excuse me: for I have no first-fruits (like a +prosperous husbandman) to acknowledge the obligation I have received; my +whole harvest having sickened and died, for want of the usual manure: and +as little am I able to present you with any thing from those hidden stores +which are now consigned to perpetual darkness, and to which I am denied +all access; though, formerly, I was almost the only person who was able to +command them at pleasure. I must therefore, try my skill in a long- +neglected and uncultivated soil; which I will endeavour to improve with so +much care, that I may be able to repay your liberality with interest; +provided my genius should be so happy as to resemble a fertile field, +which, after being suffered to lie fallow a considerable time, produces a +heavier crop than usual."--"Very well," replied Atticus, "I shall expect +the fulfilment of your promise; but I shall not insist upon it till it +suits your convenience; though, after all, I shall certainly be better +pleased if you discharge the obligation."--"And I also," said Brutus, +"shall expect that you perform your promise to my friend Atticus: nay, +though I am only his voluntary solicitor, I shall, perhaps, be very +pressing for the discharge of a debt, which the creditor himself is +willing to submit to your own choice."--"But I shall refuse to pay you," +said I, "unless the original creditor takes no farther part in the suit." +--"This is more than I can promise," replied he, "for I can easily +foresee, that this easy man, who disclaims all severity, will urge his +demand upon you, not indeed to distress you, but yet very closely and +seriously."--"To speak ingenuously," said Atticus, "my friend Brutus, I +believe, is not much mistaken: for as I now find you in good spirits, for +the first time, after a tedious interval of despondency, I shall soon make +bold to apply to you; and as this gentleman has promised his assistance, +to recover what you owe me, the least I can do is to solicit, in my turn, +for what is due to him." + +"Explain your meaning," said I.--"I mean," replied he, "that you must +write something to amuse us; for your pen has been totally silent this +long time; and since your Treatise on Politics, we have had nothing from +you of any kind; though it was the perusal of that which fired me with the +ambition to write an Abridgment of Universal History. But we shall, +however, leave you to answer this demand, when, and in what manner you +shall think most convenient. At present, if you are not otherwise engaged, +you must give us your sentiments on a subject on which we both desire to +be better informed."--"And what is that?" said I.--"What you gave me a +hasty sketch of," replied he, "when I saw you last at Tusculanum,--the +History of Famous Orators;--_when_ they made their appearance, and _who_ +and _what_ they were; which, furnished such an agreeable train of +conversation, that when I related the substance of it to _your_, or I +ought rather to have said our _common_ friend, Brutus, he expressed a +violent desire to hear the whole of it from your own mouth. Knowing you, +therefore, to be at leisure, we have taken the present opportunity to wait +upon you; so that, if it is really convenient, you will oblige us both by +resuming the subject."--"Well, gentlemen," said I, "as you are so +pressing, I will endeavour to satisfy you in the best manner I am able."-- +"You are _able_ enough," replied he; "only unbend yourself a little, or, +if you can set your mind at full liberty."--"If I remember right," said I, +"Atticus, what gave rise to the conversation, was my observing, that the +cause of Deiotarus, a most excellent Sovereign, and a faithful ally, was +pleaded by our friend Brutus, in my hearing, with the greatest elegance +and dignity."--"True," replied he, "and you took occasion from the ill +success of Brutus, to lament the loss of a fair administration of justice +in the Forum."--"I did so," answered I, "as indeed I frequently do: and +whenever I see you, my Brutus, I am concerned to think where your +wonderful genius, your finished erudition, and unparalleled industry will +find a theatre to display themselves. For after you had thoroughly +improved your abilities, by pleading a variety of important causes; and +when my declining vigour was just giving way, and lowering the ensigns of +dignity to your more active talents; the liberty of the State received a +fatal overthrow, and that Eloquence, of which we are now to give the +History, was condemned to perpetual silence."--"Our other misfortunes," +replied Brutus, "I lament sincerely; and I think I ought to lament them:-- +but as to Eloquence, I am not so fond of the influence and the glory it +bestows, as of the study and the practice of it, which nothing can deprive +me of, while you are so well disposed to assist me: for no man can be an +eloquent speaker, who has not a clear and ready conception. Whoever, +therefore, applies himself to the study of Eloquence, is at the same time +improving his judgment, which is a talent equally necessary in all +military operations." + +"Your remark," said I, "is very just; and I have a higher opinion of the +merit of eloquence, because, though there is scarcely any person so +diffident as not to persuade himself, that he either has, or may acquire +every other accomplishment which, formerly, could have given him +consequence in the State; I can find no person who has been made an orator +by the success of his military prowess.--But that we may carry on the +conversation with greater ease, let us seat ourselves."--As my visitors +had no objection to this, we accordingly took our seats in a private lawn, +near a statue of Plato. + +Then resuming the conversation,--"to recommend the study of eloquence," +said I, "and describe its force, and the great dignity it confers upon +those who have acquired it, is neither our present design, nor has any +necessary connection with it. But I will not hesitate to affirm, that +whether it is acquired by art or practice, or the mere powers of nature, +it is the most difficult of all attainments; for each of the five branches +of which it is said to consist, is of itself a very important art; from +whence it may easily be conjectured, how great and arduous must be the +profession which unites and comprehends them all. + +"Greece alone is a sufficient witness of this:--for though she was fired +with a wonderful love of Eloquence, and has long since excelled every +other nation in the practice of it, yet she had all the rest of the arts +much earlier; and had not only invented, but even compleated them, a +considerable time before she was mistress of the full powers of elocution. +But when I direct my eyes to Greece, your beloved Athens, my Atticus, +first strikes my sight, and is the brightest object in my view: for in +that illustrious city the _orator_ first made his appearance, and it is +there we shall find the earliest records of eloquence, and the first +specimens of a discourse conducted by rules of art. But even in Athens +there is not a single production now extant which discovers any taste for +ornament, or seems to have been the effort of a real orator, before the +time of Pericles (whose name is prefixed to some orations which still +remain) and his cotemporary Thucydides; who flourished,--not in the +infancy of the State, but when it was arrived at its full maturity of +power. + +"It is, however, supposed, that Pisistratus (who lived many years before) +together with Solon, who was something older, and Clisthenes, who survived +them both, were very able speakers for the age they lived in. But some +years after these, as may be collected from the Attic Annals, came the +above-mentioned Themistocles, who is said to have been as much +distinguished by his eloquence as by his political abilities;--and after +him the celebrated Pericles, who, though adorned with every kind of +excellence, was most admired for his talent of speaking. Cleon also (their +cotemporary) though a turbulent citizen, was allowed to be a tolerable +orator. + +"These were immediately succeeded by Alcibiades, Critias, and Theramenes, +whose manner of speaking may be easily inferred from the writings of +Thucydides, who lived at the same time: their discourses were nervous and +stately, full of sententious remarks, and so excessively concise as to be +sometimes obscure. But as soon as the force of a regular and a well- +adjusted speech was understood, a sudden crowd of rhetoricians appeared,-- +such as Gorgias the Leontine, Thrasymachus the Chalcedonian, Protagoras +the Abderite, and Hippias the Elean, who were all held in great esteem,-- +with many others of the same age, who professed (it must be owned, rather +too arrogantly) to teach their scholars,--_how the worse might be made, by +the force of eloquence, to appear the better cause_. But these were openly +opposed by the famous Socrates, who, by an adroit method of arguing which +was peculiar to himself, took every opportunity to refute the principles +of their art. His instructive conferences produced a number of intelligent +men, and _Philosophy_ is said to have derived her birth from him;--not the +doctrine of _Physics_, which was of an earlier date, but that Philosophy +which treats of men, and manners, and of the nature of good and evil. But +as this is foreign to our present subject, we must defer the Philosophers +to another opportunity, and return to the Orators, from whom I have +ventured to make a sort digression. + +"When the professors therefore, abovementioned were in the decline of +life, Isocrates made his appearance, whos house stood open to all Greece +as the _School of Eloquence_. He was an accomplished orator, and an +excellent teacher; though he did not display his talents in the Forum, but +cherished and improved that glory within the walls of his academy, which, +in my opinion, no poet has ever yet acquired. He composed many valuable +specimens of his art, and taught the principles of it to others; and not +only excelled his predecessors in every part of it, but first discovered +that a certain _metre_ should be observed in prose, though totally +different from the measured rhyme of the poets. Before _him_, the +artificial structure and harmony of language was unknown;--or if there are +any traces of it to be discovered, they appear to have been made without +design; which, perhaps, will be thought a beauty:--but whatever it may be +deemed, it was, in the present case, the effect rather of native genius, +or of accident, than of art and observation. For mere nature itself will +measure and limit our sentences by a convenient compass of words; and when +they are thus confined to a moderate flow of expression, they will +frequently have a _numerous_ cadence:--for the ear alone can decide what +is full and complete, and what is deficient; and the course of our +language will necessarily be regulated by our breath, in which it is +excessively disagreeable, not only to fail, but even to labour. + +"After Isocrates came Lysias, who, though not personally engaged in +forensic causes, was a very artful and an elegant composer, and such a one +as you might almost venture to pronounce a complete orator: for +Demosthenes is the man who approaches the character so nearly, that you +may apply it to him without hesitation. No keen, no artful turns could +have been contrived for the pleadings he has left behind him, which he did +not readily discover;--nothing could have been expressed with greater +nicety, or more clearly and poignantly, than it has been already expressed +by him;--and nothing greater, nothing more rapid and forcible, nothing +adorned with a nobler elevation either of language, or sentiment, can be +conceived than what is to be found in his orations. He was soon rivalled +by his cotemporaries Hyperides, Aeschines, Lycurgus, Dinarchus, and +Demades (none of whose writings are extant) with many others that might be +mentioned: for this age was adorned with a profusion of good orators; and +the genuine strength and vigour of Eloquence appears to me to have +subsisted to the end of this period, which was distinguished by a natural +beauty of composition without disguise or affectation. + +"When these orators were in the decline of life, they were succeeded by +Phalereus; who was then in the prime of youth. He was indeed a man of +greater learning than any of them, but was fitter to appear on the parade, +than in the field; and, accordingly, he rather pleased and entertained the +Athenians, than inflamed their passions; and marched forth into the dust +and heat of the Forum, not from a weather-beaten tent, but from the shady +recesses of Theophrastus, a man of consummate erudition. He was the first +who relaxed the force of Eloquence, and gave her a soft and tender air: +and he rather chose to be agreeable, as indeed he was, than great and +striking; but agreeable in such a manner as rather charmed, than warmed +the mind of the hearer. His greatest ambition was to impress his audience +with a high opinion of his elegance, and not, as Eupolis relates of +Pericles, to _sting_ as well as to _please_. + +"You see, then, in the very city in which Eloquence was born and nurtured, +how late it was before she grew to maturity; for before the time of Solon +and Pisistratus, we meet with no one who is so much as mentioned for his +talent of speaking. These, indeed, if we compute by the Roman date, may be +reckoned very ancient; but if by that of the Athenians, we shall find them +to be moderns. For though they flourished in the reign of Servius Tullius, +Athens had then subsisted much longer than Rome has at present. I have +not, however, the least doubt that the power of Eloquence has been always +more or less conspicuous. For Homer, we may suppose, would not have +ascribed such superior talents of elocution to Ulysses, and Nestor (one of +whom he celebrates for his force, and the other for his sweetness) unless +the art of Speaking had then been held in some esteem; nor could the Poet +himself have been master of such an ornamental style, and so excellent a +vein of Oratory as we actually find in him.--The time indeed in which he +lived is undetermined: but we are certain that he flourished many years +before Romulus: for he was at least of as early a date as the elder +Lycurgus, the legislator of the Spartans. + +"But a particular attention to the art, and a greater ability in the +practice of it, may be observed in Pisistratus. He was succeeded in the +following century by Themistocles, who, according to the Roman date, was a +person of the remotest antiquity; but, according to that of the Athenians, +he was almost a modern. For he lived when Greece was in the height of her +power, but when the city of Rome had but lately freed herself from the +shackles of regal tyranny;--for the dangerous war with the Volsci, who +were headed by Coriolanus (then a voluntary exile) happened nearly at the +same time as the Persian war; and we may add, that the fate of both +commanders was remarkably similar. Each of them, after distinguishing +himself as an excellent citizen, being driven from his country by the +wrongs of an ungrateful people, went over to the enemy: and each of them +repressed the efforts of his resentment by a voluntary death. For though +you, my Atticus, have represented the exit of Coriolanus in a different +manner, you must give me leave to dispatch him in the way I have +mentioned."--"You may use your pleasure," replied Atticus with a smile: +"for it is the privilege of rhetoricians to exceed the truth of history, +that they may have an opportunity of embellishing the fate of their +heroes: and accordingly, Clitarchus and Stratocles have entertained us +with the same pretty fiction about the death of Themistocles, which you +have invented for Coriolanus. Thucydides, indeed, who was himself an +Athenian of the highest rank and merit, and lived nearly at the same time, +has only informed us that he died, and was privately buried in Attica, +adding, that it was suspected by some that he had poisoned himself. But +these ingenious writers have assured us, that, having slain a bull at the +altar, he caught the blood in a large bowl, and, drinking it off, fell +suddenly dead upon the ground. For this species of death had a tragical +air, and might be described with all the pomp of rhetoric; whereas the +ordinary way of dying afforded no opportunity for ornament. As it will, +therefore, suit your purpose, that Coriolanus should resemble Themistocles +in every thing, I give you leave to introduce the fatal bowl; and you may +still farther heighten the catastrophe by a solemn sacrifice, that +Coriolanus may appear in all respects to have been a second Themistocles." + +"I am much obliged to you," said I, "for your courtesy: but, for the +future, I shall be more cautious in meddling with History when you are +present; whom I may justly commend as a most exact and scrupulous relator +of the Roman History; but nearly at the time we are speaking of (though +somewhat later) lived the above-mentioned Pericles, the illustrious son of +Xantippus, who first improved his eloquence by the friendly aids of +literature;--not that kind of literature which treats professedly of the +art of Speaking, of which there was then no regular system; but after he +had studied under Anaxagoras the Naturalist, he easily transferred his +capacity from abstruse and intricate speculations to forensic and popular +debates. + +"All Athens was charmed with the sweetness of his language; and not only +admired him for his fluency, but was awed by the superior force and the +_terrors_ of his eloquence. This age, therefore, which may be considered +as the infancy of the Art, furnished Athens with an Orator who almost +reached the summit of his profession: for an emulation to shine in the +Forum is not usually found among a people who are either employed in +settling the form of their government, or engaged in war, or struggling +with difficulties, or subjected to the arbitrary power of Kings. Eloquence +is the attendant of peace, the companion of ease and prosperity, and the +tender offspring of a free and a well established constitution. Aristotle, +therefore, informs us, that when the Tyrants were expelled from Sicily, +and private property (after a long interval of servitude) was determined +by public trials, the Sicilians Corax and Tisias (for this people, in +general, were very quick and acute, and had a natural turn for +controversy) first attempted to write precepts on the art of Speaking. +Before them, he says, there was no one who spoke by method, and rules of +art, though there were many who discoursed very sensibly, and generally +from written notes: but Protagoras took the pains to compose a number of +dissertations, on such leading and general topics as are now called common +places. Gorgias, he adds, did the same, and wrote panegyrics and +invectives on every subject: for he thought it was the province of an +Orator to be able either to exaggerate, or extenuate, as occasion might +require. Antiphon the Rhamnusian composed several essays of the same +species; and (according to Thucydides, a very respectable writer, who was +present to hear him) pleaded a capital cause in his own defence, with as +much eloquence as had ever yet been displayed by any man. But Lysias was +the first who openly professed the _Art_; and, after him, Theodorus, being +better versed in the theory than the practice of it, begun to compose +orations for others to pronounce; but reserved the method of doing it to +himself. In the same manner, Isocrates at first disclaimed the Art, but +wrote speeches for other people to deliver; on which account, being often +prosecuted for assisting, contrary to law, to circumvent one or another of +the parties in judgment, he left off composing orations for other people, +and wholly applied himself to writing rules and systems. + +"Thus then we have traced the birth and origin of the Orators of Greece, +who were, indeed, very ancient, as I have before observed, if we compute +by the Roman Annals; but of a much later date, if we reckon by their own: +for the Athenian State had signalized itself by a variety of great +exploits, both at home and abroad, a considerable time before she was +ravished with the charms of Eloquence. But this noble Art was not common +to Greece in general, but almost peculiar to Athens. For who has ever +heard of an Argive, a Corinthian, or a Theban Orator at the times we are +speaking of? unless, perhaps, some merit of the kind may be allowed to +Epaminondas, who was a man of uncommon erudition. But I have never read of +a Lacedemonian Orator, from the earliest period of time to the present. +For Menelaus himself, though said by Homer to have possessed a sweet +elocution, is likewise described as a man of few words. Brevity, indeed, +upon some occasions, is a real excellence; but it is very far from being +compatible with the general character of Eloquence. + +"The Art of Speaking was likewise studied, and admired, beyond the limits +of Greece; and the extraordinary honours which were paid to Oratory have +perpetuated the names of many foreigners who had the happiness to excel in +it. For no sooner had Eloquence ventured to sail from the Pireaeus, but +she traversed all the isles, and visited every part of Asia; till at last +she infected herself with their manners, and lost all the purity and the +healthy complexion of the Attic style, and indeed had almost forgot her +native language. The Asiatic Orators, therefore, though not to be +undervalued for the rapidity and the copious variety of their elocution, +were certainly too loose and luxuriant. But the Rhodians were of a sounder +constitution, and more resembled the Athenians. So much, then, for the +Greeks; for, perhaps, what I have already said of them, is more than was +necessary." + +"As to the necessity of it," answered Brutus, "there is no occasion to +speak of it: but what you have said of them has entertained me so +agreeably, that instead of being longer, it has been much shorter than I +could have wished."--"A very handsome compliment," said I;--"but it is +time to begin with our own countrymen, of whom it is difficult to give any +further account than what we are able to conjecture from our Annals.--For +who can question the address, and the capacity of Brutus, the illustrious +founder of your family? That Brutus, who so readily discovered the meaning +of the Oracle, which promised the supremacy to him who should first salute +his mother? That Brutus, who concealed the most consummate abilities under +the appearance of a natural defect of understanding? Who dethroned and +banished a powerful monarch, the son of an illustrious sovereign? Who +settled the State, which he had rescued from arbitrary power, by the +appointment of an annual magistracy, a regular system of laws, and a free +and open course of justice? And who abrogated the authority of his +colleague, that he might rid the city of the smallest vestige of the +_regal_ name?--Events, which could never have been produced without +exerting the powers of Persuasion!--We are likewise informed that a few +years after the expulsion of the Kings, when the Plebeians retired to the +banks of the Anio, about three miles from the city, and had possessed +themselves of what is called The _sacred_ Mount, M. Valerius the dictator +appeased their fury by a public harangue; for which he was afterwards +rewarded with the highest posts of honour, and was the first Roman who was +distinguished by the surname of _Maximus_. Nor can L. Valerius Potitus be +supposed to have been destitute of the powers of utterance, who, after the +odium which had been excited against the Patricians by the tyrannical +government of the _Decemviri_, reconciled the people to the Senate, by his +prudent laws and conciliatory speeches. We may likewise suppose, that +Appius Claudius was a man of some eloquence; since he dissuaded the Senate +from consenting to a peace with King Pyrrhus, though they were much +inclined to it. The same might be said of Caius Fabricius, who was +dispatched to Pyrrhus to treat for the ransom of his captive fellow- +citizens; and of Titus Coruncanius, who appears by the memoirs of the +pontifical college, to have been a person of no contemptible genius: and +likewise of M. Curius (then a tribune of the people) who, when the +Interrex Appius _the Blind_, an artful Speaker, held the _Comitia_ +contrary to law, by refusing to admit any consuls of plebeian rank, +prevailed upon the Senate to protest against the conduct: of his +antagonist; which, if we consider that the Moenian law was not then in +being, was a very bold attempt. We may also conjecture, that M. Popilius +was a man of abilities, who, in the time of his consulship, when he was +solemnizing a public sacrifice in the proper habit of his office, (for he +was also a Flamen Carmentalis) hearing of the mutiny and insurrection of +the people against the Senate, rushed immediately into the midst of the +assembly, covered as he was with his sacerdotal robes, and quelled the +sedition by his authority and the force of his elocution. I do not pretend +to have read that the persons I have mentioned were then reckoned Orators, +or that any fort of reward or encouragement was given to Eloquence: I only +conjecture what appears very probable. It is also recorded, that C. +Flaminius, who, when tribune of the people proposed the law for dividing +the conquered territories of the Gauls and Piceni among the citizens, and +who, after his promotion to the consulship, was slain near the lake +Thrasimenus, became very popular by the mere force of his address, Quintus +Maximus Verrucosus was likewise reckoned a good Speaker by his +cotemporaries; as was also Quintus Metellus, who, in the second Punic war, +was joint consul with L. Veturius Philo. But the first person we have any +certain account of, who was publicly distinguished as an _Orator_, and who +really appears to have been such, was M. Cornelius Cethegus; whose +eloquence is attested by Q. Ennius, a voucher of the highest credibility; +since he actually heard him speak, and gave him this character after his +death; so that there is no reason to suspect that he was prompted by the +warmth of his friendship to exceed the bounds of truth. In his ninth book +of Annals, he has mentioned him in the following terms: + + "_Additur Orator Corneliu' suaviloquenti + Ore Cethegus Marcu', Tuditano collega, + Marci Filius._" + +"_Add the_ Orator _M. Cornelius Cethegus, so much admired for his +mellifluent tongue; who was the colleague of Tuditanus, and the son of +Marcus_." + +"He expressly calls him an _Orator_, you see, and attributes to him a +remarkable sweetness of elocution; which, even now a-days, is an +excellence of which few are possessed: for some of our modern Orators are +so insufferably harsh, that they may rather be said to bark than to speak. +But what the Poet so much admires in his friend, may certainly be +considered as one of the principal ornaments of Eloquence. He adds; + +" ----_is dictus, ollis popularibus olim, + Qui tum vivebant homines, atque aevum agitabant, + Flos delibatus populi_." + +"_He was called by his cotemporaries, the choicest Flower of the State_." + +"A very elegant compliment! for as the glory of a man is the strength of +his mental capacity, so the brightest ornament of that is Eloquence; in +which, whoever had the happiness to excel, was beautifully styled, by the +Ancients, the _Flower_ of the State; and, as the Poet immediately +subjoins, + + "'--_Suadaeque medulla:' + +"the very marrow and quintessence of Persuasion_." + +"That which the Greeks call [Greek: Peitho], _(i.e. Persuasion)_ and which +it is the chief business of an Orator to effect, is here called _Suada_ by +Ennius; and of this he commends Cethegus as the _quintessence_; so that he +makes the Roman Orator to be himself the very substance of that amiable +Goddess, who is said by Eupolis to have dwelt on the lips of Pericles. +This Cethegus was joint-consul with P. Tuditanus in the second Punic war; +at which time also M. Cato was Quaestor, about one hundred and forty years +before I myself was promoted to the consulship; which circumstance would +have been absolutely lost, if it had not been recorded by Ennius; and the +memory of that illustrious citizen, as has probably been the case of many +others, would have been obliterated by the rust of antiquity. The manner +of speaking which was then in vogue, may easily be collected from the +writings of _Naevius_: for Naevius died, as we learn from the memoirs of +the times, when the persons above-mentioned were consuls; though Varro, a +most accurate investigator of historical truth, thinks there is a mistake +in this, and fixes the death of Naevius something later. For Plautus died +in the consulship of P. Claudius and L. Porcius, twenty years after the +consulship of the persons we have been speaking of, and when Cato was +Censor. Cato, therefore, must have been younger than Cethegus, for he was +consul nine years after him: but we always consider him as a person of the +remotest antiquity, though he died in the consulship of Lucius Marcius and +M. Manilius, and but eighty-three years before my own promotion to the +same office. He is certainly, however, the most ancient Orator we have, +whose writings may claim our attention; unless any one is pleased with the +above-mentioned speech of Appius, on the peace with Pyrrhus, or with a set +of panegyrics on the dead, which, I own, are still extant. For it was +customary in most families of note to preserve their images, their +trophies of honour, and their memoirs, either to adorn a funeral when any +of the family deceased, or to perpetuate the fame of their ancestors, or +prove their own nobility. But the truth of History has been much corrupted +by these laudatory essays; for many circumstances were recorded in them +which never existed; such as false triumphs, a pretended succession of +consulships, and false alliances and elevations, when men of inferior rank +were confounded with a noble family of the same name: as if I myself +should pretend that I am descended from M. Tullius, who was a Patrician, +and shared the consulship with Servius Sulpicius, about ten years after +the expulsion of the kings. + +"But the real speeches of Cato are almost as numerous as those of Lysias +the Athenian; a great number of whose are still extant. For Lysias was +certainly an Athenian; because he not only died but received his birth at +Athens, and served all the offices of the city; though Timaesus, as if he +acted by the Licinian or the Mucian law, remands him back to Syracuse. +There is, however, a manifest resemblance between _his_ character and that +of _Cato_: for they are both of them distinguished by their acuteness, +their elegance, their agreeable humour, and their brevity. But the Greek +has the happiness to be most admired: for there are some who are so +extravagantly fond of him, as to prefer a graceful air to a vigorous +constitution, and who are perfectly satisfied with a slender and an easy +shape, if it is only attended with a moderate share of health. It must, +however, be acknowledged, that even Lysias often displays a strength of +arm, than which nothing can be more strenuous and forcible; though he is +certainly, in all respects, of a more thin and feeble habit than Cato, +notwithstanding he has so many admirers, who are charmed with his very +slenderness. But as to Cato, where will you find a modern Orator who +condescends to read him?--nay, I might have said, who has the least +knowledge of him?--And yet, good Gods! what a wonderful man! I say nothing +of his merit as a Citizen, a Senator, and a General; we must confine our +attention to the Orator. Who, then, has displayed more dignity as a +panegyrist?--more severity as an accuser?--more ingenuity in the turn of +his sentiments?--or more neatness and address in his narratives and +explanations? Though he composed above a hundred and fifty orations, +(which I have seen and read) they are crowded with all the beauties of +language and sentiment. Let us select from these what deserves our notice +and applause: they will supply us with all the graces of Oratory. Not to +omit his _Antiquities_, who will deny that these also are adorned with +every flower, and with all the lustre of Eloquence? and yet he has +scarcely any admirers; which some ages ago was the case of Philistus the +Syracusan, and even of Thucydides himself. For as the lofty and elevated +style of Theopompus soon diminished the reputation of their pithy and +laconic harangues, which were sometimes scarcely intelligible through +their excessive brevity and quaintness; and as Demosthenes eclipsed the +glory of Lysias, so the pompous and stately elocution of the moderns has +obscured the lustre of Cato. But many of us are shamefully ignorant and +inattentive; for we admire the Greeks for their antiquity, and what is +called their Attic neatness, and yet have never noticed the same quality +in Cato. It was the distinguishing character, say they, of Lysias and +Hyperides. I own it, and I admire them for it: but why not allow a share +of it to Cato? They are fond, they tell us, of the _Attic_ style of +Eloquence: and their choice is certainly judicious, provided they borrow +the blood and the healthy juices, as well as the bones and membranes. What +they recommend, however, is, to do it justice, an agreeable quality. But +why must Lysias and Hyperides be so fondly courted, while Cato is entirely +overlooked? His language indeed has an antiquated air, and some of his +expressions are rather too harsh and crabbed. But let us remember that +this was the language of the time: only change and modernize it, which it +was not in his power to do;--add the improvements of number and cadence, +give an easier turn to his sentences, and regulate the structure and +connection of his words, (which was as little practised even by the older +Greeks as by him) and you will discover no one who can claim the +preference to Cato. The Greeks themselves acknowledge that the chief +beauty of composition results from the frequent use of those +_translatitious_ forms of expression which they call _Tropes_, and of +those various attitudes of language and sentiment which they call +_Figures_: but it is almost incredible in what numbers, and with what +amazing variety, they are all employed by Cato. I know, indeed, that he is +not sufficiently polished, and that recourse must be had to a more perfect +model for imitation: for he is an author of such antiquity, that he is the +oldest now extant, whose writings can be read with patience; and the +ancients in general acquired a much greater reputation in every other art, +than in that of Speaking. But who that has seen the statues of the +moderns, will not perceive in a moment, that the figures of Canachus are +too stiff and formal, to resemble life? Those of Calamis, though evidently +harsh, are somewhat softer. Even the statues of Myron are not sufficiently +alive; and yet you would not hesitate to pronounce them beautiful. But +those of Polycletes are much finer, and, in my mind, completely finished. +The case is the same in Painting; for in the works of Zeuxis, Polygnotus, +Timanthes, and several other masters who confined themselves to the use of +four colours, we commend the air and the symmetry of their figures; but in +Aetion, Nicomachus, Protogenes, and Apelles, every thing is finished to +perfection. This, I believe, will hold equally true in all the other arts; +for there is not one of them which was invented and completed at the same +time. I cannot doubt, for instance, that there were many Poets before +Homer: we may infer it from those very songs which he himself informs us +were sung at the feasts of the Phaeacians, and of the profligate suitors +of Penelope. Nay, to go no farther, what is become of the ancient poems of +our own countrymen?" + + "Such as the Fauns and rustic Bards compos'd, + When none the rocks of poetry had cross'd, + Nor wish'd to form his style by rules of art, + Before this vent'rous man: &c. + +"Old Ennius here speaks of himself; nor does he carry his boast beyond the +bounds of truth: the case being really as he describes it. For we had only +an Odyssey in Latin, which resembled one of the rough and unfinished +statues of Daedalus; and some dramatic pieces of Livius, which will +scarcely bear a second reading. This Livius exhibited his first +performance at Rome in the Consulship of M. Tuditanus, and C. Clodius the +son of Caecus, the year before Ennius was born, and, according to the +account of my friend Atticus, (whom I choose to follow) the five hundred +and fourteenth from the building of the city. But historians are not +agreed about the date of the year. Attius informs us that Livius was taken +prisoner at Tarentum by Quintus Maximus in his fifth Consulship, about +thirty years after he is said by Atticus, and our ancient annals, to have +introduced the drama. He adds that he exhibited his first dramatic piece +about eleven years after, in the Consulship of C. Cornelius and Q. +Minucius, at the public games which Salinator had vowed to the Goddess of +Youth for his victory over the Senones. But in this, Attius was so far +mistaken, that Ennius, when the persons above-mentioned were Consuls, was +forty years old: so that if Livius was of the same age, as in this case he +would have been, the first dramatic author we had must have been younger +than Plautus and Naevius, who had exhibited a great number of plays before +the time he specifies. If these remarks, my Brutus, appear unsuitable to +the subject before us, you must throw the whole blame upon Atticus, who +has inspired me with a strange curiosity to enquire into the age of +illustrious men, and the respective times of their appearance."--"On the +contrary," said Brutus, "I am highly pleased that you have carried your +attention so far; and I think your remarks well adapted to the curious +task you have undertaken, the giving us a history of the different classes +of Orators in their proper order."--"You understand me right," said I; +"and I heartily wish those venerable Odes were still extant, which Cato +informs us in his Antiquities, used to be sung by every guest in his turn +at the homely feasts of our ancestors, many ages before, to commemorate +the feats of their heroes. But the _Punic war_ of that antiquated Poet, +whom Ennius so proudly ranks among the _Fauns and rustic Bards_, affords +me as exquisite a pleasure as the finest statue that was ever formed by +Myron. Ennius, I allow, was a more finished writer: but if he had really +undervalued the other, as he pretends to do, he would scarcely have +omitted such a bloody war as the first _Punic_, when he attempted +professedly to describe all the wars of the Republic. Nay he himself +assigns the reason. + + "Others" (said he) "that cruel war have sung:" + +Very true, and they have sung it with great order and precision, though +not, indeed, in such elegant strains as yourself. This you ought to have +acknowledged, as you must certainly be conscious that you have borrowed +many ornaments from Naevius; or if you refuse to own it, I shall tell you +plainly that you have _pilfered_ them. + +"Cotemporary with the Cato above-mentioned (though somewhat older) were C. +Flaminius, C. Varro, Q. Maximus, Q. Metellus, P. Lentulus, and P. Crassus +who was joint Consul with the elder Africanus. This Scipio, we are told, +was not destitute of the powers of Elocution: but his son, who adopted the +younger Scipio (the son of Paulus Aemilius) would have stood foremost in +the list of Orators, if he had possessed a firmer constitution. This is +evident from a few Speeches, and a Greek History of his, which are very +agreeably written. In the same class we may place Sextus Aelius, who was +the best lawyer of his time, and a ready speaker. A little after these, +was C. Sulpicius Gallus, who was better acquainted with the Grecian +literature than all the rest of the nobility, and was reckoned a graceful +Orator, being equally distinguished, in every other respect, by the +superior elegance of his taste; for a more copious and splendid way of +speaking began now to prevail. When this Sulpicius, in quality of Praetor, +was celebrating the public shews in honour of Apollo, died the Poet +Ennius, in the Consulship of Q. Marcius and Cn. Servilius, after +exhibiting his Tragedy of _Thyestes_. At the same time lived Tiberius +Gracchus, the son of Publius, who was twice Consul and Censor: a Greek +Oration of his to the Rhodians is still extant, and he bore the character +of a worthy citizen, and an eloquent Speaker. We are likewise told that P. +Scipio Nasica, surnamed The Darling of the People, and who also had the +honor to be twice chosen Consul and Censor, was esteemed an able Orator: +To him we may add L. Lentulus, who was joint Consul with C. Figulus;--Q. +Nobilior, the son of Marcus, who was inclined to the study of literature +by his father's example, and presented Ennius (who had served under his +father in Aetolia) with the freedom of the City, when he founded a colony +in quality of Triumvir: and his colleague, T. Annius Luscus, who is said +to have been tolerably eloquent. We are likewise informed that L. Paulus, +the father of Africanus, defended the character of an eminent citizen in a +public speech; and that Cato, who died in the 83d year of his age, was +then living, and actually pleaded, that very year, against the defendant +Servius Galba, in the open Forum, with great energy and spirit:--he has +left a copy of this Oration behind him. But when Cato was in the decline +of life, a crowd of Orators, all younger than himself, made their +appearance at the same time: For A. Albinus, who wrote a History in Greek, +and shared the Consulship with L. Lucullus, was greatly admired for his +learning and Elocution: and almost equal to him were Servius Fulvius, and +Servius Fabius Pictor, the latter of whom was well acquainted with the +laws of his country, the Belles Lettres, and the History of Antiquity. +Quintus Fabius Labeo was likewise adorned with the same accomplishments. +But Q. Metellus whose four sons attained the consular dignity, was admired +for his Eloquence beyond the rest;--he undertook the defence of L. Cotta, +when he was accused by Africanus,--and composed many other Speeches, +particularly that against Tiberius Gracchus, which we have a full account +of in the Annals of C. Fannius. L. Cotta himself was likewise reckoned a +_veteran_; but C. Laelius, and P. Africanus were allowed by all to be more +finished Speakers: their Orations are still extant, and may serve as +specimens of their respective abilities. But Servius Galba, who was +something older than any of them, was indisputably the best speaker of the +age. He was the first among the Romans who displayed the proper and +distinguishing talents of an Orator, such as, digressing from his subject +to embellish and diversify it,--soothing or alarming the passions, +exhibiting every circumstance in the strongest light,--imploring the +compassion of his audience, and artfully enlarging on those topics, or +general principles of Prudence or Morality, on which the stress of his +argument depended: and yet, I know not how, though he is allowed to have +been the greatest Orator of his time, the Orations he has left are more +lifeless, and have a more antiquated air, than those of Laelius, or +Scipio, or even of Cato himself: in short, the strength and substance of +them has so far evaporated, that we have scarcely any thing of them +remaining but the bare skeletons. In the same manner, though both Laelius +and Scipio are greatly extolled for their abilities; the preference was +given to Laelius as a speaker; and yet his Oration, in defence of the +privileges of the Sacerdotal College, has no greater merit than any one +you may please to fix upon of the numerous speeches of Scipio. Nothing, +indeed, can be sweeter and milder than that of Laelius, nor could any +thing have been urged with greater dignity to support the honour of +religion: but, of the two, Laelius appears to me to be rougher, and more +old-fashioned than Scipio; and, as different Speakers have different +tastes, he had in my mind too strong a relish for antiquity, and was too +fond of using obsolete expressions. But such is the jealousy of mankind, +that they will not allow the same person to be possessed of too many +perfections. For as in military prowess they thought it impossible that +any man could vie with Scipio, though Laelius had not a little +distinguished himself in the war with Viriathus; so for learning, +Eloquence, and wisdom, though each was allowed to be above the reach of +any other competitor, they adjudged the preference to Laelius. Nor was +this only the opinion of the world, but it seems to have been allowed by +mutual consent between themselves: for it was then a general custom, as +candid in this respect as it was fair and just in every other, to give his +due to each. I accordingly remember that P. Rutilius Rufus once told me at +Smyrna, that when he was a young man, the two Consuls P. Scipio and D. +Brutus, by order of the Senate, tried a capital cause of great +consequence. For several persons of note having been murdered in the Silan +Forest, and the domestics, and some of the sons, of a company of gentlemen +who farmed the taxes of the pitch-manufactory, being charged with the +fact, the Consuls were ordered to try the cause in person. Laelius, he +said, spoke very sensibly and elegantly, as indeed he always did, on the +side of the farmers of the customs. But the Consuls, after hearing both +sides, judging it necessary to refer the matter to a second trial, the +same Laelius, a few days after, pleaded their cause again with more +accuracy, and much better than at first. The affair, however, was once +more put off for a further hearing. Upon this, when his clients attended +Laelius to his own house, and, after thanking him for what he had already +done, earnestly begged him not to be disheartened by the fatigue he had +suffered;--he assured them he had exerted his utmost to defend their +reputation; but frankly added, that he thought their cause would be more +effectually supported by Servius Galba, whose manner of speaking was more +embellished and more spirited than his own. They, accordingly, by the +advice of Laelius, requested Galba to undertake it. To this he consented; +but with the greatest modesty and reluctance, out of respect to the +illustrious advocate he was going to succeed:--and as he had only the next +day to prepare himself, he spent the whole of it in considering and +digesting his cause. When the day of trial was come, Rutilius himself, at +the request of the defendants, went early in the morning to Galba, to give +him notice of it, and conduct him to the court in proper time. But till +word was brought that the Consuls were going to the bench, he confined +himself in his study, where he suffered no one to be admitted; and +continued very busy in dictating to his Amanuenses, several of whom (as +indeed he often used to do) he kept fully employed at once. While he was +thus engaged, being informed that it was high time for him to appear in +court, he left his house with so much life in his eyes, and such an ardent +glow upon his countenance, that you would have thought he had not only +_prepared_ his cause, but actually _carried_ it. Rutilius added, as +another circumstance worth noticing, that his scribes, who attended him to +the bar, appeared excessively fatigued: from whence he thought it probable +that he was equally warm and vigorous in the composition, as in the +delivery of his speeches. But to conclude the story, Galba pleaded his +cause before Laelius himself, and a very numerous and attentive audience, +with such uncommon force and dignity, that every part of his Oration +received the applause of his hearers: and so powerfully did he move the +feelings, and affect the pity of the judges, that his clients were +immediately acquitted of the charge, to the satisfaction of the whole +court. + +"As, therefore, the two principal qualities required in an Orator, are to +be neat and clear in stating the nature of his subject, and warm and +forcible in moving the passions; and as he who fires and inflames his +audience, will always effect more than he who can barely inform and amuse +them; we may conjecture from the above narrative, which I was favoured +with by Rutilius, that Laelius was most admired for his elegance, and +Galba for his pathetic force. But this force of his was most remarkably +exerted, when, having in his Praetorship put to death some Lusitanians, +contrary (it was believed) to his previous and express engagement;--T. +Libo the Tribune exasperated the people against him, and preferred a bill +which was to operate against his conduct as a subsequent law. M. Cato (as +I have before mentioned) though extremely old, spoke in support of the +bill with great vehemence; which Speech he inserted in his Book of +_Antiquities_, a few days, or at most only a month or two, before his +death. On this occasion, Galba refusing to plead to the charge, and +submitting his fate to the generosity of the people, recommended his +children to their protection, with tears in his eyes; and particularly his +young ward the son of C. Gallus Sulpicius his deceased friend, whose +orphan state and piercing cries, which were the more regarded for the sake +of his illustrious father, excited their pity in a wonderful manner;--and +thus (as Cato informs us in his History) he escaped the flames which would +otherwise have consumed him, by employing the children to move the +compassion of the people. I likewise find (what may be easily judged from +his Orations still extant) that his prosecutor Libo was a man of some +Eloquence." + +As I concluded these remarks with a short pause;--"What can be the +reason," said Brutus, "if there was so much merit in the Oratory of Galba, +that there is no trace of it to be seen in his Orations;--a circumstance +which I have no opportunity to be surprized at in others, who have left +nothing behind them in writing."--"The reasons," said I, "why some have +not wrote any thing, and others not so well as they spoke, are very +different. Some of our Orators have writ nothing through mere indolence, +and because they were loath to add a private fatigue to a public one: for +most of the Orations we are now possessed of were written not before they +were spoken, but some time afterwards. Others did not choose the trouble +of improving themselves; to which nothing more contributes than frequent +writing; and as to perpetuating the fame of their Eloquence, they thought +it unnecessary; supposing that their eminence in that respect was +sufficiently established already, and that it would be rather diminished +than increased by submitting any written specimen of it to the arbitrary +test of criticism. Some also were sensible that they spoke much better +than they were able to write; which is generally the case of those who +have a great genius, but little learning, such as Servius Galba. When he +spoke, he was perhaps so much animated by the force of his abilities, and +the natural warmth and impetuosity of his temper, that his language was +rapid, bold, and striking; but afterwards, when he took up the pen in his +leisure hours, and his passion had sunk into a calm, his Elocution became +dull and languid. This indeed can never happen to those whose only aim is +to be neat and polished; because an Orator may always be master of that +discretion which will enable him both to speak and write in the same +agreeable manner: but no man can revive at pleasure the ardour of his +passions; and when that has once subsided, the fire and pathos of his +language will be extinguished. This is the reason why the calm and easy +spirit of Laelius seems still to breathe in his writings, whereas the +force of Galba is entirely withered and lost. + +"We may also reckon in the number of middling Orators, the two brothers L. +and Sp. Mummius, both whose Orations are still in being:--the style of +Lucius is plain and antiquated; but that of Spurius, though equally +unembellished, is more close, and compact; for he was well versed in the +doctrine of the Stoics. The Orations of Sp. Alpinus, their cotemporary, +are very numerous: and we have several by L. and C. Aurelius Oresta, who +were esteemed indifferent Speakers. P. Popilius also was a worthy citizen, +and had a tolerable share of utterance: but his son Caius was really +eloquent. To _these_ we may add C. Tuditanus, who was not only very +polished, and genteel, in his manners and appearance, but had an elegant +turn of expression; and of the same class was M. Octavius, a man of +inflexible constancy in every just and laudable measure; and who, after +being affronted and disgraced in the most public manner, defeated his +rival Tiberius Gracchus by the mere dint of his perseverance. But M. +Aemilius Lepidus, who was surnamed Porcina, and flourished at the same +time as Galba, though he was indeed something younger, was esteemed an +Orator of the first eminence; and really appears, from his Orations which +are still extant, to have been a masterly writer. For he was the first +Speaker, among the Romans, who gave us a specimen of the easy gracefulness +of the Greeks; and who was distinguished by the measured flow of his +language, and a style regularly polished and improved by art. His manner +was carefully studied by C. Carbo and Tib. Gracchus, two accomplished +youths who were nearly of an age: but we must defer their character as +public Speakers, till we have finished our account of their elders. For Q. +Pompeius, according to the style of the time, was no contemptible Orator; +and actually raised himself to the highest honours of the State by his own +personal merit, and without being recommended, as usual, by the quality of +his ancestors. Lucius Cassius too derived his influence, which was very +considerable, not indeed from his _Eloquence_, but from his manly way of +speaking: for it is remarkable that he made himself popular, not, as +others did, by his complaisance and liberality, but by the gloomy rigour +and severity of his manners. His law for collecting the votes of the +people by way of ballot, was strongly opposed by the Tribune M. Antius +Briso, who was supported by M. Lepidus one of the Consuls: and it was +afterwards objected to Africanus, that Briso dropped the opposition by his +advice. At this time the two Scipios were very serviceable to a number of +clients by their superior judgment, and Eloquence; but still more so by +their extensive interest and popularity. But the written speeches of +Pompeius (though it must be owned they have rather an antiquated air) +discover an amazing sagacity, and are very far from being dry and +spiritless. To these we must add P. Crassus, an orator of uncommon merit, +who was qualified for the profession by the united efforts of art and +nature, and enjoyed some other advantages which were almost peculiar to +his family. For he had contracted an affinity with that accomplished +Speaker Servius Galba above-mentioned, by giving his daughter in marriage +to Galba's son; and being likewise himself the son of Mucius, and the +brother of P. Scaevola, he had a fine opportunity at home (which he made +the best use of) to gain a thorough knowledge of the Civil Law. He was a +man of unusual application, and was much beloved by his fellow-citizens; +being constantly employed either in giving his advice, or pleading causes +in the Forum. Cotemporary with the Speakers I have mentioned were the two +C. Fannii, the sons of C. and M. one of whom, (the son of C.) who was +joint Consul with Domitius, has left us an excellent speech against +Gracchus, who proposed the admission of the Latin and Italian allies to +the freedom of Rome."--"Do you really think, then," said Atticus, "that +Fannius was the author of that Oration? For when we were young, there were +different opinions about it. Some asserted it was wrote by C. Persius, a +man of letters, and the same who is so much extolled for his learning by +Lucilius: and others believed it was the joint production of a number of +noblemen, each of whom contributed his best to complete it."--"This I +remember," said I; "but I could never persuade myself to coincide with +either of them. Their suspicion, I believe, was entirely founded on the +character of Fannius, who was only reckoned among the _middling_ Orators; +whereas the speech in question is esteemed the best which the time +afforded. But, on the other hand, it is too much of a piece to have been +the mingled composition of many: for the flow of the periods, and the turn +of the language, are perfectly similar, throughout the whole of it.--and +as to _Persius_, if _he_ had composed it for Fannius to pronounce, +Gracchus would certainly have taken some notice of it in his reply; +because Fannius rallies Gracchus pretty severely, in one part of it, for +employing Menelaus of Marathon, and several others, to manufacture his +speeches. We may add that Fannius himself was no contemptible Orator: for +he pleaded a number of causes, and his Tribuneship, which was chiefly +conducted under the management and direction of P. Africanus, was very far +from being an idle one. But the other C. Fannius, (the son of M.) and son- +in-law of C. Laelius, was of a rougher cast, both in his temper, and +manner of speaking. By the advice of his father-in-law, (of whom, by the +bye, he was not remarkably fond, because he had not voted for his +admission into the college of augurs, but gave the preference to his +younger son-in-law Q. Scaevola; though Laelius genteely excused himself, +by saying that the preference was not given to the youngest son, but to +his wife the eldest daughter,) by his advice, I say, he attended the +lectures of Panaetius. His abilities as a Speaker may be easily +conjectured from his History, which is neither destitute of elegance, nor +a perfect model of composition. As to his brother Mucius the augur, +whenever he was called upon to defend himself, he always pleaded his own +cause; as, for instance, in the action which was brought against him for +bribery by T. Albucius. But he was never ranked among the Orators; his +chief merit being a critical knowledge of the Civil Law, and an uncommon +accuracy of judgment. L. Caelius Antipater likewise (as you may see by his +works) was an elegant and a handsome writer for the time he lived in; he +was also an excellent Lawyer, and taught the principles of jurisprudence +to many others, particularly to L. Crassus. As to Caius Carbo and T. +Gracchus, I wish they had been as well inclined to maintain peace and good +order in the State, as they were qualified to support it by their +Eloquence: their glory would then have been out-rivaled by no one. But the +latter, for his turbulent Tribuneship, which he entered upon with a heart +full of resentment against the great and good, on account of the odium he +had brought upon himself by the treaty of Numantia, was slain by the hands +of the Republic: and the other, being impeached of a seditious affectation +of popularity, rescued himself from the severity of the judges by a +voluntary death. That both of them were excellent Speakers, is very plain +from the general testimony of their cotemporaries: for as to their +Speeches now extant, though I allow them to be very artful and judicious, +they are certainly defective in Elocution. Gracchus had the advantage of +being carefully instructed by his mother Cornelia from his very childhood, +and his mind was enriched with all the stores of Grecian literature: for +he was constantly attended by the ablest masters from Greece, and +particularly, in his youth, by Diophanes of Mitylene, who was the most +eloquent Grecian of his age: but though he was a man of uncommon genius, +he had but a short time to improve and display it. As to Carbo, his whole +life was spent in trials, and forensic debates. He is said by very +sensible men who heard him, and, among others, by our friend L. Gellius +who lived in his family in the time of his Consulship, to have been a +sonorous, a fluent, and a spirited Speaker, and likewise, upon occasion, +very pathetic, very engaging, and excessively humorous: Gellius used to +add, that he applied himself very closely to his studies, and bestowed +much of his time in writing and private declamation. He was, therefore, +esteemed the best pleader of his time; for no sooner had he began to +distinguish himself in the Forum, but the depravity of the age gave birth +to a number of law-suits; and it was first found necessary, in the time of +his youth, to settle the form of public trials, which had never been done +before. We accordingly find that L. Piso, then a Tribune of the people, +was the first who proposed a law against bribery; which he did when +Censorinus and Manilius were Consuls. This Piso too was a professed +pleader, and the proposer and opposer of a great number of laws: he left +some Orations behind him, which are now lost, and a Book of Annals very +indifferently written. But in the public trials, in which Carbo was +concerned, the assistance of an able advocate had become more necessary +than ever, in consequence of the law for voting by ballots, which was +proposed and carried by L. Cassius, in the Consulship of Lepidus and +Mancinus. + +"I have likewise been often assured by the poet Attius, (an intimate +friend of his) that your ancestor D. Brutus, the son of M. was no +inelegant Speaker; and that for the time he lived in, he was well versed +both in the Greek and Roman literature. He ascribed the same +accomplishments to Q. Maximus, the grandson of L. Paulus: and added that, +a little prior to Maximus, the Scipio, by whose instigation (though only +in a private capacity) T. Gracchus was assassinated, was not only a man of +great ardour in all other respects, but very warm and spirited in his +manner of speaking. P. Lentulus too, the Father of the Senate, had a +sufficient share of eloquence for an honest and useful magistrate. About +the same time L. Furius Philus was thought to speak our language as +elegantly, and more correctly than any other man; P. Scaevola to be very +artful and judicious, and rather more fluent than Philus; M. Manilius to +possess almost an equal share of judgment with the latter; and Appius +Claudius to be equally fluent, but more warm and pathetic. M. Fulvius +Flaccus, and C. Cato the nephew of Africanus, were likewise tolerable +Orators: some of the writings of Flaccus are still in being, in which +nothing, however, is to be seen but the mere scholar. P. Decius was a +professed rival of Flaccus; he too was not destitute of Eloquence; but his +style, as well as his temper, was too violent. M. Drusus the son of C. +who, in his Tribuneship, baffled [Footnote: _Laffiea_. In the original it +runs, "_Caium Gracchum collegam, iterum Tribinum fecit_." but this was +undoubtedly a mistake of the transcriber, as being contrary not only to +the truth of History, but to Cicero's own account of the matter in lib. +IV. _Di Finibus_. Pighius therefore has very properly recommended the word +_fregit_ instead of _fecit_.] his colleague Gracchus (then raised to the +same office a second time) was a nervous Speaker, and a man of great +popularity: and next to him was his brother C. Drusus. Your kinsman also, +my Brutus, (M. Pennus) successfully opposed the Tribune Gracchus, who was +something younger than himself. For Gracchus was Quaestor, and Pennus (the +son of that M. who was joint Consul with Q. Aelius) was Tribune, in the +Consulship of M. Lepidus and L. Orestes: but after enjoying the +Aedileship, and a prospect: of succeeding to the highest honours, he was +snatched off by an untimely death. As to T. Flaminius, whom I myself have +seen, I can learn nothing but that he spoke our language with great +accuracy. To these we may join C. Curio, M. Scaurus, P. Rutilius, and C. +Gracchus. It will not be amiss to give a short account of Scaurus and +Rutilius; neither of whom, indeed, had the reputation of being a first- +rate Orator, though each of them pleaded a number of causes. But some +deserving men, who were not remarkable for their genius, may be justly +commended for their industry; not that the persons I am speaking of were +really destitute of genius, but only of that particular kind of it which +distinguishes the Orator. For it is of little consequence to discover what +is proper to be said, unless you are able to express it in a free and +agreeable manner: and even that will be insufficient, if not recommended +by the voice, the look, and the gesture. It is needless to add that much +depends upon _Art_: for though, even without this, it is possible, by the +mere force of nature, to say many striking things; yet, as they will after +all be nothing more than so many lucky hits, we shall not be able to +repeat them at our pleasure. The style of Scaurus, who was a very sensible +and honest man, was remarkably serious, and commanded the respect of the +hearer: so that when he was speaking for his client, you would rather have +thought he was giving evidence in his favour, than pleading his cause. +This manner of speaking, however, though but indifferently adapted to the +bar, was very much so to a calm, debate in the Senate, of which Scaurus +was then esteemed the Father: for it not only bespoke his prudence, but +what was still a more important recommendation, his credibility. This +advantage, which it is not easy to acquire by art, he derived entirely +from nature: though you know that even _here_ we have some precepts to +assist us. We have several of his Orations still extant, and three books +inscribed to L. Fufidius containing the History of his own Life, which, +though a very useful work, is scarcely read by any body. But the +_Institution of Cyrus_, by Xenophon, is read by every one; which, though +an excellent performance of the kind, is much less adapted to our manners +and form of government, and not superior in merit to the honest simplicity +of Scaurus. Fufidius himself was likewise a tolerable pleader. But +Rutilius was distinguished by his solemn and austere way of speaking; and +both of them were naturally warm, and spirited. Accordingly, after they +had rivalled each other for the Consulship, he who had lost his election, +immediately sued his competitor for bribery; and Scaurus, the defendant, +being honourably acquitted of the charge, returned the compliment to +Rutilius, by commencing a similar prosecution against _him_. Rutilius was +a man of great industry and application; for which he was the more +respected, because, besides his pleadings, he undertook the office (which +was a very troublesome one) of giving advice to all who applied to him, in +matters of law. His Orations are very dry, but his juridical remarks are +excellent: for he was a learned man, and well versed in the Greek +literature, and was likewise an attentive and constant hearer of +Panaetius, and a thorough proficient in the doctrine of the Stoics; whose +method of discoursing, though very close and artful, is too precise, and +not at all adapted to engage the attention of common people. That self- +confidence, therefore, which is so peculiar to the sect, was displayed by +_him_ with amazing firmness and resolution; for though he was perfectly +innocent of the charge, a prosecution was commenced against him for +bribery (a trial which raised a violent commotion in the city)--and yet +though L. Crassus and M. Antonius, both of Consular dignity, were, at that +time, in very high repute for their Eloquence, he refused the assistance +of either; being determined to plead his cause himself, which he +accordingly did. C. Cotta, indeed, who was his nephew, made a short speech +in his vindication, which he spoke in the true style of an Orator, though +he was then but a youth. Q. Mucius too said much in his defence, with his +usual accuracy and elegance; but not with that force, and extension, which +the mode of trial, and the importance of the cause demanded. Rutilius, +therefore, was an Orator of the _Stoical_, and Scaurus of the _Antique_ +cast: but they are both entitled to our commendation; because, in _them_, +even this formal and unpromising species of Elocution has appeared among +us with some degree of merit. For as in the Theatre, so in the Forum, I +would not have our applause confined to those alone who act the busy, and +more important characters; but reserve a share of it for the quiet and +unambitious performer who is distinguished by a simple truth of gesture, +without any violence. As I have mentioned the Stoics, I must take some +notice of Q. Aelius Tubero, the grandson of L. Paullus, who made his +appearance at the time we are speaking of. He was never esteemed an +Orator, but was a man of the most rigid virtue, and strictly conformable +to the doctrine he professed: but, in truth, he was rather too crabbed. In +his Triumvirate, he declared, contrary to the opinion of P. Africanus his +uncle, that the Augurs had no right of exemption from sitting in the +courts of justice: and as in his temper, so in his manner of speaking, he +was harsh, unpolished, and austere; on which account, he could never raise +himself to the honourable ports which were enjoyed by his ancestors. But +he was a brave and steady citizen, and a warm opposer of Gracchus, as +appears from an Oration of Gracchus against him: we have likewise some of +Tubero's speeches against Gracchus. He was not indeed a shining Orator: +but he was a learned, and a very skilfull disputant. + +"I find," said Brutus, "that the case is much the same among us, as with +the Greeks; and that the Stoics, in general, are very judicious at an +argument, which they conduct by certain rules of art, and are likewise +very neat and exact in their language; but if we take them from this, to +speak in Public, they make a poor appearance. Cato, however, must be +excepted; in whom, though as rigid a Stoic as ever existed, I could not +wish for a more consummate degree of Eloquence: I can likewise discover a +moderate share of it in Fannius,--not so much in Rutilius;--but none at +all in Tubero."--"True," said I; "and we may easily account for it: Their +whole attention was so closely confined to the study of Logic, that they +never troubled themselves to acquire the free, diffusive, and variegated +style which is so necessary for a public Speaker. But your uncle, you +doubtless know, was wise enough to borrow only that from the Stoics, which +they were able to furnish for his purpose (the art of reasoning:) but for +the art of Speaking, he had recourse to the masters of Rhetoric, and +exercised himself in the manner they directed. If, however, we must be +indebted for everything to the Philosophers, the Peripatetic discipline +is, in my mind, much the properest to form our language. For which reason, +my Brutus, I the more approve your choice, in attaching yourself to a +sect, (I mean the Philosophers of the Old Academy,) in whose system, a +just and accurate way of reasoning is enlivened by a perpetual sweetness +and fluency of expression: but even the delicate and flowing style of the +Peripatetics, and Academics, is not sufficient to complete an Orator; nor +yet can he be complete without it. For as the language of the Stoics is +too close, and contracted, to suit the ears of common people; so that of +the latter is too diffusive and luxuriant for a spirited contest in the +Forum, or a pleading at the bar. Who had a richer style than Plato? The +Philosophers tell us, that if Jupiter himself was to converse in Greek, he +would speak like _him_. Who also was more nervous than Aristotle? Who +sweeter than Theophrastus? We are told that even Demosthenes attended the +lectures of Plato, and was fond of reading what he published; which, +indeed, is sufficiently evident from the turn, and the majesty of his +language and he himself has expressly mentioned it in one of his Letters. +But the style of this excellent Orator is, notwithstanding, much too +fierce for the Academy; as that of the Philosophers is too mild and placid +for the Forum. I shall now, with your leave, proceed to the age and merits +of the rest of the Roman Orators."--"Nothing," said Atticus, "(for I can +safely answer for my friend Brutus) would please us better."--"Curio, +then," said I, "was nearly of the age I have just mentioned,--a celebrated +Speaker, whose genius may be easily decided from his Orations. For, among +several others, we have a noble Speech of his for Ser. Fulvius, in a +prosecution for incest. When we were children, it was esteemed the best +then extant; but now it is almost overlooked among the numerous +performances of the same kind which have been lately published."--"I am +very sensible," replied Brutus, "to whom we are obliged for the numerous +performances you speak of."--"And I am equally sensible," said I, "who is +the person you intend: for I have at least done a service to my young +countrymen, by introducing a loftier, and more embellished way of +speaking, than was used before: and, perhaps, I have also done some harm, +because after _mine_ appeared, the Speeches of our ancestors and +predecessors began to be neglected by most people; though never by _me_, +for I can assure you, I always prefer them to my own."--"But you must +reckon me," said Brutus, "among the _most people_; though I now see, from +your recommendation, that I have a great many books to read, of which +before I had very little opinion."--"But this celebrated Oration," said I, +"in the prosecution for incest, is in some places excessively puerile; and +what is said in it of the passion of love, the inefficacy of questioning +by tortures, and the danger of trusting to common hear-say, is indeed +pretty enough, but would be insufferable to the tutored ears of the +moderns, and to a people who are justly distinguished for the solidity of +their knowledge. He likewise wrote several other pieces, spoke a number of +good Orations, and was certainly an eminent pleader; so that I much +wonder, considering how long he lived, and the character he bore, that he +was never preferred to the Consulship. But I have a man here, [Footnote: +He refers, perhaps, to the Works of Gracchus, which he might then have in +his hand; or, more probably, to a statue of him, which stood near the +place where he and his friends were sitting.] (C. Gracchus) who had an +amazing genius, and the warmest application; and was a Scholar from his +very childhood: For you must not imagine, my Brutus, that we have ever yet +had a Speaker, whose language was richer and more copious than his."--"I +really think so," answered Brutus; "and he is almost the only author we +have, among the ancients, that I take the trouble to read." "And he well +_deserves_ it," said I; "for the Roman name and literature were great +losers by his untimely fate. I wish he had transferred his affection for +his brother to his country! How easily, if he had thus prolonged his life, +would he have rivalled the glory of his father, and grandfather! In +Eloquence, I scarcely know whether we should yet have had his equal. His +language was noble; his sentiments manly and judicious; and his whole +manner great and striking. He wanted nothing but the finishing touch: for +though his first attempts were as excellent as they were numerous, he did +not live to complete them. In short, my Brutus, _he_, if any one, should +be carefully studied by the Roman youth: for he is able, not only to edge, +but to feed and ripen their talents. After _him_ appeared C. Galba, the +son of the eloquent Servius, and the son-in-law of P. Crassus, who was +both an eminent Speaker, and a skilful Civilian. He was much commended by +our fathers, who respected him for the sake of _his_: but he had the +misfortune to be stopped in his career. For being tried by the Mamilian +law, as a party concerned in the conspiracy to support Jugurtha, though he +exerted all his abilities to defend himself, he was unhappily cast. His +peroration, or, as it is often called, his epilogue, is still extant; and +was so much in repute, when we were school-boys, that we used to learn it +by heart: he was the first member of the Sacerdotal College, since the +building of Rome, who was publicly tried and condemned. As to P. Scipio, +who died in his Consulship, he neither spoke much, nor often: but he was +inferior to no one in the purity of his language, and superior to all in +wit and pleasantry. His colleague L. Bestia, who begun his Tribuneship +very successfully, (for, by a law which he preferred for the purpose, he +procured the recall of Popillius, who had been exiled by the influence of +Caius Gracchus) was a man of spirit, and a tolerable Speaker: but he did +not finish his Consulship so happily. For, in consequence of the invidious +law of Mamilius above-mentioned, C. Galba one of the Priests, and the four +Consular gentlemen L. Bestia, C. Cato, Sp. Albinus, and that excellent +citizen L. Opimius, who killed Gracchus; of which he was acquitted by the +people, though he had constantly sided against them,--were all condemned +by their judges, who were of the Gracchan party. Very unlike him in his +Tribuneship, and indeed in every other part of his life, was that infamous +citizen C. Licinius Nerva; but he was not destitute of Eloquence. Nearly +at the same time, (though, indeed, he was somewhat older) flourished C. +Fimbria, who was rather rough and abusive, and much too warm and hasty: +but his application, and his great integrity and firmness made him a +serviceable Speaker in the Senate. He was likewise a tolerable Pleader, +and Civilian, and distinguished by the same rigid freedom in the turn of +his language, as in that of his virtues. When we were boys, we used to +think his Orations worth reading; though they are now scarcely to be met +with. But C. Sextius Calvinus was equally elegant both in his taste, and +his language, though, unhappily, of a very infirm constitution:--when the +pain in his feet intermitted, he did not decline the trouble of pleading, +but he did not attempt it very often. His fellow-citizens, therefore, made +use of his advice, whenever they had occasion for it; but of his +patronage, only when his health permitted. Cotemporary with these, my good +friend, was your namesake M. Brutus, the disgrace of your noble family; +who, though he bore that honourable name, and had the best of men, and an +eminent Civilian, for his father, confined his practice to accusations, as +Lycurgus is said to have done at Athens. He never sued for any of our +magistracies; but was a severe, and a troublesome prosecutor: so that we +easily see that, in _him_, the natural goodness of the flock was corrupted +by the vicious inclinations of the man. At the same time lived L. +Caesulenus, a man of Plebeian rank, and a professed accuser, like the +former: I myself heard him in his old age, when he endeavoured, by the +Aquilian law, to subject L. Sabellius to a fine, for a breach of justice. +But I should not have taken any notice of such a low-born wretch, if I had +not thought that no person I ever heard, could give a more suspicious turn +to the cause of the defendant, or exaggerate it to a higher degree of +criminality. T. Albucius, who lived in the same age, was well versed in +the Grecian literature, or, rather, was almost a Greek himself. I speak of +him, as I think; but any person, who pleases, may judge what he was by his +Orations. In his youth, he studied at Athens, and returned from thence a +thorough proficient in the doctrine of Epicurus; which, of all others, is +the least adapted to form an orator. His cotemporary, Q. Catulus, was an +accomplished Speaker, not in the ancient taste, but (unless any thing more +perfect can be exhibited) in the finished style of the moderns. He had a +plentiful stock of learning; an easy, winning elegance, not only in his +manners and disposition, but in his very language; and an unblemished +purity and correctness of style. This may be easily seen by his Orations; +and particularly, by the History of his Consulship, and of his subsequent +transactions, which he composed in the soft and agreeable manner of +Xenophon, and made a present of to the poet, A. Furius, an intimate +acquaintance of his: but this performance is as little known, as the three +books of Scaurus before-mentioned."--"Indeed, I must confess," said +Brutus, "that both the one and the other, are perfectly unknown to me: but +that is entirely my _own_ fault. I shall now, therefore, request a sight +of them from _you_; and am resolved, in future, to be more careful in +collecting such valuable curiosities."--"This Catulus," said I, "as I have +just observed, was distinguished by the purity of his language; which, +though a material accomplishment, is too much neglected by most of the +Roman orators; for as to the elegant tone of his voice, and the sweetness +of his accent, as you knew his son, it will be needless to take any notice +of them. His son, indeed, was not in the list of Orators: but whenever he +had occasion to deliver his sentiments in public, he neither wanted +judgment, nor a neat and liberal turn of expression. Nay, even the father +himself was not reckoned the foremost in the list of Orators: but still he +had that kind of merit, that notwithstanding, after you had heard two or +three speakers, who were particularly eminent in their profession, you +might judge him inferior; yet, whenever you heard him _alone_, and without +an immediate opportunity of making a comparison, you would not only be +satisfied with him, but scarcely wish for a better advocate. As to Q. +Metellus Numidicus, and his Colleague M. Silanus, they spoke, on matters +of government, with as much eloquence as was really necessary for men of +their illustrious character, and of consular dignity. But M. Aurelius +Scaurus, though he spoke in public but seldom, always spoke very neatly, +and he had a more elegant command of the Roman language than most men. A. +Albinus was a speaker of the same kind; but Albinus, the Flamen, was +esteemed an _orator_. Q. Capio too had a great deal of spirit, and was a +brave citizen: but the unlucky chance of war was imputed to him as a +crime, and the general odium of the people proved his ruin. C. and L. +Memmius were likewise indifferent orators, and distinguished by the +bitterness and asperity of their accusations: for they prosecuted many, +but seldom spoke for the defendant. Sp. Torius, on the other hand, was +distinguished by his _popular_ way of speaking; the very same man, who, by +his corrupt and frivolous law, diminished [Footnote: By dividing great +part of them among the people.] the taxes which were levied on the public +lands. M. Marcellus, the father of Aeserninus, though not reckoned a +professed pleader, was a prompt, and, in some degree, a practised speaker; +as was also his son P. Lentulus. L. Cotta likewise, a man of Praetorian +rank, was esteemed a tolerable orator; but he never made any great +progress; on the contrary, he purposely endeavoured, both in the choice of +his words, and the rusticity of his pronunciation, to imitate the manner +of the ancients. I am indeed sensible that in this instance of Cotta, and +in many others, I have, and shall again insert in the list of Orators, +those who, in reality, had but little claim to the character. For it was, +professedly, my design, to collect an account of all the Romans, without +exception, who made it their business to excel in the profession of +_Eloquence_: and it may be easily seen from this account, by what slow +gradations they advanced, and how excessively difficult it is, in every +thing, to rise to the summit of perfection. As a proof of this, how many +orators have been already recounted, and how much time have we bestowed +upon them, before we could force our way, after infinite fatigue and +drudgery, as, among the Greek's, to _Demosthenes_ and _Hyperides_, so now, +among our own countrymen, to _Antonius_ and _Crassus_! For, in my mind, +these were consummate Orators, and the first among the Romans whose +diffusive Eloquence rivalled the glory of the Greeks. Antonius discovered +every thing which could be of service to his cause, and that in the very +order in which it would be most so: and as a skilful General posts the +cavalry, the infantry, and the light troops, where each of them can act to +most advantage; so Antonius drew up his arguments in those parts of his +discourse, where they were likely to have the best effect. He had a quick +and retentive memory, and a frankness of manner which precluded any +suspicion of artifice. All his speeches were, in appearance, the +unpremeditated effusions of an honest heart; and yet, in reality, they +were preconcerted with so much skill, that the judges were, sometimes, not +so well prepared, as they should have been, to withstand the force of +them. His language, indeed, was not so refined as to pass for the standard +of elegance; for which reason he was thought to be rather a careless +speaker; and yet, on the other hand, it was neither vulgar nor incorrect, +but of that solid and judicious turn, which constitutes the real merit of +an Orator, as to the choice of his words. For, as to a purity of style, +though this is certainly (as before observed) a very commendable quality, +it is not so much so for its intrinsic consequence, as because it is too +generally neglected. In short, it is not so meritorious to speak our +native tongue correctly, as it is scandalous to speak it otherwise; nor is +it so much the property of a good Orator, as of a well-bred Citizen. But +in the choice of his words (in which he had more regard to their weight +than their brilliance) and likewise in the structure of his language, and +the compass of his periods, Antonius conformed himself to the dictates of +reason, and, in a great measure, to the nicer rules of art: though his +chief excellence was a judicious management of the figures and decorations +of sentiment. This was likewise the distinguishing excellence of +Demosthenes; in which he was so far superior to all others, as to be +allowed, in the opinion of the best judges, to be the Prince of Orators. +For the _figures_ (as they are called by the Greeks) are the principal +ornaments of an able speaker, I mean those which contribute not so much to +paint and embellish our language, as to give a lustre to our sentiments. +But besides these, of which Antonius had a great command, he had a +peculiar excellence in his manner of delivery, both as to his voice and +gesture; for the latter was such as to correspond to the meaning of every +sentence, without beating time to the words. His hands, his shoulders, the +turn of his body, the stamp of his foot, his posture, his air, and, in +short, his every motion, was adapted to his language and sentiments: and +his voice was strong and firm, though naturally hoarse;--a defect which he +alone was capable of improving to his advantage; for in capital causes, it +had a mournful dignity of accent, which was exceedingly proper, both to +win the assent of the judges, and excite their compassion for a suffering +client: so that in _him_ the observation of Demosthenes was eminently +verified, who being asked what was the _first_ quality of a good Orator, +what the _second_, and what the _third_, constantly replied, A good +enunciation. + +"But many thought that he was equalled, and others that he was even +excelled by Lucius Crassus. All, however, were agreed in this, that +whoever had either of them for his advocate, had no cause to wish for a +better. For my own part, notwithstanding the uncommon merit I have +ascribed to Antonius, I must also acknowlege, that there cannot be a more +finished character than that of Crassus. He possessed a wonderful dignity +of elocution, with an agreeable mixture of wit and pleasantry, which was +perfectly genteel, and without the smallest tincture of scurrility. His +style was correct and elegant without stiffness or affectation: his method +of reasoning was remarkably clear and distinct: and when his cause turned +upon any point of law, or equity, he had an inexhaustible fund of +arguments, and comparative illustrations. For as Antonius had an admirable +turn for suggesting apposite hints, and either suppressing or exciting the +suspicions of the hearer; so no man could explain and define, or discuss a +point of equity, with a more copious facility than Crassus; as +sufficiently appeared upon many other occasions, but particularly in the +cause of M. Curius, which was tried before the Centum Viri. For he urged a +great variety of arguments in the defence of right and equity, against the +literal _jubeat_ of the law; and supported them by such a numerous series +of precedents, that he overpowered Q. Scaevola (a man of uncommon +penetration, and the ablest Civilian of his time) though the case before +them was only a matter of legal right. But the cause was so ably managed +by the two advocates, who were nearly of an age, and both of consular +rank, that while each endeavoured to interpret the law in favour of his +client, Crassus was universally allowed to be the best Lawyer among the +Orators, and Scaevola to be the most eloquent Civilian of the age: for the +latter could not only discover with the nicest precision what was +agreeable to law and equity; but had likewise a conciseness and propriety +of expression, which was admirably adapted to his purpose. In short, he +had such a wonderful vein of oratory in commenting, explaining, and +discussing, that I never beheld his equal; though in amplifying, +embellishing, and refuting, he was rather to be dreaded as a formidable +critic, than admired as an eloquent speaker."--"Indeed," said Brutus, +"though I always thought I sufficiently understood the character of +Scaevola, by the account I had heard of him from C. Rutilius, whose +company I frequented for the sake of his acquaintance with him, I had not +the least idea of his merit as an orator. I am now, therefore, not a +little pleased to be informed, that our Republic has had the honour of +producing so accomplished a man, and such an excellent genius."--"Really, +my Brutus," said I, "you may take it from me, that the Roman State had +never been adorned with two finer characters than these. For, as I have +before observed, that the one was the best Lawyer among the Orators, and +the other the best Speaker among the Civilians of his time; so the +difference between them, in all other respects, was of such a nature, that +it would almost be impossible for you to determine which of the two you +would rather choose to resemble. For, as Crassus was the closest of all +our elegant speakers, so Scaevola was the most elegant among those who +were distinguished by the frugal accuracy of their language: and as +Crassus tempered his affability with a proper share of severity, so the +rigid air of Scaevola was not destitute of the milder graces of an affable +condescension. Though this was really their character, it is very possible +that I may be thought to have embellished it beyond the bounds of truth, +to give an agreeable air to my narrative: but as your favourite sect, my +Brutus, the Old Academy, has defined all Virtue to be a just Mediocrity, +it was the constant endeavour of these two eminent men to pursue this +Golden Mean; and yet it so happened, that while each of them shared a part +of the other's excellence, he preserved his own entire."--"To speak what I +think," replied Brutus, "I have not only acquired a proper acquaintance +with their characters from your account of them, but I can likewise +discover, that the same comparison might be drawn between _you_ and Serv. +Sulpicius, which you have just been making between Crassus and Scaevola." +--"In what manner?" said I.--"Because _you_," replied Brutus, "have taken +the pains to acquire as extensive a knowledge of the law as is necessary +for an Orator; and Sulpicius, on the other hand, took care to furnish +himself with sufficient eloquence to support the character of an able +Civilian. Besides, your age corresponded as nearly to his, as the age of +Crassus did to that of Scaevola."--"As to my own abilities," said I, "the +rules of decency forbid me to speak of them: but your character of Servius +is a very just one, and I may freely tell you what I think of him. There +are few, I believe, who have applied themselves more assiduously to the +art of Speaking than he did, or indeed to the study of every useful +science. In our youth, we both of us followed the same liberal exercises; +and he afterwards accompanied me to Rhodes, to pursue those studies which +might equally improve him as a Man and a Scholar; but when he returned +from thence, he appears to me to have been rather ambitious to be the +foremost man in a secondary profession, than the second in that which +claims the highest dignity. I will not pretend to say that he could not +have ranked himself among the foremost in the latter profession; but he +rather chose to be, what he actually made himself, the first Lawyer of his +time."--"Indeed!" said Brutus: "and do you really prefer Servius to Q. +Scaevola?"--"My opinion," said I, "Brutus, is, that Q. Scaevola, and many +others, had a thorough practical knowledge of the law; but that Servius +alone understood it as _science_: which he could never have done by the +mere study of the law, and without a previous acquaintance with the art +which teaches us to divide a whole into its subordinate parts, to, decide +an indeterminate idea by an accurate definition: to explain what is +obscure, by a clear interpretation; and first to discover what things are +of a _doubtful_ nature, then to distinguish them by their different +degrees of probability; and lastly, to be provided with a certain rule or +measure by which we may judge what is true, and what false, and what +inferences fairly may, or may not be deduced from any given premises. This +important art he applied to those subjects which, for want of it, were +necessarily managed by others without due order and precision."--"You +mean, I suppose," said Brutus, "the Art of Logic."--"You suppose very +right," answered I: "but he added to it an extensive acquaintance with +polite literature, and an elegant manner of expressing himself; as is +sufficiently evident from the incomparable writings he has left behind +him. And as he attached himself, for the improvement of his eloquence, to +L. Lucilius Balbus, and C. Aquilius Gallus, two very able speakers; he +effectually thwarted the prompt celerity of the latter (though a keen, +experienced man) both in supporting and refuting a charge, by his accuracy +and precision, and overpowered the deliberate formality of Balbus (a man +of great learning and erudition) by his adroit and dextrous method of +arguing: so that he equally possessed the good qualities of both, without +their defects. As Crassus, therefore, in my mind, acted more prudently +than Scaevola; (for the latter was very fond of pleading causes, in which +he was certainly inferior to Crassus; whereas the former never engaged +himself in an unequal competition with Scaevola, by assuming the character +of a Civilian;) so Servius pursued a plan which sufficiently discovered +his wisdom; for as the profession of a Pleader, and a Lawyer, are both of +them held in great esteem, and give those who are masters of them the most +extensive influence among their fellow-citizens; he acquired an undisputed +superiority in the one, and improved himself as much in the other as was +necessary to support the authority of the Civil Law, and promote him to +the dignity of a Consul."--"This is precisely the opinion I had formed of +him," said Brutus. "For, a few years ago I heard him often and very +attentively at Samos, when I wanted to be instructed by him in the +Pontifical Law, as far as it is connected with the Civil; and I am now +greatly confirmed in my opinion of him, by finding that it coincides so +exactly with yours. I am likewise not a little pleased to observe, that +the equality of your ages, your sharing the same honours and preferments, +and the vicinity of your respective studies and professions, has been so +far from precipitating either of you into that envious detraction of the +other's merit, which most people are tormented with, that, instead of +wounding your mutual friendship, it has only served to increase and +strengthen it; for, to my own knowlege, he had the same affection for, and +the same favourable sentiments of _you_, which I now discover in you +towards _him_. I cannot, therefore, help regretting very sincerely, that +the Roman State has so long been deprived of the benefit of his advice, +and of your Eloquence;--a circumstance which is indeed calamitous enough +in itself; but must appear much more so to him who considers into what +hands that once respectable authority has been of late, I will not say +transferred, but forcibly wrested."--"You certainly forget," said Atticus, +"that I proposed, when we began the conversation, to drop all matters of +State; by all means, therefore, let us keep to our plan: for if we once +begin to repeat our grievances, there will be no end, I need not say to +our inquiries, but to our sighs and lamentations."--"Let us proceed, +then," said I, "without any farther digression, and pursue the plan we set +out upon. Crassus (for he is the Orator we were just speaking of) always +came into the Forum ready prepared for the combat. He was expected with +impatience, and heard with pleasure. When he first began his Oration +(which he always did in a very accurate style) he seemed worthy of the +great expectations he had raised. He was very moderate in the sway of his +body, had no remarkable variation of voice, never advanced from the ground +he stood upon, and seldom stamped his foot: his language was forcible, and +sometimes warm and pathetic; he had many strokes of humour, which were +always tempered with a becoming dignity; and, what is a difficult +character to hit, he was at once very florid, and very concise. In a close +contest, he never met with his equal; and there was scarcely any kind of +causes, in which he had not signalized his abilities; so that he enrolled +himself very early among the first Orators of the time. He accused C. +Carbo, though a man of great Eloquence, when he was but a youth;--and +displayed his talents in such a manner, that they were not only applauded, +but admired by every body. He afterwards defended the Virgin Licinia, when +he was only twenty-seven years of age; on which occasion he discovered an +uncommon share of Eloquence, as is evident from those parts of his Oration +which he left behind him in writing. As he was then desirous to have the +honour of settling the colony of Narbonne (as he afterwards did) he +thought it adviseable to recommend himself, by undertaking the management +of some popular cause. His Oration, in support of the act which was +proposed for that purpose, is still extant; and discovers a greater +maturity of genius than might have been expected at that time of life. He +afterwards pleaded many other causes: but his tribuneship was such a +remarkably silent one, that if he had not supped with Granius the beadle +when he enjoyed that office (a circumstance which has been twice mentioned +by Lucilius) we should scarcely have known that a tribune of that name had +existed."--"I believe so," replied Brutus: "but I have heard as little of +the tribuneship of Scaevola, though I must naturally suppose that he was +the colleague of Crassus."--"He was so," said I, "in all his other +preferments; but he was not tribune till the year after him; and when he +sat in the Rostrum in that capacity, Crassus spoke in support of the +Servilian law. I must observe, however, that Crassus had not Scaevola for +his colleague in the censorship; for none of the Scaevolas ever sued for +that office. But when the last-mentioned Oration of Crassus was published +(which I dare say you have frequently read) he was thirty-four years of +age, which was exactly the difference between his age and mine. For he +supported the law I have just been speaking of, in the very consulship +under which I was born; whereas he himself was born in the consulship of +Q. Caepio, and C. Laelius, about three years later than Antonius. I have +particularly noticed this circumstance, to specify the time when the Roman +Eloquence attained its first _maturity_; and was actually carried to such +a degree of perfection, as to leave no room for any one to carry it +higher, unless by the assistance of a more complete and extensive +knowledge of philosophy, jurisprudence, and history."--"But does there," +said Brutus, "or will there ever exist a man, who is furnished with all +the united accomplishments you require?"--"I really don't know," said I; +"but we have a speech made by Crassus in his consulship, in praise of Q. +Caepio, intermingled with a defence of his conduct, which, though a short +one if we consider it as an Oration, is not so as a Panegyric;--and +another, which was his last, and which he spoke in the 48th year of his +age, at the time he was censor. In these we have the genuine complexion of +Eloquence, without any painting or disguise: but his periods (I mean +Crassus's) were generally short and concise; and he was fond of expressing +himself in those minuter sentences, or members, which the Greeks call +Colons."--"As you have spoken so largely," said Brutus, "in praise of the +two last-mentioned Orators, I heartily wish that Antonius had left us some +other specimen of his abilities, than his trifling Essay on the Art of +Speaking, and Crassus more than he has: by so doing, they would have +transmitted their fame to _posterity_; and to us a valuable system of +Eloquence. For as to the elegant language of Scaevola, we have sufficient +proofs of it in the Orations he has left behind him."--"For my part," said +I, "the Oration I was speaking of, on Caepio's case, has been my pattern, +and my tutoress, from my very childhood. It supports the dignity of the +Senate, which was deeply interested in the debate; and excites the +jealousy of the audience against the party of the judges and accusers, +whose power it was necessary to expose in the most popular terms. Many +parts of it are very strong and nervous, many others very cool and +composed; and some are distinguished by the asperity of their language, +and not a few by their wit and pleasantry: but much more was said than was +committed to writing, as is sufficiently evident from several heads of the +Oration, which are merely proposed without any enlargement or explanation. +But the oration in his censorship against his colleague Cn. Domitius, is +not so much an Oration, as an analysis of the subject, or a general sketch +of what he had said, with here and there a few ornamental touches, by way +of specimen: for no contest was ever conducted with greater spirit than +this. Crassus, however, was eminently distinguished by the popular turn of +his language: but that of Antonius was better adapted to judicial trials, +than to a public debate. As we have had occasion to mention him, Domitius +himself must not be left unnoticed: for though he is not enrolled in the +list of Orators, he had a sufficient share both of utterance and genius, +to support his character as a magistrate and his dignity as a consul. I +might likewise observe of C. Caelius, that he was a man of great +application, and many eminent qualities, and had eloquence enough to +support the private interests of his friends, and his own dignity in the +State. At the same time lived M. Herennius, who was reckoned among the +middling Orators, whose principal merit was the purity and correctness of +their language; and yet, in a suit for the consulship, he got the better +of L. Philippus, a man of the first rank and family, and of the most +extensive connections, and who was likewise a member of the College, and a +very eloquent speaker. _Then_ also lived C. Clodius, who, besides his +consequence as a nobleman of the first distinction, and a man of the most +powerful influence, was likewise possessed of a moderate share of +Eloquence. Nearly of the same age was C. Titius, a Roman knight, who, in +my judgment, arrived at as high a degree of perfection as a Roman orator +was able to do, without the assistance of the Grecian literature, and a +good share of practice. His Orations have so many delicate turns, such a +number of well-chosen examples, and such an agreeable vein of politeness, +that they almost seem to have been composed in the true Attic style. He +likewise transferred his delicacies into his very Tragedies, with +ingenuity enough, I confess, but not in the tragic taste. But the poet L. +Afranius, whom he studiously imitated, was a very smart writer, and, as +you well know, a man of great expression in the dramatic way. Q. Rubrius +Varro, who with C. Marius, was declared an enemy by the Senate, was +likewise a warm, and a very spirited prosecutor. My relation, M. +Gratidius, was a plausible speaker of the same kind, well versed in the +Grecian literature, formed by nature for the profession of Eloquence, and +an intimate acquaintance of M. Antonius: he commanded under him in +Cilicia, where he lost his life: and he once commenced a prosecution +against C. Fimbria, the father of M. Marius Gratidianus. There have +likewise been several among the Allies, and the Latins, who were esteemed +good Orators; as, for instance, Q. Vettius of Vettium, one of the Marsi, +whom I myself was acquainted with, a man of sense, and a concise speaker; +--the Q. and D. Valerii of Sora, my neighbours and acquaintances, who were +not so remarkable for their talent of speaking, as for their skill both in +the Greek and Roman literature; and C. Rusticellus of Bononia, an +experienced Orator, and a man of great natural volubility. But the most +eloquent of all those who were not citizens of Rome, was T. Betucius +Barrus of Asculum, some of whose Orations, which were spoken in that city, +are still extant: that which he made at Rome against Caepio, is really an +excellent one: the speech which Caepio delivered in answer to it, was made +by Aelius, who composed a number of Orations, but pronounced none himself. +But among those of a remoter date, L. Papirius of Fregellae in Latium, who +was almost cotemporary with Ti. Gracchus, was universally esteemed the +most eloquent: we have a speech of his in vindication of the Fregellani, +and the Latin Colonies, which was delivered before the Senate."--"And what +then is the merit," said Brutus, "which you mean to ascribe to these +provincial Orators?"--"What else," replied I, "but the very same which I +have ascribed to the city-orators; excepting that their language is not +tinctured with the same fashionable delicacy?"--"What fashionable delicacy +do you mean?" said he.--"I cannot," said I, "pretend to define it: I only +know that there is such a quality existing. When you go to your province +in Gaul, you will be convinced of it. You will there find many expressions +which are not current in Rome; but these may be easily changed, and +corrected. But, what is of greater importance, our Orators have a +particular accent in their manner of pronouncing, which is more elegant, +and has a more agreeable effect than any other. This, however, is not +peculiar to the Orators, but is equally common to every well-bred citizen. +I myself remember that T. Tineas, of Placentia, who was a very facetious +man, once engaged in a repartee skirmish with my old friend Q. Granius, +the public crier."--"Do you mean that Granius," said Brutus, "of whom +Lucilius has related such a number of stories?"--"The very same," said I: +"but though Tineas said as many smart things as the other, Granius at last +overpowered him by a certain vernacular _goūt_, which gave an additional +relish to his humour: so that I am no longer surprised at what is said to +have happened to Theophrastus, when he enquired of an old woman who kept a +stall, what was the price of something which he wanted to purchase. After +telling him the value of it,--"Honest _stranger_," said she, "I cannot +afford it for less": "an answer which nettled him not a little, to think +that _he_ who had resided almost all his life at Athens, and spoke the +language very correctly, should be taken at last for a foreigner. In the +same manner, there is, in my opinion, a certain accent as peculiar to the +native citizens of Rome, as the other was to those of Athens. But it is +time for us to return home; I mean to the Orators of our own growth. Next, +therefore, to the two capital Speakers above-mentioned, (that is Crassus +and Antonius) came L. Philippus,--not indeed till a considerable time +afterwards; but still he must be reckoned the next. I do not mean, +however, though nobody appeared in the interim who could dispute the prize +with him, that he was entitled to the second, or even the third post of +honour. For, as in a Chariot-race I cannot properly consider _him_ as +either the second, or third winner, who has scarcely got clear of the +starting-post, before the first has reached the goal; so, among Orators, I +can scarcely honour him with the name of a competitor, who has been so far +distanced by the foremost as hardly to appear on the same ground with him. +But yet there were certainly some talents to be observed in Philippus, +which any person who considers them, without subjecting them to a +comparison with the superior merits of the two before-mentioned, must +allow to have been respectable. He had an uncommon freedom of address, a +large fund of humour, great facility in the invention of his sentiments, +and a ready and easy manner of expressing them. He was likewise, for the +time he lived in, a great adept in the literature of the Greeks; and, in +the heat of a debate, he could sting, and gash, as well as ridicule his +opponents. Almost cotemporary with these was L. Gellius, who was not so +much to be valued for his positive, as for his negative merits: for he was +neither destitute of learning, nor invention, nor unacquainted with the +history and the laws of his country; besides which, he had a tolerable +freedom of expression. But he happened to live at a time when many +excellent Orators made their appearance; and yet he served his friends +upon many occasions to good purpose: in short, his life was so long, that +he was successively cotemporary with a variety of Orators of different +dates, and had an extensive series of practice in judicial causes. Nearly +at the same time lived D. Brutus, who was fellow-consul with Mamercus;-- +and was equally skilled both in the Grecian and Roman literature. L. +Scipio likewise was not an unskilful Speaker; and Cnaeus Pompeius, the son +of Sextus, had some reputation as an Orator; for his brother Sextus +applied the excellent genius he was possessed of, to acquire a thorough +knowledge of the Civil Law, and a complete acquaintance with geometry and +the doctrine of the Stoics. A little before these, M. Brutus, and very +soon after him, C. Bilienus, who was a man of great natural capacity, made +themselves, by nearly the same application, equally eminent in the +profession of the law;--the latter would have been chosen Consul, if he +had not been thwarted by the repeated promotion of Marius, and some other +collateral embarrassments which attended his suit. But the eloquence of +Cn. Octavius, which was wholly unknown before his elevation to the +Consulship, was effectually displayed, after his preferment to that +office, in a great variety of speeches. It is, however, time for us to +drop those who were only classed in the number of good _speakers_, and +turn our attention to such as were really _Orators_."--"I think so too," +replied Atticus; "for I understood that you meant to give us an account, +not of those who took great pains to be eloquent, but of those who were so +in reality."--"C. Julius then," said I, (the son of Lucius) was certainly +superior, not only to his predecessors, but to all his cotemporaries, in +wit and humour: he was not, indeed, a nervous and striking Orator, but, in +the elegance, the pleasantry, and the agreeableness of his manner, he has +not been excelled by any man. There are some Orations of his still extant, +in which, as well as in his Tragedies, we may discover a pleasing +tranquillity of expression with very little energy. P. Cethegus, his +cotemporary, had always enough to say on matters of civil regulation; for +he had studied and comprehended them with the minutest accuracy; by which +means he acquired an equal authority in the Senate with those who had +served the office of consul, and though he made no figure in a public +debate, he was a serviceable veteran in any suit of a private nature. Q. +Lucretius Vispillo was an acute Speaker, and a good Civilian in the same +kind of causes: but Osella was better qualified for a public harangue, +than to conduct a judicial process. T. Annius Velina was likewise a man of +sense, and a tolerable pleader; and T. Juventius had a great deal of +practice in the same way:--the latter indeed was rather too heavy and +unanimated, but at the same time he was keen and artful, and knew how to +seize every advantage which was offered by his antagonist; to which we may +add, that he was far from being a man of no literature, and had an +extensive knowledge of the Civil Law. His scholar, P. Orbius, who was +almost cotemporary with me, had no great practice as a pleader; but his +skill in the Civil Law was nothing inferior to his master's. As to Titus +Aufidius, who lived to a great age, he was a professed imitator of both; +and was indeed a worthy inoffensive man, but seldom spoke at the bar. His +brother, M. Virgilius, who when he was a tribune of the people, commenced +a prosecution against L. Sylla, then advanced to the rank of General, had +as little practice as Aufidius. Virgilius's colleague, P. Magius, was more +copious and diffusive. But of all the Orators, or rather _Ranters_, I ever +knew, who were totally illiterate and unpolished, and (I might have added) +absolutely coarse and rustic, the readiest and keenest, were Q. Sertorius, +and C. Gorgonius, the one of consular, and the other of equestrian rank. +T. Junius (the son of L.) who had served the office of tribune, and +prosecuted and convicted P. Sextius of bribery, when he was praetor elect, +was a prompt and an easy speaker: he lived in great splendor, and had a +very promising genius; and, if he had not been of a weak, and indeed a +sickly constitution, he would have advanced much farther than he did in +the road to preferment. I am sensible, however, that in the account I have +been giving, I have included many who were neither real, nor reputed +Orators; and that I have omitted others, among those of a remoter date, +who well deserved not only to have been mentioned, but to be recorded with +honour. But this I was forced to do, for want of better information: for +what could I say concerning men of a distant age, none of whose +productions are now remaining, and of whom no mention is made in the +writings of other people? But I have omitted none of those who have fallen +within the compass of my own knowledge, or that I myself remember to have +heard. For I wish to make it appear, that in such a powerful and ancient +republic as ours, in which the greatest rewards have been proposed to +Eloquence, though all have desired to be good speakers, not many have +attempted the talk, and but very few have succeeded. But I shall give my +opinion of every one in such explicit terms, that it may be easily +understood whom I consider as a mere Declaimer, and whom as an Orator." + +"About the same time, or rather something later than the above-mentioned +Julius, but almost cotemporary with each other, were C. Cotta, P. +Sulpicius, Q. Varius, Cn. Pomponius, C. Curio, L. Fufius, M. Drusus, and +P. Antistius; for no age whatsoever has been distingushed by a more +numerous progeny of Orators. Of these, Cotta and Sulpicius, both in my +opinion, and in that of the Public at large, had an evident claim to the +preference."--"But wherefore," interrupted Atticus, "do you say, _in your +own opinion, and in that of the Public at large?_ In deciding the merits +of an Orator, does the opinion of the vulgar, think you, always coincide +with that of the learned? Or rather does not one receive the approbation +of the populace, while another of a quite opposite character is preferred +by those who are better qualified to give their judgment?"--"You have +started a very pertinent question," said I; "but, perhaps, _the Public at +large_ will not approve my answer to it."--"And what concern need _that_ +give you," replied Atticus, "if it meets the approbation of Brutus?"-- +"Very true," said I; "for I had rather my _sentiments_ on the +qualifications of an Orator would please you and Brutus, than all the +world besides: but as to my _Eloquence_, I should wish _this_ to please +every one. For he who speaks in such a manner as to please the people, +must inevitably receive the approbation of the learned. As to the truth +and propriety of what I hear, I am indeed to judge of this for myself, as +well as I am able: but the general merit of an Orator must and will be +decided by the effects which his eloquence produces. For (in my opinion at +least) there are three things which an Orator should be able to effect; +_viz_. to _inform_ his hearers, to _please_ them, and to _move their +passions_. By what qualities in the Speaker each of these, effects may be +produced, or by what deficiencies they are either lost, or but imperfectly +performed, is an enquiry which none but an artist can resolve: but whether +an audience is really so affected by an Orator as shall best answer his +purpose, must be left to their own feelings, and the decision of the +Public. The learned, therefore, and the people at large, have never +disagreed about who was a good Orator, and who was otherwise. For do you +suppose, that while the Speakers above-mentioned were in being, they had +not the same degree of reputation among the learned as among the populace? +If you had enquired of one of the latter, _who was the most eloquent man +in the city_, he might have hesitated whether to say _Antonius_ or +_Crassus_; or this man, perhaps, would have mentioned the one, and that +the other. But would any one have given the preference to _Philippus_, +though otherwise a smooth, a sensible, and a facetious Speaker?--that +_Philippus_ whom we, who form our judgment upon these matters by rules of +art, have decided to have been the next in merit? Nobody would, I am +certain. For it is the invariable, property of an accomplished Orator, to +be reckoned such in the opinion of the people. Though Antigenidas, +therefore, the musician, might say to his scholar, who was but coldly +received by the Public, Play on, to please me and the Muses;--I shall say +to my friend Brutus, when he mounts the Rostra, as he frequently does,-- +Play to me and the people;--that those who hear him may be sensible of the +effect of his Eloquence, while I can likewise amuse myself with remarking +the causes which produce it. When a Citizen hears an able Orator, he +readily credits what is said;--he imagines every thing to be true, he +believes and relishes the force of it; and, in short, the persuasive +language of the Speaker wins his absolute, his hearty assent. You, who are +possessed of a critical knowledge of the art, what more will you require? +The listening multitude is charmed and captivated by the force of his +Eloquence, and feels a pleasure which is not to be resisted. What here can +you find to censure? The whole audience is either flushed with joy, or +overwhelmed with grief;--it smiles, or weeps,--it loves, or hates,--it +scorns or envies,--and, in short, is alternately seized with the various +emotions of pity, shame, remorse, resentment, wonder, hope, and fear, +according as it is influenced by the language, the sentiments, and the +action of the speaker. In this case, what necessity is there to await the +sanction of a critic? For here, whatever is approved by the feelings of +the people, must be equally so by men of taste and erudition: and, in this +instance of public decision, there can be no disagreement between the +opinion of the vulgar, and that of the learned. For though many good +Speakers have appeared in every species of Oratory, which of them who was +thought to excel the rest in the judgment of the populace, was not +approved as such by every man of learning? or which of our ancestors, when +the choice of a pleader was left to his own option, did not immediately +fix it either upon Crassus or Antonius? There were certainly many others +to be had: but though any person might have hesitated to which of the +above two he should give the preference, there was nobody, I believe, who +would have made choice of a third. And in the time of my youth, when Cotta +and Hortensius were in such high reputation, who, that had liberty to +choose for himself, would have employed any other?"--"But what occasion is +there," said Brutus, "to quote the example of other speakers to support +your assertion? have we not seen what has always been the wish of the +defendant, and what the judgment of Hortensius, concerning yourself? for +whenever the latter shared a cause with you, (and I was often present on +those occasions) the peroration, which requires the greatest exertion of +the powers of Eloquence, was constantly left to _you_."--"It was," said I; +"and Hortensius (induced, I suppose, by the warmth of his friendship) +always resigned the post of honour to me. But, as to myself, what rank I +hold in the opinion of the people I am unable to determine: as to others, +however, I may safely assert, that such of them as were reckoned most +eloquent in the judgment of the vulgar, were equally high in the +estimation of the learned. For even Demosthenes himself could not have +said what is related of Antimachus, a poet of Claros, who, when he was +rehearsing to an audience assembled for the purpose, that voluminous piece +of his which you are well acquainted with, and was deserted by all his +hearers except Plato, in the midst of his performance, cried out, "I +shall proceed notwithstanding_; for Plato alone is of _more consequence to +me than many thousands_." "The remark was very just. For an abstruse poem, +such as his, only requires the approbation of the judicious few; but a +discourse intended for the people should be perfectly suited to their +taste. If Demosthenes, therefore, after being deserted by the rest of his +audience, had even Plato left to hear him, and no one else, I will answer +for it, he could not have uttered another syllable. 'Nay, or could you +yourself, my Brutus, if the whole assembly was to leave you, as it once +did Curio?"--"To open my whole mind to you," replied he, "I must confess +that even in such causes as fall under the cognizance of a few select +judges, and not of the people at large, if I was to be deserted by the +casual crowd who came to hear the trial, I should not be able to +proceed."--"The case, then, is plainly this," said I: "as a flute, which +will not return its proper sound when it is applied to the lips, would be +laid aside by the musician as useless; so, the ears of the people are the +instrument upon which an Orator is to play: and if these refuse to admit +the breath he bestows upon them, or if the hearer, like a restive horse, +will not obey the spur, the speaker must cease to exert himself any +farther. There is, however, the exception to be made; the people sometimes +give their approbation to an orator who does not deserve it. But even here +they approve what they have had no opportunity of comparing with something +better: as, for instance, when they are pleased with an indifferent, or, +perhaps, a bad speaker. His abilities satisfy their expectation: they have +seen nothing preferable: and, therefore, the merit of the day, whatever it +may happen to be, meets their full applause. For even a middling Orator, +if he is possessed of any degree of Eloquence, will always captivate the +ear; and the order and beauty of a good discourse has an astonishing +effect upon the human mind. Accordingly, what common hearer who was +present when Q. Scaevola pleaded for M. Coponius, in the cause above- +mentioned, would have wished for, or indeed thought it possible to find +any thing which was more correct, more elegant, or more complete? When he +attempted to prove, that, as M. Curius was left heir to the estate only in +case of the death of his future ward before he came of age, he could not +possibly be a legal heir, when the expected ward was never born;--what did +he leave unsaid of the scrupulous regard which should be paid to the +literal meaning of every testament? what of the accuracy and preciseness +of the old and established forms; of law? and how carefully did he specify +the manner in which the will would have been expressed, if it had intended +that Curius should be the heir in case of a total default of issue? in +what a masterly manner did he represent the ill consequences to the +Public, if the letter of a will should be disregarded, its intention +decided by arbitrary conjectures, and the written bequests of plain +illiterate men, left to the artful interpretation of a pleader? how often +did he urge the authority of his father, who had always been an advocate +for a strict adherence to the letter of a testament? and with what +emphasis did he enlarge upon the necessity of supporting the common forms +of law? All which particulars he discussed not only very artfully, and +skilfully; but in such a neat,--such a close,--and, I may add, in so +florid, and so elegant a style, that there was not a single person among +the common part of the audience, who could expect any thing more complete, +or even think it possible to exist. But when Crassus, who spoke on the +opposite side, began with the story of a notable youth, who having found a +cock-boat as he was rambling along the shore, took it into his head +immediately that he would build a ship to it;--and when he applied the +tale to Scaevola, who, from the cock-boat of an argument [which he had +deduced from certain imaginary ill consequences to the Public] represented +the decision of a private will to be a matter of such importance as to +deserve he attention of the _Centum-viri_;--when Crassus, I say, in the +beginning of his discourse, had thus taken off the edge of the strongest +plea of his antagonist, he entertained his hearers with many other turns +of a similar kind; and, in a short time, changed the serious apprehensions +of all who were present into open mirth and good-humour; which is one of +those three effects which I have just observed an Orator should be able to +produce. He then proceeded to remark that it was evidently the intention +and the will of the testator, that in cafe, either by death, or default of +issue, there should happen to be no son to fall to his charge, the +inheritance should devolve to Curius:--'that most people in a similar case +would express themselves in the same manner, and that it would certainly +stand good in law, and always had. By these, and many other observations +of the same kind, he gained the assent of his hearers; which is another of +the three duties of an Orator. Lastly, he supported, at all events, the +true meaning and spirit of a will, against the literal construction: +justly observing, that there would be an endless cavilling about words, +not only in wills, but in all other legal deeds, if the real intention of +the party was to be disregarded: and hinting very smartly, that his +friend Scaevola had assumed a most unwarrantable degree of importance, if +no person must afterwards presume to indite a legacy, but in the musty +form which he himself might please to prescribe. As he enlarged on each of +these arguments with great force and propriety, supported them by a number +of precedents, exhibited them in a variety of views, and enlivened them +with many occasional turns of wit and pleasantry, he gained so much +applause, and gave such general satisfaction, that it was scarcely +remembered that any thing had been said on the contrary side of the +question. This was the third, and the most important duty we assigned to +an Orator. + +"Here, if one of the people was to be judge, the same person who had heard +the first Speaker with a degree of admiration, would, on hearing the +second, despise himself for his former want of judgment:--whereas a man of +taste and erudition, on hearing Scaevola, would have observed that he was +really master of a rich and ornamental style; but if, on comparing the +manner in which each of them concluded his cause, it was to be enquired +which of the two was the best Orator, the decision of the man of learning +would not have differed from that of the vulgar. What advantage, then, it +will be said, has the skilful critic over the illiterate hearer? A great +and very important advantage; if it is indeed a matter of any consequence, +to be able to discover by what means that which is the true and real end +of speaking, is either obtained or lost. He has likewise this additional +superiority, that when two or more Orators, as has frequently happened, +have shared the applauses of the Public, he can judge, on a careful +observation of the principal merits of each, what is the most perfect +character of Eloquence: since whatever does not meet the approbation of +the people, must be equally condemned by a more intelligent hearer. For as +it is easily understood by the sound of a harp, whether the strings are +skilfully touched; so it may likewise be discovered from the manner in +which the passions of an audience are affected, how far the Speaker is +able to command them. A man, therefore, who is a real connoisseur in the +art, can sometimes by a single glance as he passes through the Forum, and +without stopping to listen attentively to what is said, form a tolerable +judgment of the ability of the Speaker. When he observes any of the Bench +either yawning, or speaking to the person who is next to him, or looking +carelessly about him, or sending to enquire the time of day, or teazing +the Quaestor to dismiss the court; he concludes very naturally that the +cause upon trial is not pleaded by an Orator who understands how to apply +the powers of language to the passions of the judges, as a skilful +musician applies his fingers to the harp. On the other hand, if, as he +passes by, he beholds the judges looking attentively before them, as if +they were either receiving some material information, or visibly approved +what they had already heard--if he sees them listening to the voice of the +Pleader with a kind of extasy like a fond bird to some melodious tune;-- +and, above all, if he discovers in their looks any strong indications of +pity, abhorrence, or any other emotion of the mind;--though he should not +be near enough to hear a single word, he immediately discovers that the +cause is managed by a real Orator, who is either performing, or has +already played his part to good purpose." + +After I had concluded these digressive remarks, my two friends were kind +enough to signify their approbation, and I resumed my subject.--"As this +digression," said I, "took its rise from Cotta and Sulpicius, whom I +mentioned as the two most approved Orators of the age they lived in, I +shall first return to _them,_ and afterwards notice the rest in their +proper order, according to the plan we began upon. I have already observed +that there are two classes of _good_ Orators (for we have no concern with +any others) of which the former are distinguished by the simple neatness +and brevity of their language, and the latter by their copious dignity and +elevation: but although the preference must always be given to that which +is great and striking; yet, in speakers of real merit, whatever is most +perfect of the kind, is justly entitled to our commendation. It must, +however, be observed, that the close and simple Orator should be careful +not to sink into a driness and poverty of expression; while, on the other +hand, the copious and more stately Speaker should be equally on his guard +against a swelling and empty parade of words. + +"To begin with Cotta, he had a ready, quick Invention, and spoke correctly +and freely; and as he very prudently avoided every forcible exertion of +his voice on account of the weakness of his lungs, so his language was +equally adapted to the delicacy of his constitution. There was nothing in +his style but what was neat, compact, and healthy; and (what may justly be +considered as his greatest excellence) though he was scarcely able, and +therefore never attempted to force the passions of the judges by a strong +and spirited elocution, yet he managed them so artfully, that the gentle +emotions he raised in them, answered exactly the same purpose, and +produced the same effect, as the violent ones which were excited by +Sulpicius. For Sulpicius was really the most striking, and, if I may be +allowed the expression, the most tragical Orator I ever heard:--his voice +was strong and sonorous, and yet sweet, and flowing:--his gesture, and the +sway of his body, was graceful and ornamental, but in such a style as to +appear to have been formed for the Forum, and not for the stage:--and his +language, though rapid and voluble, was neither loose nor exuberant. He +was a professed imitator of Crassus, while Cotta chose Antonius for his +model: but the latter wanted the force of Antonius, and the former the +agreeable humour of Crassus."--"How extremely difficult, then," said +Brutus, "must be the art of speaking, when such consummate Orators as +these were each of them destitute of one of its principal beauties!"--"We +may likewise observe," said I, "in the present instance, that two Orators +may have the highest degree of merit, who are totally unlike each other: +for none could be more so than Cotta and Sulpicius, and yet both of them +were far superior to any of their cotemporaries. It is therefore the +business of every intelligent matter to take notice what is the natural +bent of his pupil's capacity; and, taking that for his guide, to imitate +the conduct of Socrates with his two scholars Theopompus and Ephorus, who, +after remarking the lively genius of the former, and the mild and timid +bashfulness of the latter, is reported to have said that he applied a spur +to the one, and a curb to the other. The Orations now extant, which bear +the name of Sulpicius, are supposed to have been written after his decease +by my cotemporary P. Canutius, a man indeed of inferior rank, but who, in +my mind, had a great command of language. But we have not a single speech +of Sulpicius that was really his own: for I have often heard him say, that +he neither had, nor ever could commit any thing of the kind to writing. +And as to Cotta's speech in defence of himself, called a vindication of +the _Varian Law_, it was composed, at his own request, by L. Aelius. This +Aelius was a man of merit, and a very worthy Roman knight, who was +thoroughly versed in the Greek and Roman literature. He had likewise a +critical knowledge of the antiquities of his country, both as to the date +and particulars of every new improvement, and every memorable transaction, +and was perfectly well read in the ancient writers;--a branch of learning +in which he was succeeded by our friend Varro, a man of genius, and of the +most extensive erudition, who afterwards enlarged the plan by many +valuable collections of his own, and gave a much fuller and more elegant +system of it to the Public. For Aelius himself chose to assume the +character of a Stoic, and neither aimed to be, nor ever was an Orator: but +he composed several Orations for other people to pronounce; as for Q. +Metellus, F. Q. Caepio, and Q. Pompeius Rufus; though the latter composed +those speeches himself which he spoke in his own defence, but not without +the assistance of Aelius. For I myself was present at the writing of them, +in the younger part of my life, when I used to attend Aelius for the +benefit of his instructions. But I am surprised, that Cotta, who was +really an excellent Orator, and a man of good learning, should be willing +that the trifling Speeches of Aelius mould be published to the world as +_his_. + +"To the two above-mentioned, no third person of the same age was esteemed +an equal: Pomponius, however, was a Speaker much to my taste; or, at +least, I have very little fault to find with him. But there was no +employment for any in capital causes, excepting for those I have already +mentioned; because Antonius, who was always courted on these occasions, +was very ready to give his service; and Crassus, though not so compliable, +generally consented, on any pressing sollicitation, to give _his_. Those +who had not interest enough to engage either of these, commonly applied to +Philip, or Caesar; but when Cotta and Sulpicius were at liberty, they +generally had the preference: so that all the causes in which any honour +was to be acquired, were pleaded by these six Orators. We may add, that +trials were not so frequent then as they are at present; neither did +people employ, as they do now, several pleaders on the same side of the +question,--a practice which is attended with many disadvantages. For +hereby we are often obliged to speak in reply to those whom we had not an +opportunity of hearing; in which case, what has been alledged on the +opposite side, is often represented to us either falsely or imperfectly; +and besides, it is a very material circumstance, that I myself should be +present to see with what countenance my antagonist supports his +allegations, and, still more so, to observe the effect of every part of +his discourse upon the audience. And as every defence should be conducted +upon one uniform plan, nothing can be more improperly contrived, than to +re-commence it by assigning the peroration, or pathetical part of it, to a +second advocate. For every cause can have but one natural introduction and +conclusion; and all the other parts of it, like the members of an animal +body, will best retain their proper strength and beauty, when they are +regularly disposed and connected. We may add, that as it is very difficult +in a single Oration of any length, to avoid saying something which does +not comport with the rest of it so well as it ought to do, how much more +difficult must it be to contrive that nothing shall be said, which does +not tally exactly with the speech of another person who has spoken before +you? But as it certainly requires more labour to plead a whole cause, than +only a part of it, and as many advantageous connections are formed by +assisting in a suit in which several persons are interested, the custom, +however preposterous in itself, has been readily adopted. + +"There were some, however, who esteemed Curio the third best Orator of the +age; perhaps, because his language was brilliant and pompous, and because +he had a habit (for which I suppose he was indebted to his domestic +education) of expressing himself with tolerable correctness: for he was a +man of very little learning. But it is a circumstance of great importance, +what sort of people we are used to converse with at home, especially in +the more early part of life; and what sort of language we have been +accustomed to hear from our tutors and parents, not excepting the mother. +We have all read the Letters of Cornelia, the mother of the Gracchi; and +are satisfied, that her sons were not so much nurtured in their mother's +lap, as in the elegance and purity of her language. I have often too +enjoyed the agreeable conversation of Laelia, the daughter of Caius, and +observed in her a strong tincture of her father's elegance. I have +likewise conversed with his two daughters, the Muciae, and his +granddaughters, the two Liciniae, with one of whom (the wife of Scipio) +you, my Brutus, I believe, have sometimes been in company."--"I have," +replied he, "and was much pleased with her conversation; and the more so, +because she was the daughter of Crassus."--"And what think you," said I, +"of Crassus, the son of that Licinia, who was adopted by Crassus in his +will?"--"He is said," replied he, "to have been a man of great genius: and +the Scipio you have mentioned, who was my colleague, likewise appears to +me to have been a good Speaker, and an elegant companion."--"Your opinion, +my Brutus," said I, "is very just. For this family, if I may be allowed +the expression, seems to have been the offspring of Wisdom. As to their +two grandfathers, Scipio and Crassus, we have taken notice of them +already: as we also have of their great grandfathers, Q. Metellus, who had +four sons,--P. Scipio, who, when a private citizen, freed the Republic +from the arbitrary influence of T. Gracchus,--and Q. Scaevola, the augur, +who was the ablest and most affable Civilian of his time. And lastly, how +illustrious are the names of their next immediate progenitors, P. Scipio, +who was twice Consul, and was called the Darling of the People,--and C. +Laelius, who was esteemed the wisest of men?"--"A generous stock indeed!" +cries Brutus, "into which the wisdom of many has been successively +ingrafted, like a number of scions on the same tree!"--"I have likewise a +suspicion," replied I, "(if we may compare small things with great) that +Curio's family, though he himself was left an orphan, was indebted to his +father's instruction, and good example, for the habitual purity of their +language: and so much the more, because, of all those who were held in any +estimation for their Eloquence, I never knew one who was so totally rude +and unskilled in every branch of liberal science. He had not read a single +poet, or studied a single orator; and he knew little or nothing either of +Public, Civil, or Common law. We might say almost the same, indeed, of +several others, and some of them very able Orators, who (we know) were but +little acquainted with these useful parts of knowledge; as, for instance, +of Sulpicius and Antonius. But this deficiency was supplied in them by an +elaborate knowledge of the art of Speaking; and there was not one of them +who was totally unqualified in any of the five [Footnote: Invention, +Disposition, Elocution, Memory, and Pronunciation.] principal parts of +which it is composed; for whenever this is the case, (and it matters not +in which of those parts it happens) it intirely incapacitates a man to +shine as an Orator. Some, however, excelled in one part, and some in +another. Thus Antonius could readily invent such arguments as were most in +point, and afterwards digest and methodize them to the best advantage; and +he could likewise retain the plan he had formed with great exactness: but +his chief merit was the goodness of his delivery, in which he was justly +allowed to excel. In some of these qualifications he was upon an equal +footing with Crassus, and in others he was superior: but then the language +of Crassus was indisputably preferable to _his_. In the same manner, it +cannot be said that either Sulpicius or Cotta, or any other Speaker of +repute, was absolutely deficient in any one of the five parts of Oratory. +But we may justly infer from the example of Curio, that nothing will more +recommend an Orator, than a brilliant and ready flow of expression; for he +was remarkably dull in the invention, and very loose and unconnected in +the disposition of his arguments. The two remaining parts are +Pronunciation and Memory; in each of which he was so poorly qualified, as +to excite the laughter and the ridicule of his hearers. His gesture was +really such as C. Julius represented it, in a severe sarcasm, that will +never be forgotten; for as he was swaying and reeling his whole body from +side to side, Julius enquired very merrily, _who it was that was speaking +from a boat_. To the same purpose was the jest of Cn. Sicinius, a very +vulgar sort of man, but exceedingly humourous, which was the only +qualification he had to recommend him as an Orator. When this man, as +Tribune of the people, had summoned Curio and Octavius, who were then +Consuls, into the Forum, and Curio had delivered a tedious harangue, while +Octavius sat silently by him, wrapt up in flannels, and besmeared with +ointments, to ease the pain of the gout;"--"_Octavius," said he, "you are +infinitely obliged to your colleague; for if he had not tossed and flung +himself about to-day, in the manner he did, you would have certainly have +been devoured by the flies._"--"As to his memory, it was so extremely +treacherous, that after he had divided his subject into three general +heads, he would sometimes, in the course of speaking, either add a fourth, +or omit the third. In a capital trial, in which I had pleaded for Titinia, +the daughter of Cotta, when he attempted to reply to me in defence of +Serv. Naevius, he suddenly forgot every thing he had intended to say, and +attributed it to the pretended witchcraft, and magic artifices of Titinia. +These were undoubted proofs of the weakness of his memory. But, what is +still more inexcusable, he sometimes forgot, even in his written +treatises, what he had mentioned but a little before. Thus, in a book of +his, in which he introduces himself as entering into conversation with our +friend Pansa, and his son Curio, when he was walking home from the Senate- +house; the Senate is supposed to have been summoned by Caesar in his first +Consulship; and the whole conversation arises from the son's enquiry what +the House had resolved upon. Curio launches out into a long invective +against the conduct of Caesar, and, as is generally the custom in +dialogues, the parties are engaged in a close dispute on the subject: but +very unhappily, though the conversation commences at the breaking up of +the Senate which Caesar held when he was first Consul, the author censures +those very actions of the same Caesar, which did not happen till the next, +and several other succeeding years of his government in Gaul."--"Is it +possible then," said Brutus, with an air of surprize, "that any man, (and +especially in a written performance) could be so forgetful as not to +discover, upon a subsequent perusal of his own work, what an egregious +blunder he had committed?"--"Very true," said I; "for if he wrote with a +design to discredit the measures which he represents in such an odious +light, nothing could be more stupid than not to commence his dialogue at a +period which was subsequent to those measures. But he so entirely forgets +himself, as to tell us, that he did not choose to attend a Senate which +was held in one of Caesar's future consulships, in the very same dialogue +in which he introduces himself as returning home from a Senate which was +held in his first consulship. It cannot, therefore, be wondered at, that +he who was so remarkably defective in a faculty which is the steward of +our other intellectual powers, as to forget, even in a written treatise, a +material circumstance which he had mentioned but a little before, should +find his memory fail him, as it generally did, in a sudden and +unpremeditated harangue. It accordingly happened, though he had many +connections, and was fond of speaking in public, that few causes were +intrusted to his management. But, among his cotemporaries, he was esteemed +next in merit to the first Orators of the age; and that merely, as I said +before, for his good choice of words, and his uncommon readiness, and +great fluency of expression. His Orations, therefore, may deserve a +cursory perusal. It is true, indeed, they are much too languid and +spiritless; but they may yet be of service to enlarge and improve an +accomplishment, of which he certainly had a moderate share; and which has +so much force and efficacy, that it gave Curio the appearance and +reputation of an Orator, without the assistance of any other good quality. + +"But to return to our subject,--C. Carbo, of the same age, was likewise +reckoned an Orator of the second class: he was the son, indeed, of the +truly eloquent man before-mentioned, but was far from being an acute +Speaker himself: he was, however, esteemed an Orator. His language was +tolerably nervous, he spoke with ease,--and there was an air of authority +in his address that was perfectly natural. But Q. Varius was a man of +quicker invention, and, at the same time, had an equal freedom of +expression: besides which, he had a bold and spirited delivery, and a vein +of elocution which was neither poor, nor coarse and vulgar;--in short, you +need not hesitate to pronounce him an _Orator_. Cn. Pomponius was a +vehement, a rousing, and a fierce and eager Speaker, and more inclined to +act the part of a prosecutor, than of an advocate. But far inferior to +these was L. Fufius; though his application was, in some measure, rewarded +by the success of his prosecution against M. Aquilius. For as to M. +Drusus, your great uncle, who spoke like an Orator only upon matters of +government;--L. Lucullus, who was indeed an artful Speaker, and your +father, my Brutus, who was well acquainted with the Common and Civil Law; +--M. Lucullus, and M. Octavius, the son of Cnaeus, who was a man of so +much authority and address, as to procure the repeal of Sempronius's +corn-act, by the suffrages of a full assembly of the people;--Cn. +Octavius, the son of Marcus,--and M. Cato, the father, and Q. Catulus, +the son;--we must excuse these (if I may so express myself) from the +fatigues and dangers of the field,--that is, from the management of +judicial causes, and place them in garison over the general interests +of the Republic, a duty to which they seem to have been sufficiently +adequate. I should have assigned the same post to Q. Caepio, if he +had not been so violently attached to the Equestrian Order, as to set +himself at variance with the Senate. I have also remarked, that Cn. +Carbo, M. Marius, and several others of the same stamp, who would +not have merited the attention of an audience that had any taste for +elegance, were extremely well suited to address a tumultuous crowd. +In the same class, (if I may be allowed to interrupt the series of +my narrative) L. Quintius lately made his appearance: though Palicanus, +it must be owned, was still better adapted to please the ears of the +populace. But, as I have mentioned this inferior kind of Speakers, +I must be so just to L. Apuleius Saturninus, as to observe that, of all +the factious declaimers since the time of the Gracchi, he was generally +esteemed the ablest: and yet he caught the attention of the Public, more +by his appearance, his gesture, and his dress, than by any real fluency of +expression, or even a tolerable share of good sense. But C. Servilius +Glaucia, though the most abandoned wretch that ever existed, was very keen +and artful, and excessively humourous; and notwithstanding the meanness of +his birth, and the depravity of his life, he would have been advanced to +the dignity of a Consul in his Praetorship, if it had been judged lawful +to admit his suit: for the populace were entirely at his devotion, and he +had secured the interest of the Knights, by an act he had procured in +their favour. He was slain in the open Forum, while he was Praetor, on the +same day as the tribune Saturninus, in the Consulship of Marius and +Flaccus; and bore a near resemblance to Hyperbolus, the Athenian, whose +profligacy was so severely stigmatized in the old Attic Comedies. These +were succeeded by Sext. Titius, who was indeed a voluble Speaker, and +possessed a ready comprehension, but he was so loose and effeminate in his +gesture, as to furnish room for the invention of a dance, which was called +the _Titian jigg_: so careful should we be to avoid every oddity in our +manner of speaking, which may afterwards be exposed to ridicule by a +ludicrous imitation. + +"But we have rambled back insensibly to a period which has been already +examined: let us, therefore, return to that which we were reviewing a +little before. Cotemporary with Sulpicius was P. Antistius,--a plausible +declaimer, who, after being silent for several years, and exposed, (as he +often was) not only to the contempt, but the derision of his hearers, +first spoke with applause in his tribuneship, in a real and very +interesting protest against the illegal application of C. Julius for the +consulship; and that so much the more, because though Sulpicius himself, +who then happened to be his colleague, spoke on the same side of the +debate, Antistius argued more copiously, and to better purpose. This +raised his reputation so high, that many, and (soon afterwards) every +cause of importance, was eagerly recommended to his patronage. To speak +the truth, he had a quick conception, a methodical judgment, and a +retentive memory; and though his language was not much embellished, it was +very far from being low. In short, his style was easy, and flowing, and +his appearance rather genteel than otherwise: but his action was a little +defective, partly through the disagreeable tone of his voice, and partly +by a few ridiculous gestures, of which he could not entirely break +himself. He flourished in the time between the flight and the return of +Sylla, when the Republic was deprived of a regular administration of +justice, and of its former dignity and splendor. But the very favourable +reception he met with was, in some measure, owing to the great scarcity of +good Orators which then prevailed in the Forum. For Sulpicius was dead; +Cotta and Curio were abroad; and no pleaders of any eminence were left but +Carbo and Pomponius, from each of whom he easily carried off the palm. His +nearest successor in the following age was L. Sisenna, who was a man of +learning, had a taste for the liberal Sciences, spoke the Roman language +with accuracy, was well acquainted with the laws and constitution of his +country, and had a tolerable share of wit; but he was not a Speaker of any +great application, or extensive practice; and as he happened to live in +the intermediate time between the appearance of Sulpicius and Hortensius, +he was unable to equal the former, and forced to yield to the superior +talents of the latter. We may easily form a judgment of his abilities from +the historical Works he has left behind him; which, though evidently +preferable to any thing of the kind which had appeared before, may serve +as a proof that he was far below the standard of perfection, and that this +species of composition had not then been improved to any great degree of +excellence among the Romans. But the genius of Q. Hortensius, even in his +early youth, like one of Phidias's statues, was no sooner beheld than it +was universally admired! He spoke his first Oration in the Forum in the +consulship of L. Crassus and Q. Scaevola, to whom it was personally +adressed; and though he was then only nineteen years old, he descended +from the Rostra with the hearty approbation not only of the audience in +general, but of the two Consuls themselves, who were the most intelligent +judges in the whole city. He died in the consulship of L. Paulus and C. +Marcellus; from which it appears that he was four-and-forty years a +Pleader. We shall review his character more at large in the sequel: but in +this part of my history, I chose to include him in the number of Orators +who were rather of an earlier date. This indeed must necessarily happen to +all whose lives are of any considerable length: for they are equally +liable to a comparison with their Elders and their Juniors; as in the case +of the poet Attius, who says that both he and Pacuvius applied themselves +to the cultivation of the drama under the fame Aediles; though, at the +time, the one was eighty, and the other only thirty years old. Thus +Hortensius may be paralleled not only with those who were properly his +contemporaries, but with me, and you, my Brutus, and with others of a +prior date. For he began to speak in public while Crassus was living but +his fame increased when he appeared as a joint advocate with Antonius and +Philip (at that time in the decline of life) in defence of Cn. Pompeius,-- +a cause in which (though a mere youth) he distinguished himself above the +rest. He may therefore be included in the lift of those whom I have placed +in the time of Sulpicius; but among his proper coėvals, such as M. Piso, +M. Crassus, Cn. Lentulus, and P. Lentulus Sura, he excelled beyond the +reach of competition; and after these he happened upon me, in the early +part of my life (for I was eight years younger than himself) and spent a +number of years with me in pursuit of the same forensic glory: and at +last, (a little before his death) he once pleaded with _you_, in defence +of Appius Claudius, as I have frequently done for others. Thus you see, my +Brutus, I am come insensibly to _yourself_, though there was undoubtedly a +great variety of Orators between my first appearance in the Forum, and +yours. But as I determined, when we began the conversation, to make no +mention of those among them who are still living, to prevent your +enquiring too minutely what is my opinion concerning each; I shall confine +myself to such as are now no more."--"That is not the true reason," said +Brutus, "why you choose to be silent about the living."--"What then do you +suppose it to be," said I?--"You are only fearful," replied he, "that your +remarks should afterwards be mentioned by us in other company, and that, +by this means, you should expose yourself to the resentment of those, whom +you may not think it worth your while to notice."--"Indeed," answered I, +"I have not the least doubt of your secresy."--"Neither have you any +reason," said he; "but after all, I suppose, you had rather be silent +_yourself_, than rely upon our taciturnity."--"To confess the truth," +replied I, "when I first entered upon the subject, I never imagined that I +should have extended it to the age now before us; whereas I have been +drawn by a continued series of history among the moderns of latest date." +--"Introduce, then," said he, "those intermediate Orators you may think +worthy of our notice: and afterwards let us return to yourself, and +Hortensius."--"To Hortensius," replied I, "with all my heart; but as to my +_own_ character, I shall leave it to other people to examine, if they +choose to take the trouble."--"I can by no means agree to _that_," said +he: "for though every part of the account you have favoured us with, has +entertained me very agreeably, it now begins to seem tedious, because I am +impatient to hear something of _yourself_: I do not mean the wonderful +qualities, but the _progressive steps_, and advances of your Eloquence; +for the former are sufficiently known already both to me, and the whole +world."--"As you do not require me," said I, "to sound the praises of my +own genius, but only to describe my labour and application to improve it, +your request shall be complied with. But to preserve the order of my +narrative, I shall first introduce such other Speakers as I think ought to +be previously noticed: and I shall begin with M. Crassus, who was +contemporary with Hortensius. With a tolerable share of learning, and a +very moderate capacity, his application, assiduity, and interest, procured +him a place among the ablest Pleaders of the time for several years. His +language was pure, his expression neither low nor ungenteel, and his ideas +well digested: but he had nothing in him that was florid, and ornamental; +and the real ardor of his mind was not supported by any vigorous exertion +of his voice, so that he pronounced almost every thing in the same uniform +tone. His equal, and professed antagonist C. Fimbria was not able to +maintain his character so long; and though he always spoke with a strong +and elevated voice, and poured forth a rapid torrent of well-chosen +expressions, he was so immoderately vehement that you might justly be +surprised that the people should have been so absent and inattentive as to +admit a _madman_, like him, into the lift of Orators. As to Cn. Lentulus, +his action acquired him a reputation for his Eloquence very far beyond his +real abilities: for though he was not a man of any great penetration +(notwithstanding he carried the appearance of it in his countenance) nor +possessed any real fluency of expression (though he was equally specious +in this respect as in the former)--yet by his sudden breaks, and +exclamations, he affected such an ironical air of surprize, with a sweet +and sonorous turn of voice, and his whole action was so warm and lively, +that his defects were scarcely noticed. For as Curio acquired the +reputation of an Orator with no other quality than a tolerable freedom of +Elocution; so Cn. Lentulus concealed the mediocrity of his other +accomplishments by his _action_, which was really excellent. Much the same +might be said of P. Lentulus, whose poverty of invention and expression +was secured from notice by the mere dignity of his presence, his correct +and graceful gesture, and the strength and sweetness of his voice: and his +merit depended so entirely upon his action, that he was more deficient in +every other quality than his namesake. But M. Piso derived all his talents +from his erudition; for he was much better versed in the Grecian +literature than any of his predecessors. He had, however, a natural +keenness of discernment, which he greatly improved by art, and exerted +with great address and dexterity, though in very indifferent language: but +he was frequently warm and choleric, sometimes cold and insipid, and now +and then rather smart and humourous. He did not long support the fatigue, +and emulous contention of the Forum; partly, on account of the weakness of +his constitution; and partly, because he could not submit to the follies +and impertinencies of the common people (which we Orators are forced to +swallow) either, as it was generally supposed, from a peculiar moroseness +of temper, or from a liberal and ingenuous pride of heart. After +acquiring, therefore, in his youth, a tolerable degree of reputation, his +character began to sink: but in the trial of the Vestals, he again +recovered it with some additional lustre, and being thus recalled to the +theatre of Eloquence, he kept his rank, as long as he was able to support +the fatigue of it; after which his credit declined, in proportion as he +remitted his application.--P. Murena had a moderate genius, but was +passionately fond of the study of Antiquity; he applied himself with equal +diligence to the Belles Lettres, in which he was tolerably versed; in +short, he was a man of great industry, and took the utmost pains to +distinguish himself.--C. Censorinus had a good stock of Grecian +literature, explained whatever he advanced with great neatness and +perspicuity, and had a graceful action, but was too cold and unanimated +for the Forum.--L. Turius with a very indifferent genius, but the most +indefatigable application, spoke in public very often, in the best manner +he was able; and, accordingly, he only wanted the votes of a few Centuries +to promote him to the Consulship.--C. Macer was never a man of much +interest or authority, but was one of the most active Pleaders of his +time; and if his life, his manners, and his very looks, had not ruined the +credit of his genius, he would have ranked higher in the lift of Orators. +He was neither copious, nor dry and barren; neither eat and embellished, +nor wholly inelegant; and his voice, his gesture, and every part of his +action, was without any grace: but in inventing and digesting his ideas, +he had a wonderful accuracy, such as no man I ever saw either possessed +or exerted in a more eminent degree; and yet, some how, he displayed it +rather with the air of a Quibbler, than of an Orator. Though he had +acquired some reputation in public causes, he appeared to most advantage +and was most courted and employed in private ones.--C. Piso, who comes +next in order, had scarcely any exertion, but he was a Speaker of a very +convertible style; and though, in fact, he was far from being slow of +invention, he had more penetration in his look and appearance than he +really possessed.--His cotemporary M. Glabrio, though carefully instructed +by his grandfather Scaevola, was prevented from distinguishing himself by +his natural indolence and want of attention.--L. Torquatus, on the +contrary, had an elegant turn of expression, and a clear comprehension, +and was perfectly genteel and well-bred in his whole manner.--But Cn. +Pompeius, my coeval, a man who was born to excel in every thing, would +have acquired a more distinguished reputation for his Eloquence, if he had +not been diverted from the pursuit of it by the more dazzling charms of +military fame. His language was naturally bold and elevated, and he was +always master of his subject; and as to his powers of enunciation, his +voice was sonorous and manly, and his gesture noble, and full of dignity. +--D. Silanus, another of my cotemporaries, and your father-in-law, was not +a man of much application, but he had a very competent share of +discernment, and elocution.--Q. Pompeius, the son of Aulus, who had the +title of _Bithynicus_, and was about two years older than myself, was, to +my own knowledge, remarkably fond of the study of Eloquence, had an +uncommon stock of learning, and was a man of indefatigable industry and +perseverance: for he was connected with me and M. Piso, not only as an +intimate acquaintance, but as an associate in our studies, and private +exercises. His elocution was but poorly recommended by his action: for +though the former was sufficiently copious and diffusive, there was +nothing graceful in the latter.--His contemporary, P. Autronius, had a +very clear, and strong voice; but he was distinguished by no other +accomplishment.--L. Octavius Reatinus died in his youth, while he was in +full practice: but he ascended the rostra with more assurance, than +ability.--C. Staienus, who changed his name into Aelius by a kind of self- +adoption, was a warm, an abusive, and indeed a furious speaker; which was +so agreeable to the taste of many, that he would have risen to some rank +in the State, if it had not been for a crime of which he was clearly +convicted, and for which he afterwards suffered.--At the same time were +the two brothers C. and L. Caepasius, who, though men of an obscure +family, and little previous consequence, were yet, by mere dint of +application, suddenly promoted to the Quaestorship, with no other +recommendation than a provincial and unpolished kind of Oratory.--That I +may not seem to have put a wilful slight on any of the vociferous tribe, I +must also notice C. Cosconius Calidianus, who, without any discernment, +amused the people with a rapidity of language (if such it might be called) +which he attended with a perpetual hurry of action, and a most violent +exertion of his voice.--Of much the same cast was Q. Arrius, who may be +considered as a second-hand M. Crassus. He is a striking proof of what +consequence it is in such a city as ours to devote one's-self to the +occasions of _the many_, and to be as active as possible in promoting +their safety, or their honour. For by these means, though of the lowest +parentage, having raised himself to offices of rank, and to considerable +wealth and influence, he likewise acquired the reputation of a tolerable +patron, without either learning or abilities. But as inexperienced +champions, who, from a passionate desire to distinguish themselves in the +Circus, can bear the blows of their opponents without shrinking, are often +overpowered by the heat of the sun, when it is increased by the reflection +of the sand; so _he_, who had hitherto supported even the sharpest +encounters with good success, could not stand the severity of that year of +judicial contest, which blazed upon him like a summer's sun." + +"Upon my word," cried Atticus, "you are now treating us with the very +_dregs_ of Oratory, and you have entertained us in this manner for some +time: but I did not offer to interrupt you, because I never dreamed you +would have descended so low as to mention the _Staieni_ and _Autronii_!"-- +"As I have been speaking of the dead, you will not imagine, I suppose," +said I, "that I have done it to court their favour: but in pursuing the +order of history, I was necessarily led by degrees to a period of time +which falls within the compass of our own knowledge. But I wish it to be +noticed, that after recounting all who ever ventured to speak in public, +we find but few, (very few indeed!) whose names are worth recording; and +not many who had even the repute of being Orators. Let us, however, return +to our subject. T. Torquatus, then, the son of Titus, was a man of +learning, (which he first acquired in the school of Molo in Rhodes,) and +of a free and easy elocution which he received from Nature. If he had +lived to a proper age, he would have been chosen Consul, without any +canvassing; but he had more ability for speaking than inclination; _so_ +that, in fact, he did not do justice to the art he professed; and yet he +was never wanting to his duty, either in the private causes of his +friends and dependents, or in his senatorial capacity.--My townsman too, +P. Pontidius, pleaded a number of private causes. He had a rapidity of +expression, and a tolerable quickness of comprehension: but he was very +warm, and indeed rather too choleric and irascible; so that he often +wrangled not only with his antagonist, but (what appears very strange) +with the judge himself, whom it was rather his business to sooth and +gratify.--M. Messala, who was something younger than myself, was far from +being a poor and an abject Pleader, and yet he was not a very embellished +one. He was judicious, penetrating, and wary, very exact in digesting and +methodizing his subject, and a man of uncommon diligence and application, +and of very extensive practice.--As to the two Metelli (Celer and Nepos) +these also had a moderate share of employment at the bar; but being +destitute neither of learning nor abilities, they chiefly applied +themselves (and with some success) to debates of a more popular kind.--But +Caius Lentulus Marcellinus, who was never reckoned a bad Speaker, was +esteemed a very eloquent one in his Consulship. He wanted neither +sentiment, nor expression; his voice was sweet and sonorous; and he had a +sufficient stock of humour.--C. Memmius, the son of Lucius, was a perfect +adept in the _belles lettres_ of the Greeks; for he had an insuperable +disgust to the literature of the Romans. He was a neat and polished +Speaker, and had a sweet and harmonious turn of expression; but as he was +equally averse to every laborious effort either of the mind or the tongue, +his Eloquence declined in proportion as he lessened his application."-- +"But I heartily wish," said Brutus, "that you would give us your opinion +of those Orators who are still living; or, if you are determined to say +nothing of the rest, there are two at least, (that is Caesar and +Marcellus, whom I have often heard you speak of with the highest +approbation) whose characters would give me as much entertainment as any +of those you have already specified."--"But why," answered I, "would you +expect that I would give you my opinion of men who are as well known to +yourself as to me?"--"Marcellus, indeed," replied he, "I am very well +acquainted with; but as to Caesar, I know little of _him_. For I have +_heard_ the former very often: but, by the time I was able to judge for +myself, the latter had set out for his province."--"Mighty well," said I; +"and what think you of him you have heard so often?"--"What else can I +think," replied he, "but that you will soon have an Orator, who will very +nearly resemble yourself?"--"If that is the case," answered I, "pray think +of him as favourably as you can." "I do," said he; "for he pleases me very +highly; and not without reason. He is absolutely master of his trade, and, +neglecting every other profession, has applied himself solely to _this_; +and, for that purpose, has persevered in the rigorous task of composing a +daily Essay in writing. His words are well chosen; his language is full +and copious; and every thing he says receives an additional ornament from +the graceful tone of his voice, and the dignity of his action. In short, +he is so compleat an Orator, that there is no quality I know of, in which +I can think him deficient. But he is still more to be admired, for being +able, in these unhappy times, (which are marked with a distress that, by +some cruel fatality, has overwhelmed us all) to console himself, as +opportunity offers, with the consciousness of his own integrity, and by +the frequent renewal of his literary pursuits. I saw him lately at +Mitylene; and then (as I have already hinted) I saw him a thorough man. +For though I had before discovered in him a strong resemblance of +yourself, the likeness was much improved, after he was enriched by the +instructions of your learned, and very intimate friend Cratippus."-- +"Though I acknowledge," said I, "that I have listened with pleasure to +your Elogies on a very worthy man, for whom I have the warmest esteem, +they have led me insensibly to the recollection of our common miseries, +which our present conversation was intended to suspend. But I would +willingly hear what is Atticus's opinion of Caesar."--"Upon my word," +replied Atticus, "you are wonderfully consistent with your plan, to say +nothing _yourself_ of the living: and indeed, if you was to deal with +_them_, as you already have with the _dead_, and say something of every +paltry fellow that occurs to your memory, you would plague us with +_Autronii_ and _Steiani_ without end. But though you might possibly have +it in view not to incumber yourself with such a numerous crowd of +insignificant wretches; or perhaps, to avoid giving any one room to +complain that he was either unnoticed, or not extolled according to his +imaginary merit; yet, certainly, you might have said something of Caesar; +especially, as your opinion of _his_ abilities is well known to every +body, and his concerning _your's_ is very far from being a secret. But, +however," said he, (addressing himself to Brutus) "I really think of +Caesar, and every body else says the same of this accurate connoisseur in +the Art of Speaking, that he has the purest and the most elegant command +of the Roman language of all the Orators that have yet appeared: and that +not merely by domestic habit, as we have lately heard it observed of the +families of the Laelii and the Mucii, (though even here, I believe, this +might partly have been the case) but he chiefly acquired and brought it to +its present perfection, by a studious application to the most intricate +and refined branches of literature, and by a careful and constant +attention to the purity of his style. But that _he_, who, involved as he +was in a perpetual hurry of business, could dedicate to _you_, my Cicero, +a laboured Treatise on the Art of Speaking correctly; that _he_, who, in +the first book of it, laid it down as an axiom, that an accurate choice of +words is the foundation of Eloquence; and who has bestowed," said he, +(addressing himself again to Brutus) "the highest encomiums on this friend +of ours, who yet chooses to leave Caesar's character to _me_;--that _he_ +should be a perfect master of the language of polite conservation, is a +circumstance which is almost too obvious to be mentioned." "I said, _the +highest encomiums_," pursued Atticus, "because he says in so many words, +when he addresses himself to Cicero--_if others have bestowed all their +time and attention to acquire a habit of expressing themselves with ease +and correctness, how much is the name and dignity of the Roman people +indebted to you, who are the highest pattern, and indeed the first +inventor of that rich fertility of language which distinguishes your +performances?_"--Indeed," said Brutus, "I think he has extolled your merit +in a very friendly, and a very magnificent style: for you are not only the +_highest pattern_, and even the _first inventor_ of all our _fertility_ of +language, which alone is praise enough to content any reasonable man, but +you have added fresh honours to the name and dignity of the Roman people; +for the very excellence in which we had hitherto been conquered by the +vanquished Greeks, has now been either wrested from their hands, or +equally shared, at least, between us and them. So that I prefer this +honourable testimony of Caesar, I will not say to the public thanksgiving, +which was decreed for your _own_ military services, but to the triumphs of +many heroes."--"Very true," replied I, "provided this honourable testimony +was really the voice of Caesar's judgment, and not of his friendship: for +_he_ certainly has added more to the dignity of the Roman people, whoever +he may be (if indeed any such man has yet existed) who has not only +exemplified and enlarged, but first produced this rich fertility of +expression, than the doughty warrior who has stormed a few paltry castles +of the Ligurians, which have furnished us, you know, with many repeated +triumphs. In reality, if we can submit to hear the truth, it may be +asserted (to say nothing of those god-like plans, which, supported by the +wisdom of our Generals, has frequently saved the sinking State both abroad +and at home) that an Orator is justly entitled to the preference to any +Commander in a petty war. But the General, you will say, is the more +serviceable man to the public. Nobody denies it: and yet (for I am not +afraid of provoking your censure, in a conversation which leaves each of +us at liberty to say what he thinks) I had rather be the author of the +single Oration of Crassus, in defence of Curius, than be honoured with two +Ligurian triumphs. You will, perhaps, reply, that the storming a castle of +the Ligurians was a thing of more consequence to the State, than that the +claim of Curius should be ably supported. This I own to be true. But it +was also of more consequence to the Athenians, that their houses should be +securely roofed, than to have their city graced with a most beautiful +statue of Minerva: and yet, notwithstanding this, I would much rather have +been a Phidias, than the most skilful joiner in Athens. In the present +case, therefore, we are not to consider a man's usefulness, but the +strength of his abilities; especially as the number of painters and +statuaries, who have excelled in their profession, is very small; whereas, +there can never be any want of joiners and mechanic labourers. But +proceed, my Atticus, with Caesar; and oblige us with the remainder of his +character."--"We see then," said he, "from what has just been mentioned, +that a pure and correct style is the groundwork, and the very basis and +foundation, upon which an Orator must build his other accomplishments: +though, it is true, that those who had hitherto possessed it, derived it +more from early habit, than from any principles of art. It is needless to +refer you to the instances of Laelius and Scipio; for a purity of +language, as well as of manners, was the characteristic of the age they +lived in. It could not, indeed, be applied to every one; for their two +cotemporaries, Caecilius and Pacuvius, spoke very incorrectly: but yet +people in general, who had not resided out of the city, nor been corrupted +by any domestic barbarisms, spoke the Roman language with purity. Time, +however, as well at Rome as in Greece, soon altered matters for the worse: +for this city, (as had formerly been the case at Athens) was resorted to +by a crowd of adventurers from different parts, who spoke very corruptly; +which shews the necessity of reforming our language, and reducing it to a +certain standard, which shall not be liable to vary like the capricious +laws of custom. Though we were then very young, we can easily remember T. +Flaminius, who was joint-consul with Q. Metellus: he was supposed to speak +his native language with correctness, but was a man of no Literature. As +to Catulus, he was far indeed from being destitute of learning, as you +have already observed: but his reputed purity of diction was chiefly owing +to the sweetness of his voice, and the delicacy of his accent. Cotta, who, +by his broad pronunciation, threw off all resemblance of the elegant tone +of the Greeks, and affected a harsh and rustic utterance, quite opposite +to that of Catulus, acquired the same reputation of correctness by +pursuing a wild and unfrequented path. But Sisenna, who had the ambition +to think of reforming our phraseology, could not be lashed out of his +whimsical and new-fangled turns of expression, by all the raillery of C. +Rufius."--"What do you refer to?" said Brutus; "and who was the Caius +Rufius you are speaking of?"--"He was a noted prosecutor," replied he, +"some years ago. When this man had supported an indictment against one +Christilius, Sisenna, who was counsel for the defendant, told him, that +several parts of his accusation were absolutely _spitatical_. [Footnote: +In the original _sputatilica_, worthy to be spit upon. It appears, from +the connection, to have been a very unclassical word, whimsically derived +by the author of it from _sputa_, spittle.] _My Lords_, cried Rufius to +the judges, _I shall be cruelly over-reached, unless you give me your +assistance. His charge overpowers my comprehension; and I am afraid he has +some unfair design upon me. What, in the name of Heaven, can be intend by_ +SPITATICAL? _I know the meaning of_ SPIT, _or_ SPITTLE; _but this horrid_ +ATICAL, _at the end of it, absolutely puzzles me._ The whole Bench laughed +very heartily at the singular oddity of the expression: my old friend, +however, was still of opinion, that to speak correctly, was to speak +differently from other people. But Caesar, who was guided by the +principles of art, has corrected the imperfections of a vicious custom, by +adopting the rules and improvements of a good one, as he found them +occasionally displayed in the course of polite conversation. Accordingly, +to the purest elegance of expression, (which is equally necessary to every +well-bred Citizen, as to an Orator) he has added all the various ornaments +of Elocution; so that he seems to exhibit the finest painting in the most +advantageous point of view. As he has such extraordinary merit even in the +common run of his language, I must confess that there is no person I know +of, to whom he should yield the preference. Besides, his manner of +speaking, both as to his voice and gesture, is splendid and noble, without +the least appearance of artifice or affectation: and there is a dignity in +his very presence, which bespeaks a great and elevated mind."--"Indeed," +said Brutus, "his Orations please me highly; for I have had the +satisfaction to read several of them. He has likewise wrote some +commentaries, or short memoirs, of his own transactions;"--"and such," +said I, "as merit the highest approbation: for they are plain, correct, +and graceful, and divested of all the ornaments of language, so as to +appear (if I may be allowed the expression) in a kind of undress. But +while he pretended only to furnish the loose materials, for such as might +be inclined to compose a regular history, he may, perhaps, have gratified +the vanity of a few literary _Frisseurs_: but he has certainly prevented +all sensible men from attempting any improvement on his plan. For in +history, nothing is more pleasing than a correct and elegant brevity of +expression. With your leave, however, it is high time to return to those +Orators who have quitted the stage of life. C. Sicinius then, who was a +grandson of the Censor Q. Pompey, by one of his daughters, died after his +advancement to the Quaestorship. He was a Speaker of some merit and +reputation, which he derived from the system of Hermagoras; who, though he +furnished but little assistance for acquiring an ornamental style, gave +many useful precepts to expedite and improve the invention of an Orator. +For in this System we have a collection of fixed and determinate rules for +public speaking; which are delivered indeed without any shew or parade, +(and, I might have added, in a trivial and homely form) but yet are so +plain and methodical, that it is almost impossible to mistake the road. By +keeping close to these, and always digesting his subject before he +ventured to speak upon it, (to which we may add, that he had a tolerable +fluency of expression) he so far succeeded, without any other assistance, +as to be ranked among the pleaders of the day.--As to C. Visellius Varro, +who was my cousin, and a cotemporary of Sicinius, he was a man of great +learning. He died while he was a member of the Court of Inquests, into +which he had been admitted after the expiration of his Aedileship. The +public, I confess, had not the same opinion of his abilities that I have; +for he never passed as a man of Sterling Eloquence among the people. His +style was excessively quick and rapid, and consequently obscure; for, in +fact, it was embarrassed and blinded by the celerity of its course: and +yet, after all, you will scarcely find a man who had a better choice of +words, or a richer vein of sentiment. He had besides a complete fund of +polite literature, and a thorough knowledge of the principles of +jurisprudence, which he learned from his father Aculeo. To proceed in our +account of the dead, the next that presents himself is L. Torquatus, whom +you will not so readily pronounce a connoisseur in the Art of Speaking +(though he was by no means destitute of elocution) as, what is called by +the Greeks, _a political Adept_. He had a plentiful stock of learning, not +indeed of the common sort, but of a more abstruse and curious nature: he +had likewise an admirable memory, and a very sensible and elegant turn of +expression; all which qualities derived an additional grace from the +dignity of his deportment, and the integrity of his manners. I was also +highly pleased with the style of his cotemporary Triarius, which expressed +to perfection, the character of a worthy old gentleman, who had been +thoroughly polished by the refinements of Literature.--What a venerable +severity was there in his look! What forcible solemnity in his language! +and how thoughtful and deliberate every word he spoke!"--At the mention of +Torquatus and Triarius, for each of whom he had the most affectionate +veneration,--"It fills my heart with anguish," said Brutus, "(to omit a +thousand other circumstances) when I reflect, as I cannot help doing, on +your mentioning the names of these worthy men, that your long-respected +authority was insufficient to procure an accommodation of our differences. +The Republic would not otherwise have been deprived of these, and many +other excellent Citizens."--"Not a word more," said I, on this melancholy +subject, which can only aggravate our sorrow: for as the remembrance of +what is already past is painful enough, the prospect of what is yet to +come is still more cutting. Let us, therefore, drop our unavailing +complaints, and (agreeably to our plan) confine our attention to the +forensic merits of our deceased friends. Among those, then, who lost their +lives in this unhappy war, was M. Bibulus, who, though not a professed +orator, was a very accurate writer, and a solid and experienced advocate: +and Appius Claudius, your father-in-law, and my colleague and intimate +acquaintance, who was not only a hard student, and a man of learning, but +a practised Orator, a skilful Augurist and Civilian, and a thorough Adept +in the Roman History.--As to L. Domitius, he was totally unacquainted +with any rules of art; but he spoke his native language with purity, and +had a great freedom of address. We had likewise the two Lentuli, men of +consular dignity; one of whom, (I mean Publius) the avenger of my wrongs, +and the author of my restoration, derived all his powers and +accomplishments from the assistance of Art, and not from the bounty of +Nature: but he had such a great and noble disposition, that he claimed all +the honours of the most illustrious Citizens, and supported them with the +utmost dignity of character.--The other (L. Lentulus) was an animated +Speaker, for it would be saying too much, perhaps, to call him an Orator-- +but, unhappily, he had an utter aversion to the trouble of thinking. His +voice was sonorous; and his language, though not absolutely harsh and +forbidding, was warm and rigorous, and carried in it a kind of terror. In +a judicial trial, you would probably have wished for a more agreeable and +a keener advocate: but in a debate on matters of government, you would +have thought his abilities sufficient.--Even Titus Postumius had such +powers of utterance, as were not to be despised: but in political matters, +he spoke with the same unbridled ardour he fought with: in short, he was +much too warm; though it must be owned he possessed an extensive knowledge +of the laws and constitution of his country."--"Upon my word," cried +Atticus, "if the persons you have mentioned were still living, I should be +apt to imagine, that you was endeavouring to solicit their favour. For you +introduce every body who had the courage to stand up and speak his mind: +so that I almost begin to wonder how M. Servilius has escaped your +notice."--"I am, indeed, very sensible," replied I, "that there have been +many who never spoke in public, that were much better qualified for the +talk, than those Orators I have taken the pains to enumerate: [Footnote: +This was probably intended as an indirect Compliment to Atticus.] but I +have, at least, answered one purpose by it, which is to shew you, that in +this populous City, we have not had very many who had the resolution to +speak at all; and that even among these, there have been few who were +entitled to our applause. I cannot, therefore, neglect to take some notice +of those worthy knights, and my intimate friends, very lately deceased, P. +Comminius Spoletinus, against whom I pleaded in defence of C. Cornelius, +and who was a methodical, a spirited, and a ready Speaker; and T. Accius, +of Pisaurum, to whom I replied in behalf of A. Cluentius, and who was an +accurate, and a tolerably copious Advocate: he was also well instructed in +the precepts of Hermagoras, which, though of little service to embellish +and enrich our Elocution, furnish a variety of arguments, which, like the +weapons of the light infantry, may be readily managed, and are adapted to +every subject of debate. I must add, that I never knew a man of greater +industry and application. As to C. Piso, my son-in-law, it is scarcely +possible to mention any one who was blessed with a finer capacity. He was +constantly employed either in public speaking, and private declamatory +exercises, or, at least, in writing and thinking: and, consequently, he +made such a rapid progress, that he rather seemed to fly than to run. He +had an elegant choice of expression, and the structure of his periods was +perfectly neat and harmonious; he had an astonishing variety and strength +of argument, and a lively and agreeable turn of sentiment: and his gesture +was naturally so graceful, that it appeared to have been formed (which it +really was not) by the nicest rules of art. I am rather fearful, indeed, +that I should be thought to have been prompted by my affection for him to +have given him a greater character than he deserved: but this is so far +from being the case, that I might justly have ascribed to him many +qualities of a different and more valuable nature: for in continence, +social piety, and every other kind of virtue, there was scarcely any of +his cotemporaries who was worthy to be compared with him.--M. Caelius too +must not pass unnoticed, notwithstanding the unhappy change, either of his +fortune or disposition, which marked the latter part of his life. As long +as he was directed by my influence, he behaved himself so well as a +Tribune of the people, that no man supported the interests of the Senate, +and of all the good and virtuous, in opposition to the factious and unruly +madness of a set of abandoned citizens, with more firmness than _he_ did: +a part in which he was enabled to exert himself to great advantage, by the +force and dignity of his language, and his lively humour, and genteel +address. He spoke several harangues in a very sensible style, and three +spirited invectives, which originated from our political disputes: and his +defensive speeches, though not equal to the former, were yet tolerably +good, and had a degree of merit which was far from being contemptible. +After he had been advanced to the Aedileship, by the hearty approbation of +all the better sort of citizens, as he had lost my company (for I was then +abroad in Cilicia) he likewise lost himself; and entirely sunk his credit, +by imitating the conduct of those very men, whom he had before so +successfully opposed.--But M. Calidius has a more particular claim to our +notice for the singularity of his character; which cannot so properly be +said to have entitled him to a place among our other Orators, as to +distinguish him from the whole fraternity; for in him we beheld the most +uncommon, and the most delicate sentiments, arrayed in the softest and +finest language imaginable. Nothing could be so easy as the turn and +compass of his periods; nothing so ductile; nothing more pliable and +obsequious to his will, so that he had a greater command of it than any +Orator whatever. In short, the flow of his language was so pure and +limpid, that nothing could be clearer; and so free, that it was never +clogged or obstructed. Every word was exactly in the place where it should +be, and disposed (as Lucilius expresses it) with as much nicety as in a +curious piece of Mosaic-work. We may add, that he had not a single +expression which was either harsh, unnatural, abject, or far-fetched; and +yet he was so far from confining himself to the plain and ordinary mode of +speaking, that he abounded greatly in the metaphor,--but such metaphors as +did not appear to usurp a post that belonged to another, but only to +occupy their own. These delicacies were displayed not in a loose and +disfluent style; but in such a one as was strictly _numerous_, without +_either_ appearing to be so, or running on with a dull uniformity of +sound. He was likewise master of the various ornaments of language and +sentiment which the Greeks call _figures_, whereby he enlivened and +embellished his style as with so many forensic decorations. We may add +that he readily discovered, upon all occasions, what was the real point of +debate, and where the stress of the argument lay; and that his method of +ranging his ideas was extremely artful, his action genteel, and his whole +manner very engaging and very sensible. In short, if to speak agreeably is +the chief merit of an Orator, you will find no one who was better +qualified than Calidius. But as we have observed a little before, that it +is the business of an Orator to instruct, to please, and _to move the +passions_; he was, indeed, perfectly master of the two first; for no one +could better elucidate his subject, or charm the attention of his +audience. But as to the third qualification,--the moving and alarming the +passions,--which is of much greater efficacy than the two former, he was +wholly destitute of it. He had no force,--no exertion;--either by his own +choice, and from an opinion that those who had a loftier turn of +expression, and a more warm and spirited action, were little betther than +madmen; or because it was contrary to his natural temper, and habitual +practice; or, lastly, because it was beyond the strength of his abilities. +If, indeed, it is a useless quality, his want of it was a real excellence: +but if otherwise, it was certainly a defect. I particularly remember, that +when he prosecuted Q. Gallius for an attempt to poison him, and pretended +that he had the plainest proofs of it, and could produce many letters, +witnesses, informations, and other evidences to put the truth of his +charge beyond a doubt, interspersing many sensible and ingenious remarks +on the nature of the crime;--I remember, I say, that when it came to my +turn to reply to him, after urging every argument which the case itself +suggested, I insisted upon it as a material circumstance in favour of my +client, that the prosecutor, while he charged him with a design against +his life, and assured us that he had the most indubitable proofs of it +then in his hands, related his story with as much ease, and as much +calmness, and indifference, as if nothing had happened."--"Would it have +been possible," said I, (addressing myself to Calidius) "that you should +speak with this air of unconcern, unless the charge was purely an +invention of your own? and, above all, that you, whose Eloquence has often +vindicated the wrongs of other people with so much spirit, should speak so +coolly of a crime which threatened your life? Where was that expression of +resentment which is so natural to the injured? Where that ardour, that +eagerness, which extorts the most pathetic language even from men of the +dullest capacities? There was no visible disorder in your mind, no emotion +in your looks and gesture, no smiting of the thigh or the forehead, nor +even a single stamp of the foot. You was, therefore, so far from +interesting our passions in your favour, that we could scarcely keep our +eyes open, while you was relating the dangers you had so narrowly escaped. +Thus we employed the natural defect, or if you please, the sensible +calmness of an excellent Orator, as an argument to invalidate his +charge."--"But is it possible to doubt," cried Brutus, "whether this was a +sensible quality, or a defect? For as the greatest merit of an Orator is +to be able to inflame the passions, and give them such a biass as shall +best answer his purpose; he who is destitute of this must certainly be +deficient in the most capital part of his profession."--"I am of the same +opinion," said I; "but let us now proceed to him (Hortensius) who is the +only remaining Orator worth noticing; after which, as you may seem to +insist upon it, I shall say something of myself. I must first, however, do +justice to the memory of two promising youths, who, if they had lived to a +riper age, would have acquired the highest reputation for their +Eloquence."--"You mean, I suppose," said Brutus, "C. Curio, and C. +Licinius Calvus."--"The very same," replied I. "One of them, besides his +plausible manner, had such an easy and voluble flow of expression, and +such an inexhaustible variety, and sometimes accuracy of sentiment, that +he was one of the most ready and ornamental speakers of his time. Though +he had received but little instruction from the professed masters of the +art, Nature had furnished him with an admirable capacity of the practice +of it. I never, indeed, discovered in him any great degree of application; +but he was certainly very ambitious to distinguish himself; and if he had +continued to listen to my advice, as he had begun to do, he would have +preferred the acquisition of real honour to that of untimely grandeur."-- +"What do you mean," said Brutus? "Or in what manner are these two objects +to be distinguished?"--"I distinguish them thus," replied I: "As honour is +the reward of virtue, conferred upon a man by the choice and affection of +his fellow-citizens, he who obtains it by their free votes and suffrages +is to be considered, in my opinion, as an honourable member of the +community. But he who acquires his power and authority by taking advantage +of every unhappy incident, and without the consent of his fellow-citizens, +as Curio aimed to do, acquires only the name of honour, without the +substance. Whereas, if he had hearkened to me, he would have risen to the +highest dignity, in an honourable manner, and with the hearty approbation +of all men, by a gradual advancement to public offices, as his father and +many other eminent citizens had done before. I often gave the same advice +to P. Crassus, the son of Marcus, who courted my friendship in the early +part of his life; and recommended it to him very warmly, to consider +_that_ as the truest path to honour which had been already marked out to +him by the example of his ancestors. For he had been extremely well +educated, and was perfectly versed in every branch of polite literature: +he had likewise a penetrating genius, and an elegant variety of +expression; and appeared grave and sententious without arrogance, and +modest and diffident without dejection. But like many other young men he +was carried away by the tide of ambition; and after serving a short time +with reputation as a volunteer, nothing could satisfy him but to try his +fortune as a General,--an employment which was confined by the wisdom of +our ancestors to men who had arrived at a certain age, and who, even then, +were obliged to submit their pretensions to the uncertain issue of a +public decision. Thus, by exposing himself to a fatal catastrophe, while +he was endeavouring to rival the fame of Cyrus and Alexander, who lived to +finish their desperate career, he lost all resemblance of L. Crassus, and +his other worthy Progenitors. + +"But let us return to Calvus whom we have just mentioned,--an Orator who +had received more literary improvements than Curio, and had a more +accurate and delicate manner of speaking, which he conducted with great +taste and elegance; but, (by being too minute and nice a critic upon +himself,) while he was labouring to correct and refine his language, he +suffered all the force and spirit of it to evaporate. In short, it was so +exquisitely polished, as to charm the eye of every skilful observer; but +it was little noticed by the common people in a crowded Forum, which is +the proper theatre of Eloquence."--"His aim," said Brutus, "was to be +admired as an _Attic_ Orator: and to this we must attribute that accurate +exility of style, which he constantly affected."--"This, indeed, was his +professed character," replied I: "but he was deceived himself, and led +others into the same mistake. It is true, whoever supposes that to speak +in the _Attic_ taste, is to avoid every awkward, every harsh, every +vicious expression, has, in this sense, an undoubted right to refuse his +approbation to every thing which is not strictly _Attic_. For he must +naturally detest whatever is insipid, disgusting, or invernacular; while +he considers a correctness and propriety of language as the religion, and +good-manners of an Orator:--and every one who pretends to speak in public +should adopt the same opinion. But if he bestows the name of Atticism on a +half-starved, a dry, and a niggardly turn of expression, provided it is +neat, correct, and genteel, I cannot say, indeed, that he bestows it +improperly; as the Attic Orators, however, had many qualities of a more +important nature, I would advise him to be careful that he does not +overlook their different kinds and degrees of merit, and their great +extent and variety of character. The Attic Speakers, he will tell me, are +the models upon which he wishes to form his Eloquence. But which of them +does he mean to fix upon? for they are not all of the same cast. Who, for +instance, could be more unlike each other than Demosthenes and Lysias? or +than Demosthenes and Hyperides? Or who more different from either of them, +than Aeschines? Which of them, then, do you propose to imitate? If only +_one_, this will be a tacit implication, that none of the rest were true +masters of Atticism: if _all_, how can you possibly succeed, when their +characters are so opposite? Let me further ask you, whether Demetrius +Phalereus spoke in the Attic style? In my opinion, his Orations have the +very smell of Athens. But he is certainly more florid than either +Hyperides or Lysias; partly from the natural turn of his genius, and +partly by choice. There were likewise two others, at the time we are +speaking of, whose characters were equally dissimilar; and yet both of +them were truly _Attic_. The first (Charisius) was the author of a number +of speeches, which he composed for his friends, professedly in imitation +of Lysias:--and the other (Demochares, the nephew of Demosthenes) wrote +several Orations, and a regular History of what was transacted in Athens +under his own observation; not so much, indeed, in the style of an +Historian, as of an Orator. Hegesias took the former for his model, and +had so vain a conceit of his own taste for Atticism, that he considered +his predecessors, who were really masters of it, as mere rustics in +comparison of himself. But what can be more insipid, more frivolous, or +more puerile, than that very concinnity of expression which he actually +acquired?"--"_But still we wish to resemble the Attic Speakers_."--"Do so, +by all means. But were not those, then, true Attic Speakers, we have just +been mentioning?"--"_Nobody denies it; and these are the men we +imitate._"--"But how? when they are so very different, not only from each +other, but from all the rest of their contemporaries?"--"_True; but +Thucydides is our leading pattern_."--"This too I can allow, if you design +to compose histories, instead of pleading causes. For Thucydides was both +an exact, and a stately historian: but he never intended to write models +for conducting a judicial process. I will even go so far as to add, that I +have often commended the speeches which he has inserted into his history +in great numbers; though I must frankly own, that I neither _could_ +imitate them, if I _would,_ nor indeed _would,_ if I _could;_ like a man +who would neither choose his wine so new as to have been turned off in the +preceding vintage, nor so excessively old as to date its age from the +consulship of Opimius or Anicius."--"_The latter_, you'll say, _bears the +highest price_." "Very probable; but when it has too much age, it has lost +that delicious flavour which pleases the palate, and, in my opinion, is +scarcely tolerable."--"_Would you choose, then, when you have a mind to +regale yourself, to apply to a fresh, unripened cask?_" "By no means; but +still there is a certain age, when good wine arrives at its utmost +perfection. In the same manner, I would recommend neither a raw, +unmellowed style, which, (if I may so express myself) has been newly drawn +off from the vat; nor the rough, and antiquated language of the grave and +manly Thucydides. For even _he_, if he had lived a few years later, would +have acquired a much softer and mellower turn of expression."--"_Let us, +then, imitate Demosthenes_."--"Good Gods! to what else do I direct all my +endeavours, and my wishes! But it is, perhaps, my misfortune not to +succeed. These _Atticisers_, however, acquire with ease the paltry +character they aim at; not once recollecting that it is not only recorded +in history, but must have been the natural consequence of his superior +fame, that when Demosthenes was to speak in public, all Greece flocked in +crowds to hear him. But when our _Attic_ gentry venture to speak, they are +presently deserted not only by the little throng around them who have no +interest in the dispute, (which alone is a mortifying proof of their +insignificance) but even by their associates and fellow-advocates. If to +speak, therefore, in a dry and lifeless manner, is the true criterion of +Atticism, they are heartily welcome to enjoy the credit of it: but if they +wish to put their abilities to the trial, let them attend the Comitia, or +a judicial process of real importance. The open Forum demands a fuller, +and more elevated tone: and _he_ is the Orator for me, who is so +universally admired that when he is to plead an interesting cause, all the +benches are filled beforehand, the tribunal crowded, the clerks and +notaries busy in adjusting their seats, the populace thronging about the +rostra, and the judge brisk, and vigilant;--_he_, who has such a +commanding air, that when he rises up to speak, the whole audience is +hushed into a profound silence, which is soon interrupted by their +repeated plaudits, and acclamations, or by those successive bursts of +laughter, or violent transports of passion, which he knows how to excite +at his pleasure; so that even a distant observer, though unacquainted with +the subject he is speaking upon, can easily discover that his hearers are +pleased with him, and that a _Roscius_ is performing his part on the +stage. Whoever has the happiness to be thus followed and applauded is, +beyond dispute, an _Attic_ speaker: for such was Pericles,--such was +Hyperides, and Aeschines,--and such, in the most eminent degree, was the +great Demosthenes! If indeed, these connoisseurs, who have so much dislike +to every thing bold and ornamental, only mean to say that an accurate, a +judicious, and a neat, and compact, but unembellished style, is really an +_Attic_ one, they are not mistaken. For in an art of such wonderful extent +and variety as that of speaking, even this subtile and confined character +may claim a place: so that the conclusion will be, that it is very +possible to speak in the _Attic_ taste, without deserving the name of an +Orator; but that all in general who are truly eloquent, are likewise +_Attic_ Speakers.--It is time, however, to return to Hortensius."--" +Indeed, I think so," cried Brutus: "though I must acknowledge that this +long digression of yours has entertained me very agreeably." + +"But I made some remarks," said Atticus, "which I had several times a mind +to mention; only I was loath to interrupt you. As your discourse, however, +seems to be drawing towards an end, I think I may venture to out with +them."--"By all means," replied I.--"I readily grant, then," said he, +"that there is something very humourous and elegant in that continued +_Irony_, which Socrates employs to so much advantage in the dialogues of +Plato, Xenophon, and Aeschines. For when a dispute commences on the nature +of wisdom, he professes, with a great deal of humour and ingenuity, to +have no pretensions to it himself; while, with a kind of concealed +raillery, he ascribes the highest degree of it to those who had the +arrogance to lay an open claim to it. Thus, in Plato, he extols +Protagoras, Hippias, Prodicus, Gorgias, and several others, to the skies: +but represents himself as a mere ignorant. This in _him_ was peculiarly +becoming; nor can I agree with Epicurus, who thinks it censurable. But in +a professed History, (for such, in fact, is the account you have been +giving us of the Roman Orators) I shall leave you to judge, whether an +application of the _Irony_ is not equally reprehensible, as it would be in +giving a judicial evidence."--"Pray, what are you driving at," said I,-- +"for I cannot comprehend you."--"I mean," replied he, "in the first place, +that the commendations which you have bestowed upon some of our Orators, +have a tendency to mislead the opinion of those who are unacquainted with +their true characters. There were likewise several parts of your account, +at which I could scarcely forbear laughing: as, for instance, when you +compared old Cato to Lysias. He was, indeed, a great, and a very +extraordinary man. Nobody, I believe, will say to the contrary. But shall +we call him an Orator? Shall we pronounce him the rival of Lysias, who was +the most finished character of the kind? If we mean to jest, this +comparison of your's would form a pretty _Irony_: but if we are talking in +real earnest, we should pay the same scrupulous regard to truth, as if we +were giving evidence upon oath. As a Citizen, a Senator, a General, and, +in short, a man who was distinguished by his prudence, his activity, and +every other virtue, your favourite Cato has my highest approbation. I can +likewise applaud his speeches, considering the time he lived in. They +exhibit the out-lines of a great genius; but such, however, as are +evidently rude and imperfect. In the same manner, when you represented his +_Antiquities_ as replete with all the graces of Oratory, and compared Cato +with Philistus and Thucydides, did you really imagine, that you could +persuade me and Brutus to believe you? or would you seriously degrade +those, whom none of the Greeks themselves have been able to equal, into a +comparison with a stiff country, gentleman, who scarcely suspected that +there was any such thing in being, as a copious and ornamental style? You +have likewise said much in commendation of Galba;--if as the best Speaker +of his age, I can so far agree with you, for such was the character he +bore:--but if you meant to recommend him as an _Orator_, produce his +Orations (for they are still extant) and then tell me honestly, whether +you would wish your friend Brutus here to speak as _he_? Lepidus too was +the author of several Speeches, which have received your approbation; in +which I can partly join with you, if you consider them only as specimens +of our ancient Eloquence. The same might be said of Africanus and Laelius, +than whose language (you tell us) nothing in the world can be sweeter: +nay, you have mentioned it with a kind of veneration, and endeavoured to +dazzle our judgment by the great character they bore, and the uncommon +elegance of their manners. Divest it of these adventitious Graces, and +this sweet language of theirs will appear so homely, as to be scarcely +worth noticing. Carbo too was mentioned as one of our capital Orators; and +for this only reason,--that in speaking, as in all other professions, +whatever is the best of its kind, for the time being, how deficient soever +in reality, is always admired and applauded. What I have said of Carbo, is +equally true of the Gracchi: though, in some particulars, the character +you have given them was no more than they deserved. But to say nothing of +the rest of your Orators, let us proceed to Antonius and Crassus, your two +paragons of Eloquence, whom I have heard myself, and who were certainly +very able Speakers. To the extraordinary commendation you have bestowed +upon them, I can readily give my assent; but not, however, in such an +unlimited manner as to persuade myself that you have received as much +improvement from the Speech in support of the Servilian Law, as Lysippus +said he had done by studying the famous [Footnote: _Doryphorus_. A Spear- +man.] statue of Polycletus. What you have said on _this_ occasion I +consider as an absolute _Irony:_ but I shall not inform you why I think +so, lest you should imagine I design to flatter you. I shall therefore +pass over the many fine encomiums you have bestowed upon _these_; and what +you have said of Cotta and Sulpicius, and but very lately of your pupil +Caelius. I acknowledge, however, that we may call them Orators: but as to +the nature and extent of their merit, let your own judgment decide. It is +scarcely worth observing, that you have had the additional good-nature to +crowd so many daubers into your list, that there are some, I believe, who +will be ready to wish they had died long ago, that you might have had an +opportunity to insert _their_ names among the rest."--"You have opened a +wide field of enquiry," said I, "and started a subject which deserves a +separate discussion; but we must defer it to a more convenient time. For, +to settle it, a great variety of authors must be examined, and especially +_Cato_: which could not fail to convince you, that nothing was wanting to +complete his pieces, but those rich and glowing colours which had not then +been invented. As to the above Oration of Crassus, he himself, perhaps, +could have written better, if he had been willing to take the trouble; but +nobody else, I believe, could have mended it. You have no reason, +therefore, to think I spoke _ironically_, when I mentioned it as the guide +and _tutoress_ of my Eloquence: for though you seem to have a higher +opinion of my capacity, in its present state, you must remember that, in +our youth, we could find nothing better to imitate among the Romans. And +as to my admitting so _many_ into my list of Orators, I only did it (as I +have already observed) to shew how few have succeeded in a profession, in +which all were desirous to excel. I therefore insist upon it that you do +not consider _me_ in the present case, as an _Ironist_; though we are +informed by C. Fannius, in his History, that _Africanus_ was a very +excellent one."--"As you please about _that_," cried Atticus: "though, by +the bye, I did not imagine it would have been any disgrace to you, to be +what Africanus and Socrates have been before you."--"We may settle _this_ +another time," interrupted Brutus: "but will you be so obliging," said he, +(addressing himself to _me_) "as to give us a critical analysis of some of +the old speeches you have mentioned?"--"Very willingly," replied I; "but +it must be at Cuma, or Tusculum, when opportunity offers: for we are near +neighbours, you know, in both places. At present, let us return to +_Hortensius_, from whom we have digressed a second time." + +"Hortensius, then, who began to speak in public when he was very young, +was soon employed even in causes of the greatest moment: and though he +first appeared in the time of Cotta and Sulpicius, (who were only ten +years older) and when Crassus and Antonius, and afterwards Philip and +Julius, were in the height of their reputation, he was thought worthy to +be compared with either of them in point of Eloquence. He had such an +excellent memory as I never knew in any person; so that what he had +composed in private, he was able to repeat, without notes, in the very +same words he had made use of at first. He employed this natural advantage +with so much readiness, that he not only recollected whatever he had +written or premeditated himself, but remembered every thing that had been +said by his opponents, without the help of a prompter. He was likewise +inflamed with such a passionate fondness for the profession, that I never +saw any one, who took more pains to improve himself; for he would not +suffer a day to elapse, without either speaking in the Forum, or composing +something at home; and very often he did both in the same day. He had, +besides, a turn of expression which was very far from being low and +unelevated; and possessed two other accomplishments, in which no one could +equal him,--an uncommon clearness and accuracy in stating the points he +was to speak to; and a neat and easy manner of collecting the substance of +what had been said by his antagonist, and by himself. He had likewise an +elegant choice of words, an agreeable flow in his periods, and a copious +Elocution, which he was partly indebted for to a fine natural capacity, +and partly acquired by the most laborious rhetorical exercises. In short, +he had a most retentive view of his subject, and always divided and +parcelled it out with the greatest exactness; and he very seldom +overlooked any thing which the case could suggest, that was proper either +to support his _own_ allegations, or to refute those of his opponent. +Lastly, he had a sweet and sonorous voice; and his gesture had rather more +art in it, and was more exactly managed, than is requisite to an Orator. + +"While _he_ was in the height of his glory, Crassus died, Cotta was +banished, our public trials were intermitted by the Marsic war, and I +myself made my first appearance in the Forum. Hortensius joined the army, +and served the first campaign as a volunteer, and the second as a military +Tribune: Sulpicius was made a lieutenant general; and Antonius was absent +on a similar account. The only trial we had, was that upon the Varian Law; +the rest, as I have just observed, having been intermitted by the war. We +had scarcely any body left at the bar but L. Memmius, and Q. Pompeius, who +spoke mostly on their own affairs; and, though far from being Orators of +the first distinction, were yet tolerable ones, (if we may credit +Philippus, who was himself a man of some Eloquence) and in supporting an +evidence, displayed all the poignancy of a prosecutor, with a moderate +freedom of Elocution. The rest, who were esteemed our capital Speakers, +were then in the magistracy, and I had the benefit of hearing their +harangues almost every day. C. Curio was chosen a Tribune of the people; +though he left off speaking after being once deserted by his whole +audience. To him I may add Q. Metellus Celer, who, though certainly no +Orator, was far from being destitute of utterance: but Q. Varius, C. +Carbo, and Cn. Pomponius, were men of real Elocution, and might almost be +said to have lived upon the Rostra. C. Julius too, who was then a Curule +Aedile, was daily employed in making Speeches to the people, which were +composed with great neatness and accuracy. But while I attended the Forum +with this eager curiosity, my first disappointment was the banishment of +Cotta: after which I continued to hear the rest with the same assiduity as +before; and though I daily spent the remainder of my time in reading, +writing, and private declamation, I cannot say that I much relished my +confinement to these preparatory exercises. The next year Q. Varius was +condemned, and banished, by his own law: and I, that I might acquire a +competent knowledge of the principles of jurisprudence, then attached +myself to Q. Scaevola, the son of Publius, who, though he did not choose +to undertake the charge of a pupil, yet by freely giving his advice to +those who consulted him, he answered every purpose of instruction to such +as took the trouble to apply to him. In the succeeding year, in which +Sylla and Pompey were Consuls, as Sulpicius, who was elected a Tribune of +the people, had occasion to speak in public almost every day, I had an +opportunity to acquaint myself thoroughly with his manner of speaking. At +this time Philo, a philosopher of the first name _in the Academy_, with +many of the principal Athenians, having deserted their native home, and +fled to Rome, from the fury of Mithridates, I immediately became his +scholar, and was exceedingly taken with his philosophy; and, besides the, +pleasure I received from the great variety and sublimity of his matter, I +was still more inclined to confine, my attention to that study; because +there was reason to apprehend that our laws and judicial proceedings would +be wholly overturned by the continuance of the public disorders. In the +same year Sulpicius lost his life; and Q. Catulus, M. Antonius, and C. +Julius, three Orators, who were partly cotemporary with each other, were +most inhumanly put to death. Then also I attended the lectures of Molo the +Rhodian, who was newly come to Rome, and was both an excellent Pleader, +and an able Teacher of the Art. I have mentioned these particulars, which, +perhaps, may appear foreign to our purpose, that _you_, my Brutus, (for +Atticus is already acquainted with them) may be able to mark my progress, +and observe how closely I trod upon the heels of Hortensius. + +"The three following years the city was free from the tumult of arms; but +either by the death, the voluntary retirement, or the flight of our ablest +Orators (for even M. Crassus, and the two Lentuli, who were then in the +bloom of youth, had all left us) Hortensius, of course, was the first +Speaker in the Forum. Antistius too was daily rising into reputation,-- +Piso pleaded pretty often,--Pomponius not so frequently,--Carbo very +seldom,--and Philippus only once or twice. In the mean while I pursued my +studies of every kind, day and night, with unremitting application. I +lodged and boarded at my own house [where he lately died] Diodotus the +Stoic; whom I employed as my preceptor in various other parts of learning, +but particularly in Logic, which may be considered as a close and +contracted species of Eloquence; and without which, you yourself have +declared it impossible to acquire that full and perfect Eloquence, which +they suppose to be an open and dilated kind of Logic. Yet with all my +attention to Diodotus, and the various arts he was master of, I never +suffered even a single day to escape me, without some exercise of the +oratorial kind. I constantly declaimed in private with M. Piso, Q. +Pompeius, or some other of my acquaintance; pretty often in Latin, but +much oftener in Greek; because the Greek furnishes a greater variety of +ornaments, and an opportunity of imitating and introducing them into the +Latin; and because the Greek masters, who were far the best, could not +correct and improve us, unless we declaimed in that language. This time +was distinguished by a violent struggle to restore the liberty of the +Republic:--the barbarous slaughter of the three Orators, Scaevola, Carbo, +and Antistius;--the return of Cotta, Curio, Crassus, Pompey, and the +Lentuli;--the re-establishment of the laws and courts of judicature;--and +the intire restoration of the Commonwealth: but we lost Pomponius, +Censorinus, and Murena, from the roll of Orators. + +"I now began, for the _first_ time, to undertake the management of causes, +both private and public; not, as most did, with a view to learn my +profession, but to make a trial of the abilities which I had taken so much +pains to acquire. I had then a second opportunity of attending the +instructions of Molo; who came to Rome, while Sylla was Dictator, to +sollicit the payment of what was due to his countrymen, for their services +in the Mithridatic war. My defence of Sext. Roscius, which was the first +cause I pleaded, met with such a favourable reception, that, from that +moment, I was looked upon as an advocate of the first class, and equal to +the greatest and most important causes: and after this I pleaded many +others, which I pre-composed with all the care and accuracy I was master +of. + +"But as you seem desirous not so much to be acquainted with any incidental +marks of my character, or the first sallies of my youth, as to know me +thoroughly, I shall mention some particulars, which otherwise might have +seemed unnecessary. At this time my body was exceedingly weak and +emaciated; my neck long, and slender; a shape and habit, which I thought +to be liable to great risk of life, if engaged in any violent fatigue, or +labour of the lungs. And it gave the greater alarm to those who had a +regard for me, that I used to speak without any remission or variation, +with the utmost stretch of my voice, and a total agitation of my body. +When my friends, therefore, and physicians, advised me to meddle no more +with forensic causes, I resolved to run any hazard, rather than quit the +hopes of glory, which I had proposed to myself from pleading: but when I +considered, that by managing my voice, and changing my way of speaking, I +might both avoid all future danger of that kind, and speak with greater +ease, I took a resolution of travelling into Asia, merely for an +opportunity to correct my manner of speaking. So that after I had been two +years at the Bar, and acquired some reputation in the Forum, I left Rome. +When I came to Athens, I spent six months with Antiochus, the principal +and most judicious Philosopher of _the old Academy_; and under this able +master, I renewed those philosophical studies which I had laboriously +cultivated and improved from my earliest youth. At the same time, however, +I continued my _rhetorical Exercises_ under Demetrius the Syrian, an +experienced and reputable master of the Art of Speaking. + +"After leaving Athens, I traversed every part of Asia, where I was +voluntarily attended by the principal Orators of the country with whom I +renewed my rhetorical Exercises. The chief of them was Menippus of +Stratonica, the most eloquent of all the Asiatics: and if to be neither +tedious nor impertinent is the characteristic of an Attic Orator, he may +be justly ranked in that class. Dionysius also of Magnesia, Aeschilus of +Cnidos, and Xenocles of Adramyttus, who were esteemed the first +Rhetoricians of Asia, were continually with me. Not contented with these, +I went to Rhodes, and applied myself again to Molo, whom I had heard +before at Rome; and who was both an experienced pleader, and a fine +writer, and particularly judicious in remarking the faults of his +scholars, as well as in his method of teaching and improving them. His +principal trouble with me, was to restrain the luxuriancy of a juvenile +imagination, always ready to overflow its banks, within its due and proper +channel. Thus, after an excursion of two years, I returned to Italy, not +only much improved, but almost changed into a new man. The vehemence of my +voice and action was considerably abated; the excessive ardour of my +language was corrected; my lungs were strengthened; and my whole +constitution confirmed and settled. + +"Two Orators then reigned in the Forum; (I mean Cotta and Hortensius) +whose glory fired my emulation. Cotta's way of speaking was calm and easy, +and distinguished by the flowing elegance and propriety of his language. +The other was splendid, warm, and animated; not such as you, my Brutus, +have seen him when he had shed the blossom of his eloquence, but far more +lively and pathetic both in his style and action. As Hortensius, +therefore, was nearer to me in age, and his manner more agreeable to the +natural ardour of my temper, I considered him as the proper object of my +competition. For I observed that when they were both engaged in the same +cause, (as for instance, when they defended M. Canuleius, and Cn. +Dolabella, a man of consular dignity) though Cotta was generally employed +to open the defence, the most important parts of it were left to the +management of Hortensius. For a crowded audience, and a clamorous Forum, +require an Orator who is lively, animated, full of action, and able to +exert his voice to the highest pitch. The first year, therefore, after my +return from Asia, I undertook several capital causes; and in the interim I +put up as a candidate for the Quaestorship, Cotta for the Consulate, and +Hortensius for the Aedileship. After I was chosen Quaestor, I passed a +year in Sicily, the province assigned to me by lot: Cotta went as Consul +into Gaul: and Hortensius, whose new office required his presence at Rome, +was left of course the undisputed sovereign of the Forum. In the +succeeding year, when I returned from Sicily, my oratorial talents, such +as they were, displayed themselves in their full perfection and maturity. + +"I have been saying too much, perhaps, concerning myself: but my design in +it was not to make a parade of my eloquence and ability, which I have no +temptation to do, but only to specify the pains and labour which I have +taken to improve it. After spending the five succeeding years in pleading +a variety of causes, and with the ablest Advocates of the time, I was +declared an Aedile, and undertook the patronage of the Sicilians against +Hortensius, who was then one of the Consuls elect. But as the subject of +our conversation not only requires an historical detail of Orators, but +such preceptive remarks as may be necessary to elucidate their characters; +it will not be improper to make some observations of this kind upon that +of Hortensius. After his appointment to the consulship (very probably, +because he saw none of consular dignity who were able to rival him, and +despised the competition of others of inferior rank) he began to remit +that intense application which he had hitherto persevered in from his +childhood; and having settled himself in very affluent circumstances, he +chose to live for the future what he thought an _easy_ life, but which, in +truth, was rather an indolent one. In the three succeeding years, the +beauty of his colouring was so much impaired, as to be very perceptible to +a skilful connoisseur, though not to a common observer. After that, he +grew every day more unlike himself than before, not only in other parts of +Eloquence, but by a gradual decay of the former celerity and elegant +texture of his language. I, at the same time, spared no pains to improve +and enlarge my talents, such as they were, by every exercise that was +proper for the purpose, but particularly by that of writing. Not to +mention several other advantages I derived from it, I shall only observe, +that about this time, and but a very few years after my Aedileship, I was +declared the first Praetor, by the unanimous suffrages of my fellow- +citizens. For, by my diligence and assiduity as a Pleader, and my accurate +way of speaking, which was rather superior to the ordinary style of the +Bar, the novelty of my Eloquence had engaged the attention, and secured +the good wishes of the public. But I will say nothing of myself: I will +confine my discourse to our other Speakers, among whom there is not one +who has gained more than a common acquaintance with those parts of +literature, which feed the springs of Eloquence:--not one who has been +thoroughly nurtured at the breast of Philosophy, which is the mother of +every excellence either in deed or speech:--not one who has acquired an +accurate knowledge of the Civil Law, which is so necessary for the +management even of private causes, and to direct the judgment of an +Orator:--not one who is a complete master of the Roman History, which +would enable us, on many occasions, to appeal to the venerable evidence of +the dead:--not one who can entangle his opponent in such a neat and +humourous manner, as to relax the severity of the Judges into a smile or +an open laugh:--not one who knows how to dilate and expand his subject, by +reducing it from the limited considerations of time, and person, to some +general and indefinite topic;--not one who knows how to enliven it by an +agreeable digression: not one who can rouse the indignation of the Judge, +or extort from him the tear of compassion;--or who can influence and bend +his soul (which is confessedly the capital perfection of an Orator) in +such a manner as shall best suit his purpose. + +"When Hortensius, therefore, the once eloquent and admired Hortensius, had +almost vanished from the Forum, my appointment to the Consulship, which +happened about six years after his own promotion to that office, revived +his dying emulation; for he was unwilling that after I had equalled him in +rank and dignity, I should become his superior in any other respect. But +in the twelve succeeding years, by a mutual deference to each other's +abilities, we united our efforts at the Bar in the most amicable manner: +and my Consulship, which at first had given a short alarm to his jealousy, +afterward cemented our friendship, by the generous candor with which he +applauded my conduct. But our emulous efforts were exerted in the most +conspicuous manner, just before the commencement of that unhappy period, +when Eloquence herself was confounded and terrified by the din of arms +into a sudden and a total silence: for after Pompey had proposed and +carried a law, which allowed even the party accused but three hours to +make his defence, I appeared, (though comparatively as a mere _noviciate_ +by this new regulation) in a number of causes which, in fact, were become +perfectly the same, or very nearly so; most of which, my Brutus, you was +present to hear, as having been my partner and fellow-advocate in many of +them, though you pleaded several by yourself; and Hortensius, though he +died a short time afterwards, bore his share in these limited efforts. He +began to plead about ten years before the time of your birth; and in his +sixty-fourth year, but a very few days before his death, he was engaged +with you in the defence of Appius, your father-in-law. As to our +respective talents, the Orations we have published will enable posterity +to form a proper judgment of them. But if we mean to inquire, why +Hortensius was more admired for his Eloquence in the younger part of his +life, than in his latter years, we shall find it owing to the following +causes. The first was, that an _Asiatic_ style is more allowable in a +young man than in an old one. Of this there are two different kinds. + +"The former is sententious and sprightly, and abounds in those turns of +sentiment which are not so much distinguished by their weight and solidity +as by their neatness and elegance; of this cast was Timaeus the Historian, +and the two Orators so much talked of in our younger days, Hierocles the +Alabandean, and his brother Menecles, but particularly the latter; both +whose Orations may be reckoned master-pieces of the kind. The other sort +is not so remarkable for the plenty and richness of its sentiments, as for +its rapid volubility of expression, which at present is the ruling taste +in Asia; but, besides it's uncommon fluency, it is recommended by a choice +of words which are peculiarly delicate and ornamental:--of this kind were +Aeschylus the Cnidian, and my cotemporary Aeschines the Milesian; for they +had an admirable command of language, with very little elegance of +sentiment. These showy kinds of eloquence are agreeable enough in young +people; but they are entirely destitute of that gravity and composure +which befits a riper age. As Hortensius therefore excelled in both, he was +heard with applause in the earlier part of his life. For he had all that +fertility and graceful variety of sentiment which distinguished the +character of Menecles: but, as in Menecles, so in him, there were many +turns of sentiment which were more delicate and entertaining than really +useful, or indeed sometimes convenient. His language also was brilliant +and rapid, and yet perfectly neat and accurate; but by no means agreeable +to men of riper years. I have often seen it received by Philippus with the +utmost derision, and, upon some occasions, with a contemptuous +indignation: but the younger part of the audience admired it, and the +populace were highly pleased with it. In his youth, therefore, he met the +warmest approbation of the public, and maintained his post with ease as +the first Orator in the Forum. For the style he chose to speak in, though +it has little weight, or authority, appeared very suitable to his age: and +as it discovered in him the most visible marks of genius and application, +and was recommended by the numerous cadence of his periods, he was heard +with universal applause. But when the honours he afterwards rose to, and +the dignity of his years required something more serious and composed, he +still continued to appear in the same character, though it no longer +became him: and as he had, for some considerable time, intermitted those +exercises, and relaxed that laborious attention which had once +distinguished him, though his former neatness of expression, and +luxuriancy of sentiment still remained, they were stripped of those +brilliant ornaments they had been used to wear. For this reason, perhaps, +my Brutus, he appeared less pleasing to you than he would have done, if +you had been old enough to hear him, when he was fired with emulation and +flourished in the full bloom of his Eloquence. + +"I am perfectly sensible," said Brutus, "of the justice of your remarks; +and yet I have always looked upon Hortensius as a great Orator, but +especially when he pleaded for Messala, in the time of your absence."--"I +have often heard of it," replied I, "and his Oration, which was afterwards +published, they say, in the very same words in which he delivered it, is +no way inferior to the character you give it. Upon the whole, then, his +reputation flourished from the time of Crassus and Scaevola (reckoning +from the Consulship of the former) to the Consulship of Paullus and +Marcellus: and I held out in the same career of glory from the +Dictatorship of Sylla, to the period I have last, mentioned. Thus the +Eloquence of Hortensius was extinguished by his _own_ death, and mine by +that of the Commonwealth."--"Ominate more favourably, I beg of you," +cried Brutus.--"As favourably as you please," said I, "and that not so +much upon my own account, as your's. But _his_ death was truly fortunate, +who did not live to behold the miseries, which he had long foreseen. For +we often lamented, between ourselves, the misfortunes which hung over the +State, when we discovered the seeds of a civil war in the insatiable +ambition of a few private Citizens, and saw every hope of an accommodation +excluded by the rashness and precipitancy of our public counsels. But the +felicity which always marked his life, seems to have exempted him, by a +seasonable death, from the calamities that followed. But, as after the +decease of Hortensius, we seem to have been left, my Brutus, as the sole +guardians of an _orphan_ Eloquence, let us cherish her, within our own +walls at least, with a generous fidelity: let us discourage the addresses +of her worthless, and impertinent suitors; let us preserve her pure and +unblemished in all her virgin charms, and secure her, to the utmost of our +ability, from the lawless violence of every armed ruffian. I must own, +however, though I am heartily grieved that I entered so late upon the road +of life, as to be overtaken by a gloomy night of public distress, before I +had finished my journey; that I am not a little relieved by the tender +consolation which you administered to me in your very agreeable letters;-- +in which you tell me I ought to recollect my courage, since my past +transactions are such as will speak for me when I am silent, and survive +my death,--and such as, if the Gods permit, will bear an ample testimony +to the prudence and integrity of my public counsels, by the final +restoration of the Republic:--or, if otherwise, by burying me in the +ruins of my country. But when I look upon _you_, my Brutus, it fills me +with anguish to reflect that, in the vigour of your youth, and when you +was making the most rapid progress in the road to fame, your career was +suddenly stopped by the fatal overthrow of the Commonwealth. This unhappy +circumstance has stung me to the heart; and not _me_ only; but my worthy +friend here, who has the same affection for you, and the same esteem for +your merit which I have. We have the warmest wishes for your happiness, +and heartily pray that you may reap the rewards of your excellent virtues, +and live to find a Republic in which you will be able, not only to revive, +but even to add to the fame of your illustrious ancestors. For the Forum +was your birth-right, your native theatre of action; and you was the only +person that entered it, who had not only formed his Elocution by a +rigorous course of private practice, but enriched his Oratory with the +furniture of philosophical Science, and thus united the highest virtue to +the most consummate Eloquence. Your situation, therefore, wounds us with +the double anxiety, that _you_ are deprived of the _Republic_, and the +Republic of _you_. But still continue, my Brutus, (notwithstanding the +career of your genius has been checked by the rude shock of our public +distresses) continue to pursue your favourite studies, and endeavour (what +you have almost, or rather intirely effected already) to distinguish +yourself from the promiscuous crowd of Pleaders with which I have loaded +the little history I have been giving you. For it would ill befit you, +(richly furnished as you are with those liberal Arts, which, unable to +acquire at home, you imported from that celebrated city which has always +been revered as the seat of learning) to pass after all as an ordinary +Pleader. For to what purposes have you studied under Pammenes, the most +eloquent man in Greece; or what advantage have you derived from the +discipline of _the old_ Academy, and it's hereditary master Aristus (my +guest, and very intimate acquaintance) if you still rank yourself in the +common class of Orators? Have we not seen that a whole age could scarcely +furnish two Speakers who really excelled in their profession? Among a +crowd of cotemporaries, Galba, for instance, was the only Orator of +distinction: for old Cato (we are informed) was obliged to yield to his +superior merit, as were likewise his two juniors Lepidus, and Carbo. But, +in a public Harangue, the style of his successors the Gracchi was far more +easy and lively: and yet, even in their time, the Roman Eloquence had not +reached its perfection. Afterwards came Antonius, and Crassus; and then +Cotta, Sulpicius, Hortensius, and--but I say no more: I can only add, that +if I had been so fortunate, &c, &c,"--[_Caetera defunt._] + + + + +THE ORATOR, +BY MARCUS TULLIUS CICERO; +ADDRESSED TO MARCUS BRUTUS; +And now first translated from the Original Latin. + + + "Song charms the Sense, but Eloquence the Soul." + MILTON. + + + + +THE ORATOR. + + +Which, my Brutus, would be the most difficult talk,--to decline answering +a request which you have so often repeated, or to gratify it to your +satisfaction,--I have long been at a loss to determine. I should be +extremely sorry to deny any thing to a friend for whom I have the warmest +esteem, and who, I am sensible, has an equal affection for me;-- +especially, as he has only desired me to undertake a subject which may +justly claim my attention. But to delineate a character, which it would be +very difficult, I will not say to _acquire_, but even to _comprehend_ in +its full extent, I thought was too bold an undertaking for him who reveres +the censure of the wife and learned. For considering the great diversity +of manner among the ablest Speakers, how exceedingly difficult must it be +to determine which is best, and give a finished model of Eloquence? This, +however, in compliance with your repeated solicitations, I shall now +attempt;--not so much from any hopes of succeeding, as from a strong +inclination to make the trial. For I had rather, by yielding to your +wishes, give you room to complain of my insufficiency; than, by a +peremptory denial, tempt you to question my friendship. + +You desire to know, then, (and you have often repeated your request) what +kind of Eloquence I most approve, and can look upon to be so highly +finished, as to require no farther improvement. But should I be able to +answer your expectations, and display, in his full perfection, the Orator +you enquire after; I am afraid I shall retard the industry of many, who, +enfeebled by despair, will no longer attempt what they think themselves +incapable of attaining. It is but reasonable, however, that all those who +covet what is excellent, and which cannot be acquired without the greatest +application, should exert their utmost. But if any one is deficient in +capacity, and destitute of that admirable force of genius which Nature +bestows upon her favourites, or has been denied the advantages of a +liberal education, _let him make the progress he is able_. For while we +are driving to overtake the foremost, it is no disgrace to be found among +the _second_ class, or even the _third_. Thus, for instance, among the +poets, we respect the merit not only of a _Homer_ (that I may confine +myself to the Greeks) or of _Archilochus, Sophocles_, or _Pindar_, but of +many others who occupied the second, or even a lower place. In Philosophy +also the diffusive majesty of Plato has not deterred _Aristotle_ from +entering the list; nor has _Aristotle_ himself, with all his wonderful +knowledge and fertility of thought, disheartened the endeavours of others. +Nay, men of an elevated genius have not only disdained to be intimidated +from the pursuit of literary fame;--but the very artists and mechanics +have never relinquished their profession, because they were unable to +equal the beauty of that _Iasylus_ which we have seen at Rhodes, or of the +celebrated _Venus_ in the island of _Coos_:--nor has the noble image of +Olympian _Jove_, or the famous statue of the Man at Arms, deterred others +from making trial of their abilities, and exerting their skill to the +utmost. Accordingly, such a large number of them has appeared, and each +has performed so well in his own way, that we cannot help being pleased +with their productions, notwithstanding our admiration at the nobler +efforts of the great masters of the chissel. + +But among the Orators, I mean those of Greece, it is astonishing how much +one of them has surpassed the rest:--and yet, though there was a +_Demosthenes_, there were even _then_ many other Orators of considerable +merit;--and such there were before he made his appearance, nor have they +been wanting since. There is, therefore, no reason why those who have +devoted themselves to the study of Eloquence, should suffer their hopes to +languish, or their industry to flag. For, in the first place, even that +which is most excellent is not to be despaired of;--and, in all worthy +attempts, that which is next to what is best is great and noble. + +But in sketching out the character of a compleat Orator, it is possible I +may exhibit such a one as hath never _yet_ existed. For I am not to point +out the _Speaker_, but to delineate the _Eloquence_ than which nothing can +be more perfect of the kind:--an Eloquence which hath blazed forth through +a whole Harangue but seldom, and, it may be, never; but only here and +there like a transient gleam, though in some Orators more frequently, and +in others, perhaps, more sparingly. + +My opinion, then, is,--that there is no human production of any kind, so +compleatly beautiful, than which there is not a _something_ still more +beautiful, from which the other is copied like a portrait from real life, +and which can be discerned neither by our eyes nor ears, nor any of our +bodily senses, but is visible only to thought and imagination. Though the +statues, therefore, of Phidias, and the other images above-mentioned, are +all so wonderfully charming, that nothing can be found which is more +excellent of the kind; we may still, however, _suppose_ a something which +is more exquisite, and more compleat. For it must not be thought that the +ingenious artist, when he was sketching out the form of a Jupiter, or a +Minerva, borrowed the likeness from any particular object;--but a certain +admirable semblance of beauty was present to his mind, which he viewed and +dwelt upon, and by which his skill and his hand were guided. As, +therefore, in mere bodily shape and figure there is a kind of perfection, +to whose ideal appearance every production which falls under the notice of +the eye is referred by imitation; so the semblance of what is perfect in +Oratory may become visible to the mind, and the ear may labour to catch a +likeness. These primary forms of thing are by Plato (the father of science +and good language) called _Ideas_; and he tells us they have neither +beginning nor end, but are co-eval with reason and intelligence; while +every thing besides has a derived, and a transitory existence, and passes +away and decays, so as to cease in a short time to be the thing it was. +Whatever, therefore, may be discussed by reason and method, should be +constantly reduced to the primary form or semblance of it's respective +genus. + +I am sensible that this introduction, as being derived not from the +principles of Eloquence, but from the deepest recesses of Philosophy, will +excite the censure, or at least the wonder of many, who will think it both +unfashionable and intricate. For they will either be at a loss to discover +it's connection with my subject, (though they will soon be convinced by +what follows, that, if it appears to be far-fetched, it is not so without +reason;)--or they will blame me, perhaps, for deserting the beaten track, +and striking out into a new one. But I am satisfied that I often appear to +advance novelties, when I offer sentiments which are, indeed, of a much +earlier date, but happen to be generally unknown: and I frankly +acknowledge that I came forth an Orator, (if indeed I am one, or whatever +else I may be deemed) not from the school of the Rhetoricians, but from +the spacious walks of the Academy. For these are the theatres of +diversified and extensive arguments which were first impressed with the +foot-steps of Plato; and his Dissertations, with those of other +Philosophers, will be found of the greatest utility to an Orator, both for +his exercise and improvement; because all the fertility, and, as it were, +the materials of Eloquence, are to be derived from thence;--but not, +however, sufficiently prepared for the business of the Forum, which, as +themselves have frequently boasted, they abandoned to the _rustic Muses_ +of the vulgar! Thus the Eloquence of the Forum, despised and rejected by +the Philosophers, was bereaved of her greatest advantages:--but, +nevertheless, being arrayed in all the brilliance of language and +sentiment, she made a figure among the populace, nor feared the censure of +the judicious few. By this means, the learned became destitute of a +popular Eloquence, and the Orators of polite learning. + +We may, therefore, consider it as a capital maxim, (the truth of which +will be more easily understood in the sequel) that the eloquent Speaker we +are enquiring after, cannot be formed without the assistance of +Philosophy. I do not mean that this alone is sufficient; but only (for it +is sometimes necessary to compare great things to small) that it will +contribute to improve him in the same manner as the _Palaestra_ [Footnote: +The _Palaestra_ was a place set apart for public exercises, such as +wrestling, running, fencing, &c. the frequent performance of which +contributed much to a graceful carriage of the body, which is a necessary +accomplishment in a good Actor.] does an Actor; because without +Philosophy, no man can speak fully and copiously upon a variety of +important subjects which come under the notice of an Orator. Accordingly, +in the _Phaedrus_ of Plato, it is observed by Socrates that the great +_Pericles_ excelled all the Speakers of his time, because he had been a +hearer of _Anaxagoras_ the Naturalist, from whom he supposes that he not +only borrowed many excellent and sublime ideas, but a certain richness and +fertility of language, and (what in Eloquence is of the utmost +consequence) the various arts either of soothing or alarming each +particular passion. The same might be said of _Demosthenes_, whose letters +will satisfy us, how assiduously he attended the Lectures of Plato. For +without the instruction of Philosophy, we can neither discover what is the +_Genus_ or the _Species_ to which any thing belongs, nor explain the +nature of it by a just definition, or an accurate analysis of its parts;-- +nor can we distinguish between what is true and false, or foresee the +consequences, point out the inconsistencies, and dissolve the ambiguities +which may lie in the case before us. But as to Natural Philosophy (the +knowledge of which will supply us with the richest treasures of +Elocution;)--and as to life, and it's various duties, and the great +principles of morality,--what is it possible either to express or +understand aright, without a large acquaintance with these? To such +various and important accomplishments we must add the innumerable +ornaments of language, which, at the time above mentioned, were the only +weapons which the Masters of Rhetoric could furnish. This is the reason +why that genuine, and perfect Eloquence we are speaking of, has been yet +attained by no one; because the Art of _Reasoning_ has been supposed to be +one thing, and that of _Speaking_ another; and we have had recourse to +different Instructors for the knowledge of things and words. + +Antonius, [Footnote: A celebrated Orator, and grandfather to M. Antonius +The Triumvir.] therefore, to whom our ancestors adjudged the palm of +Eloquence, and who had much natural penetration and sagacity, has observed +in the only book he published, "_that he had seen many good Speakers, but +not a single Orator_." The full and perfect semblance of Eloquence had so +thoroughly possessed his mind, and was so completely visible there, though +no where exemplified in practice, that this consummate Genius, (for such, +indeed, he was) observing many defects in both himself and others, could +discover no one who merited the name of _eloquent_. But if he considered +neither himself, nor Lucius Crassus, as a genuine Orator, he must have +formed in his mind a sublime idea of Eloquence, under which, because there +was nothing wanting to compleat it, he could not comprehend those Speakers +who were any ways deficient. Let us then, my Brutus, (if we are able) +trace out the Orator whom Antonius never saw, and who, it may be, has +never yet existed; for though we have not the skill to copy his likeness +in real practice, (a talk which, in the opinion of the person above- +mentioned, would be almost too arduous for one of the Gods,) we may be +able, perhaps, to give some account of what he _ought_ to be. + +Good Speaking, then, may be divided into three characters, in each of +which there are some who have made an eminent figure: but to be equally +excellent in all (which is what we require) has been the happiness of few. + +The _lofty_ and _majestic_ Speaker, who distinguishes himself by the +energy of his sentiments, and the dignity of his expression, is +impetuous,--diversified,--copious,--and weighty,--and abundantly qualified +to alarm and sway the passions;--which some effect by a harsh, and a +rough, gloomy way of speaking, without any harmony or measure; and others, +by a smooth, a regular, and a well-proportioned style. + +On the other hand, the _simple_ and _easy_ Speaker is remarkably dexterous +and keen, and aiming at nothing but our information, makes every thing he +discourses upon, rather clear and open than great and striking, and +polishes it with the utmost neatness and accuracy. But some of this kind +of Speakers, who are distinguished by their peculiar artificie, are +designedly unpolished, and appear rude and unskilful, that they may have +the better opportunity of deceiving us:--while others, with the same +poverty of style, are far more elegant and agreeable,--that is, they are +pleasant and facetious, and sometimes even florid, with here and there an +easy ornament. + +But there is likewise a _middle_ kind of Oratory, between the two above- +mentioned, which neither has the keenness of the latter, nor hurls the +thunder of the former; but is a mixture of both, without excelling in +either, though at the same time it has something of each, or (perhaps, +more properly) is equally destitute of the true merit of both. This +species of Eloquence flows along in a uniform course, having nothing to +recommend it, but it's peculiar smoothness and equability; though at the +same time, it intermingles a number of decorations, like the tufts of +flowers in a garland, and embellishes a discourse from beginning to end +with the moderate and less striking ornaments of language and sentiment. + +Those who have attained to any degree of perfection in either of the above +characters, have been distinguished as eminent Orators: but the question +is whether any of them have compassed what we are seeking after, and +succeeded equally in all. For there have been several who could speak +nervously and pompously, and yet, upon occasion, could express themselves +with the greates address, and simplicity. I wish I could refer to such an +Orator, or at least to one who nearly resembles him, among the Romans; for +it would certainly have been more to our credit to be able to refer to +proper examples of our own, and not be necessitated to have recourse to +the Greeks. But though in another treatis of mine, which bears the name of +_Brutus_, [Footnote: A very excellent Treatise in the form of a Dialogue. +It contains a critical and very instructive account of all the noted +Orators of _Greece_ and _Rome_ and might be called, with great propriety, +_the History of Eloquence_. Though it is perhaps the most entertaining of +all Cicero's performances, the Public have never been obliged before with +a translation of it into English; which, I hope, will sufficiently plead +my excuse for preforming to undertake it.] I have said much in favour of +the Romans, partly to excite their emulation, and, in some measure, from a +partial fondness for my country; yet I must always remember to give the +preference to _Demosthenes_, who alone has adapted his genius to that +perfect species of Eloquence of which I can readily form an idea, but +which I have never yet seen exemplified in practice. Than _him_, there has +never hitherto existed a more nervous, and at the same time, a more subtle +Speaker, or one more cool and temperate. I must, therefore, caution those +whose ignorant discourse is become so common, and who wish to pass for +_Attic_ Speakers, or at least to express themselves in the _Attic_ taste, +--I must caution them to take _him_ for their pattern, than whom it is +impossible that Athens herself should be more completely Attic: and, as to +genuine Atticism, that them learn what it means, and measure the force of +Eloquence, not by their own weakness and incapacity, but by his wonderful +energy and strength. For, at present, a person bestows his commendation +upon just so much as he thinks himself capable of imitating. I therefore +flatter myself that it will not be foreign to my purpose, to instruct +those who have a laudable emulation, but are not thoroughly settled in +their judgment, wherein the merit of an Attic Orator consists. + +The taste of the Audience, then, has always governed and directed the +Eloquence of the Speaker: for all who wish to be applauded, consult the +character, and the inclinations of those who hear them, and carefully form +and accommodate themselves to their particular humours and dispositions. +Thus in Caria, Phrygia, and Mysia, because the inhabitants have no relish +for true elegance and politeness, the Orators have adopted (as most +agreeable to the ears of their audience) a luxuriant, and, if I may so +express myself, a corpulent style; which their neighbours the Rhodians, +who are only parted from them by a narrow straight, have never approved, +and much less the Greeks; but the Athenians have entirely banished it; for +their taste has always been so just and accurate that they could not +listen to any thing but what was perfectly correct and elegant. An Orator, +therefore, to compliment their delicacy, was forced to be always upon his +guard against a faulty or a distasteful expression. + +Accordingly, _he_, whom we have just mentioned as surpassing the rest, has +been careful in his Oration for Ctesiphon, (which is the best he ever +composed) to set out very cooly and modestly: when he proceeds to argue +the point of law, he grows more poignant and pressing; and as he advances +in his defence, he takes still greater liberties; till, at last, having +warmed the passions of his Judges, he exults at his pleasure through the +reamining part of his discourse. But even in _him_, thus carefully +weighing and poising his every word _Aeschines_ [Footnote: _Aeschines_ was +a cotemporary, and a professed rival of Demosthenes. He carried his +animosity so far as to commence a litigious suit against him, at a time +when the reputation of the latter was at the lowest ebb. But being +overpowered by the Eloquence of Demosthenes, he was condemned to perpetual +banishment.] could find several expressions to turn into ridicule:--for +giving a loose to his raillery, he calls them harsh, and detestable, and +too shocking to be endured; and styling the author of them a very +_monster_, he tauntingly asks him whether such expressions could be +considered as _words_ or not rather as absolute _frights_ and _prodigies_. +So that to AEschines not even _Demosthenes_ himself was perfectly _Attic_; +for it is an easy matter to catch a _glowing_ expression, (if I may be +allowed to call it so) and expose it to ridicule when the fire of +attention is extinguished. Demosthenes, therefore, when he endeavours to +excuse himself, condescends to jest, and denies that the fortune of Greece +was in the least affected by the singularity of a particular expression, +or by his moving his hand either this way or that. + +With what patience, then, would a Mysian or a Phrygian have been heard at +Athens, when even Demosthenes himself was reproached as a nuisance? But +should the former have begun his whining sing-song, after the manner of +the Asiatics, who would have endured it? or rather, who would not have +ordered him to be instantly torn from the Rostrum? Those, therefore, who +can accommodate themselves to the nice and critical ears of an Athenian +audience, are the only persons who should pretend to Atticism. + +But though Atticism may be divided into several kinds, these mimic +Athenians suspect but one. They imagine that to discourse plainly, and +without any ornament, provided it be done correctly, and clearly, is the +only genuine Atticism. In confining it to this alone, they are certainly +mistaken; though when they tell us that this is really Attic, they are so +far in the right. For if the only true Atticism is what they suppose to +be, not even _Pericles_ was an Attic Speaker, though he was universally +allowed to bear away the palm of Eloquence; nor, if he had wholly attached +himself to this plain and simple kind of language, would he ever have been +said by the Poet Aristophanes _to thunder and lighten, and throw all +Greece into a ferment_. + +Be it allowed, then, that Lysias, that graceful and most polite of +Speakers, was truly Attic: for who can deny it? But let it also be +remembered that Lysias claims the merit of Atticism, not so much for his +simplicity and want of ornament, as because he has nothing which is either +faulty or impertinent. But to speak floridly, nervously, and copiously, +this also is true Atticism:--otherwise, neither Aeschines nor even +Demosthenes himself were Attic Speakers. + +There are others who affect to be called _Thucydideans_,--a strange and +novel race of Triflers! For those who attach themselves to Lysias, have a +real Pleader for their pattern;--not indeed a stately, and striking +Pleader, but yet a dextrous and very elegant one, who might appear in the +Forum with reputation. + +Thucydides, on the contrary, is a mere Historian, who ('tis true) +describes wars, and battles with great dignity and precision; but he can +supply us with nothing which is proper for the Forum. For his very +speeches have so many obscure and intricate periods, that they are +scarcely intelligible; which in a public discourse is the greatest fault +of which an Orator can be guilty. But who, when the use of corn has been +discovered, would be so mad as to feed upon acorns? Or could the Athenians +improve their diet, and bodily food, and be incapable of cultivating their +language? Or, lastly, which of the Greek Orators has copied the style of +Thucydides? [Footnote: Demosthenes indeed took the pains to transcribe the +History of Thucydides several times. But he did this, no so much to copy +the _form_ as the energy of his language.] "True," they reply, "but +Thucydides was universally admired." And so, indeed, he was; but only as a +sensible, an exact, and a grave Historian;--not for his address in public +debates, but for his excellence in describing wars and battles. +Accordingly, he was never mentioned as an Orator; nor would his name have +been known to posterity, if he had not composed his History, +notwithstanding the dignity of his birth, and the honourable share he held +in the Government. But none of these Pretenders have copied his energy; +and yet when they have uttered a few mutilated and broken periods (which +they might easily have done without a master to imitate) we must rever +them, truly, as so many genuine _Thucydideses_. I have likewise met with a +few who were professed imitators of Xenophon; whose language, indeed, is +sweeter than honey, but totally unqualified to withstand the clamours of +the Forum. + +Let us return then to the Orator we are seeking after, and furnish him +with those powers of Elocution, which Antonius could not discover in any +one: an arduous task, my Brutus, and full of difficulty:--yet nothing, I +believe, is impossible to him whose breast is fired with the generous +flame of friendship! But I affectionately admire (and have always admired) +your genius, your inclinations, and your manners. Nay, I am daily more +inflamed and ravished, not only with a desire (which, I assure you, is a +violent one) to renew our friendly intercourses, our social repasts, and +your improving conversation, but by the wonderful fame of your incredible +virtues, which, though different in kind, are readily united by your +superior wisdom and good-sense. For what is so remote from severity of +manners as gentleness and affability? and yet who more venerable than +yourself, or who more agreeable? What can be more difficult than to decide +a number of suits, so as to be equally esteemed and beloved by the parties +on both sides? You, however, possess the admirable talent of sending away +perfectly easy and contented even those against whom your are forced to +give judgment: thus bringing it to bear that, while you do nothing from a +partial favour to any man, whatever you do is favourably received. Hence +it happens, that the only country upon earth, which is not involved in the +present confusion, is the province of Gaul; where you are now enjoying +yourself in a happy tranquillity, while you are universally respected at +home, and live in the hearts of the flower and strength of your fellow- +citizens. It is equally amazing, though you are always engaged in the most +important offices of Government, that your studies are never intermitted; +and that you are constantly either composing something of your own, or +finding employment for me! Accordingly I began this Essay, at your +request, as soon as I had finished my _Cato_; which last also I should +never have attempted (especially at a time when the enemies of virtue were +so numerous) if I had not considered it as a crime to disobey my friend, +when he only urged me to revive the memory of a man whom I always loved +and honoured in his life-time. But I have now ventured upon a task which +you have frequently pressed upon me, and I as often refused: for, if +possible, I would share the fault between us, that if I should prove +unequal to the subject, you may have the blame of loading me with a burden +which is beyond my strength, and I the censure of presuming to undertake +it:--though after all, the single merit of gratifying such a friend as +Brutus, will sufficiently atone for any defects I may fall into. + +But in every accomplishment which may become the object of pursuit, it is +excessively difficult to delineate the form (or, as the Greeks call it, +the _character_ [Footnote: [Greek: charachtaer].]) of what is _best_; +because some suppose it to consist in one thing, and some in another. +Thus, for instance, "I am for _Ennius_," says one; "because he confines +himself to the style of conversation:"--"and I," says another, "give the +preference to _Pacuvius_, because his verses are embellished and well- +wrought; whereas Ennius is rather too "negligent." In the same manner we +may suppose a third to be an admirer of Attius; for, as among the Greeks, +so it happens with us, "_different men have different opinions_;"--nor is +it easy to determine which is best. Thus also in painting, some are +pleased with a rough, a wild, and a dark and cloudy style; while others +prefer that which is clear, and lively, and well covered with light. How +then shall we strike out a general _rule_ or _model_, when there are +several manners, and each of them has a certain perfection of its own? But +this difficulty has not deterred me from the undertaking; nor have I +altered my opinion that in all things there is a _something_ which +comprehends the highest excellence of the kind, and which, though not +generally discernible, is sufficiently conspicuous to him, who is skilled +in the subject. + +"But as there are several kinds of Eloquence which differ considerably +from each other, and therefore cannot be reduced to one common form;--for +this reason, as to mere laudatory Orations, Essays, Histories, and such +suasory performances as the Panegyric of Isocrates, and the speeches of +many others who were called _Sophists_;--and, in short, as to every thing +which is unconnected with the Forum, and the whole of that species of +discourse which the Greeks call the _demonstrative_ [Footnote: The +_demonstrative_ species of Eloquence is that which was solely employed +either in _praising_ or _dispraising_. Besides this, there are two +others, viz. the _deliberative_, and the _judicial_; the former was +employed in political debates, where it's whole business was either +to _persuade_ or _dissuade_; and the latter, in judicial suits and +controversies, where the Speaker was either to _accuse_ or _defend_. +But, on many occasions, they were all three intermingled in the same +discourse.];--the form, or leading character of these I shall pass over; +though I am far from considering it as a mere trifle, or a subject of +no consequence; on the contrary, we may regard it as the nurse and +tutoress of the Orator we are now delineating. For _here_, a fluency +of expression is confessedly nourished and cultivated; and the easy +construction, and harmonious cadence of our language is more openly +attended to. _Here_, likewise, we both allow and recommend a studious +elegance of diction, and a continued flow of melodious and well-turned +periods;--and _here_, we may labour visibly, and without concealing +our art, to contrast word to word, and to compare similar, and oppose +contrary circumstances, and make several sentences (or parts of a +sentence) conclude alike, and terminate with the same cadence; +--ornaments, which in real pleadings, are to be used more sparingly, and +with less appearance of art. Isocrates, therefore, confesses in his +_Panathenaicus_, that these were beauties which he industriously pursued; +for he composed it not for victory in a suit at law (where such a +confession must have greatly injured his cause) but merely to gratify the +ear. + +"It is recorded that the first persons who practised this species of +composition [Footnote: The _composition_ here mentioned consisted of three +parts, The _first_ regarded the structure; that is, the _connection_ of +our words, and required that the last syllable of every preceding, and the +first of every succeeding word should be so aptly united as to produce an +agreeable sound; which was effected by avoiding a collision of vowels or +of inamicable consonants. It likewise required that those words should be +constantly made choice of, whose separate sounds were most harmonious and +most agreeable to the sense. The _second_ part consisted in the use of +particular forms of expression, such as contrasts and antithesises, which +have an appearance of order and regularity in their very texture. The +_third_ and last regarded that species of harmony which results not so +much from the sound, as from the time and quantity of the several +syllables in a sentence. This was called _number_, and sometimes _rhyme_; +and was in fact a kind of _prosaic metre_, which was carefully attended to +by the ancients in every part of a sentence, but more particularly at the +beginning and end of it. In this part they usually included the _period_, +or the rules for determining the length of their sentences. I thought it +necessary to give this short account of their composition, because our +author very frequently alludes to it, before he proceeds to explain it at +large.] were _Thrasymachus_ the Chalcedonian, and _Gorgias_ the Leontine; +and that these were followed by _Theodorus_ the Byzantine, and a number of +others, whom Socrates, in the Phaedrus of Plato, calls [Greek: +logodaidalos] _Speech-wrights_; many of whole discourses are sufficiently +neat and entertaining; but, being the first attempts of the kind, were too +minute and puerile, and had too poetical an air, and too much colouring. +On this account, the merit of _Herodotus_, and _Thucydides_ is the more +conspicuous: for though they lived at the time we are speaking of, they +carefully avoided those studied decorations, or rather futilities. The +former rolls along like a deep, still river without any rocks or shoals to +interrupt it's course; and the other describes wars and battles, as if he +was founding a charge on the trumpet; so that history (to use the words +of _Theophrastus_) caught the first alarm from these, and began to express +herself with greater dignity and spirit. + +"After these came _Socrates_, whom I have always recommended as the most +accomplished writer we have in the way I am speaking of; though sometimes, +my Brutus, you have objected to it with a great deal of pleasantry and +erudition. But when you are better informed for what it is I recommend +him, you will then think of him perhaps as favourably as I do. +Thrasymachus and Gorgias (who are said to have been the first who +cultivated the art of prosaic harmony) appeared to him to be too minutely +exact; and Thucydides, he thought, was as much too loose and rugged, and +not sufficiently smooth, and full-mouthed; and from hence he took the hint +to give a scope to his sentences by a more copious and unconfined flow of +language, and to fill up their breaks and intervals with the softer and +more agreeable numbers. By teaching this to the most celebrated Speakers, +and Composers of the age, his house came at last to be honoured as the +_School of Eloquence_. Wherefore as I bore the censure of others with +indifference, when I had the good fortune to be applauded by Cato; thus +Isocrates, with the approbation of Plato, may slight the judgment of +inferior critics. For in the last page of the Phaedrus, we find _Socrates_ +thus expressing himself;--'Now, indeed, my dear Phaedrus,' said he, +'Isocrates is but a youth: but I will discover to you what I think of +him.'--'And what is that?' replied the other.--'He appears to me,' said +the Philosopher, 'to have too elevated a genius to be placed on a level +with the arid speeches of Lysias. Besides, he has a stronger turn for +virtue; so that I shall not wonder, as he advances in years, if in the +species of Eloquence to which he now applies himself, he should exceed +all, who have hitherto pursued it, like so many infants. Or, if this +should not content him, I shall not be astonished to behold him with a +godlike ardour pursuing higher and more important studies; for I plainly +see that he has a natural bent to Philosophy!'" + +Thus Socrates presaged of him when he was but a youth. But Plato recorded +this eulogium when he was older; and he recorded it, though he was one of +his equals and cotemporaries, and a professed enemy to the whole tribe of +Rhetoricians! _Him_ he admires, and _him_ alone! So that such who despise +Isocrates, must suffer me to err with Socrates and Plato. + +The manner of speaking, then, which is observed in the _demonstrative_ or +ornamental species of Eloquence, and which I have before remarked, was +peculiar to the Sophists, is sweet, harmonious, and flowing, full of +pointed sentiments, and arrayed in all the brilliance of language. But it +is much fitter for the parade than the field; and being, therefore, +consigned to the Palaestra, and the schools, has been long banished from +the Forum. As Eloquence, however, after she had been fed and nourished +with this, acquires a fresher complexion, and a firmer constitution; it +would not be amiss, I thought, to trace our Orator from his very _cradle_. + +But these things are only for shew and amusement: whereas it is our +business to take the field in earnest, and prepare for action. As there +are three particulars, then, to be attended to by an Orator,--viz. _what_ +he is to say, in _what order_, and _how_; we shall consider what is most +excellent in each; but after a different manner from what is followed in +delivering a system of the Art. For we are not to furnish a set of +precepts (this not being the province we have undertaken) but to exhibit a +portrait of Eloquence in her full perfection: neither is it our business +to explain the methods by which we may acquire it, but only to shew what +opinion we ought to form of it. + +The two first articles are to be lightly touched over; for they have not +so much a remarkable as a necessary share in forming the character of a +compleat Orator, and are likewise common to _his_ with many other +professions;--and though, to invent, and judge with accuracy, what is +proper to be said, are important accomplishments, and the same as the soul +is to the body, yet they rather belong to _prudence_ than to Eloquence. In +what cause, however, can _prudence_ be idle? Our Orator, therefore, who is +to be all perfection, should be thoroughly acquainted with the sources of +argument and proof. For as every thing which can become the subject of +debate, must rest upon one or another of these particulars, viz.--whether +a fact has been really committed, or what name it ought to bear in law, or +whether it is agreeable or contrary to justice; and as the reality of a +fact must be determined by force of evidence, the true name of it by it's +definition, and the quality of it by the received notions of right and +wrong;--an Orator (not an ordinary one, but the finished Speaker we are +describing) will always turn off the controversy, as much as possible, +from particular persons and times, (for we may argue more at liberty +concerning general topics than about circumstances) in such a manner that +what is proved to be true _universally_, may necessarily appear to be so +in all _subordinate_ cases. The point in debate being thus abstracted from +particular persons and times, and brought to rest upon general principles, +is called a _thesis_. In _this_ the famous Aristotle carefully practised +his scholars;--not to argue with the formal precision of Philosophers, but +to canvass a point handsomely and readily on both sides, and with all the +copiousness so much admired in the Rhetoricians: and for this purpose he +delivered a set of _common places_ (for so he calls them) which were to +serve as so many marks or characters for the discovery of arguments, and +from which a discourse might be aptly framed on either side of a question. + +Our Orator then, (for I am not speaking of a mere school-declaimer, or a +noisy ranter in the Forum, but of a well-accomplished and a finished +Speaker)--our Orator, as there is such a copious variety of common-places, +will examine them all, and employ those which suit his purpose in as +general and indefinite a manner as his cause will permit, and carefully +trace and investigate them to their inmost sources. But he will use the +plenty before him with discretion, and weighing every thing with the +utmost accuracy, select what is best: for the stress of an argument does +not always, and in every cause, depend upon similar topics. He will, +therefore, exercise his judgment; and not only discover what _may_ be +said, but thoroughly examine the _force_ of it. For nothing is more +fertile than the powers of genius, and especially those which have been +blessed with the cultivation of science. But as a rich and fruitful soil +not only produces corn in abundance, but also weeds to choak and smother +it; so from the common-places we are speaking of, many arguments will +arise, which are either trivial, or foreign to our purpose, or entirely +useless. An Orator, therefore, should carefully examine each, that he may +be able to select with propriety. Otherwise, how can he enlarge upon those +which are most pertinent, and dwell upon such as more particularly affect +his cause? Or how can he soften a harsh circumstance, or conceal, and (if +possible) entirely suppress what would be deemed unanswerable, or steal +off the attention of the hearer to a different topic? Or how alledge +another argument in reply, which shall be still more plausible than that +of his antagonist? + +But after he has thus _invented_ what is proper to be said, with what +accuracy must he _methodize_ it? For this is the second of the three +articles above-mentioned. Accordingly, he will give the portal of his +Harangue a graceful appearance, and make the entrance to his cause as neat +and splendid as the importance of it will permit. When he has thus made +himself master of the hearer's good wishes at the first onset, he will +endeavour to invalidate what makes against him; and having, by this means, +cleared his way, his strongest arguments will appear some of them in the +front, and others at the close of his discourse; and as to those of more +trifling consequence, he will occasionally introduce [Footnote: In the +Original it is _inculcabit_, he will _tread them in_, (like the sand or +loose dust in a new pavement) to support and strengthen the whole.] them +here and there, where he judges them likely to be most serviceable. Thus, +then, we have given a cursory view of what he ought to be, in the two +first departments of Oratory. But, as we before observed, these, though +very important in their consequences, require less art and application. + +After he has thus invented what is proper to be said, and in what order, +the greatest difficulty is still behind;--namely to consider _how_ he is +to say it, and _in what manner_. For the observation of our favourite +_Carneades_ is well-known,--"That _Clitomachus_ had a perpetual sameness +of sentiment, and Charmidas a tiresome uniformity of expression." But if +it is a circumstance of so much moment in Philosophy, _in what manner_ we +express ourselves, where the matter, and not the language, is principally +regarded; what must we think of public debates, which are wholly ruled and +swayed by the powers of Elocution? Accordingly, my Brutus, I am sensible +from your letters, that you mean to inquire what are my notions of a +finished Speaker, not so much with respect to his Invention and +Disposition, as to his talents of _Elocution_:--a severe task! and the +most difficult you could have fixed upon! For as language is ever soft and +yielding, and so amazingly pliable that you may bend and form it at your +pleasure; so different natures and dispositions have given rise to +different kinds of Elocution. Some, for instance, who place the chief +merit of it in it's rapidity, are mightily pleased with a torrent of +words, and a volubility of expression. Others again are better pleased +with regular, and measured intervals, and frequent stops, and pauses. What +can be more opposite? and yet both have their proper excellence. Some also +confine their attention to the smoothness and equability of their periods, +and aim at a style which is perfectly neat and clear: while others affect +a harshness, and severity of diction, and to give a gloomy cast to their +language:--and as we have already observed that some endeavour to be +nervous and majestic, others neat and simple, and some to be smooth and +florid, it necessarily follows that there must be as many different kinds +of Orators, as there are of Eloquence. But as I have already enlarged the +talk you have imposed upon me;--(for though your enquiries related only to +Elocution, I have ventured a few hints on the arts of Invention and +Disposition;)--I shall now treat not only of _Elocution_, but of _action_. +By this means, every part of Oratory will be attended to: for as to +_memory_, which is common to this with many other arts, it is entirely out +of the question. + +The Art of Speaking then, so far as it regards only the _manner_ in which +our thoughts should be expressed, consists in _action_ and _Elocution_; +for action is the Eloquence of the body, and implies the proper management +of our _voice_ and _gesture_. As to the inflexions of the voice, they are +as numerous as the various passions it is capable of exciting. The +finished Orator, therefore, who is the subject of this Essay, in whatever +manner he would appear to be affected himself, and touch the heart of his +hearer, will employ a suitable and corresponding tone of voice:--a topic +which I could willingly enlarge upon, if delivering precepts was any part +of my present design, or of your request. I should likewise have treated +concerning _gesture_, of which the management of the countenance is a +material part: for it is scarcely credible of what great importance it is +to an Orator to recommend himself by these external accomplishments. For +even those who were far from being masters of good language, have many +times, by the sole dignity of their action, reaped the fruits of +Eloquence; while others who had the finest powers of Elocution, have too +often, by the mere awkwardness of their delivery, led people to imagine +that they were scarcely able to express themselves:--so that Demosthenes, +with sufficient reason, assigned the first place, and likewise the second +and third to _pronunciation_. For if Eloquence without this is nothing, +but this, even without Eloquence, has such a wonderful efficacy, it must +be allowed to bear the principal sway in the practice of Speaking. + +If an Orator, then, who is ambitious to win the palm of Eloquence, has any +thing to deliver which is warm and cutting, let his voice be strong and +quick;--if what is calm and gentle, let it be mild and easy;--if what is +grave and sedate, let it be cool and settled;--and if what is mournful and +affecting, let his accents be plaintive and flexible. For the voice may be +raised or depressed, and extended or contracted to an astonishing degree; +thus in Music (for instance) it's three tones, the _mean_, the _acute_, +and the _grave_, may be so managed by art, as to produce a pleasing and an +infinite variety of sounds. Nay, even in Speaking, there may be a +concealed kind of music:--not like the whining epilogue of a Phrygian or a +Carian declaimer, but such as was intended by _Aeschines_, and +_Demosthenes_, when the one upbraids and reproaches the other with the +artificial modulations of his voice. _Demosthenes_, however, says most +upon this head, and often speaks of his accuser as having a sweet and +clear pronunciation. There is another circumstance, which may farther +enforce our attention to the agreeable management of the voice; for Nature +herself, as if she meant to harmonize the speech of man, has placed an +accent on every word, and one accent only, which never lies farther than +the third syllable from the last. Why, therefore, should we hesitate to +follow her example, and to do our best to gratify the ear? A good voice, +indeed, though a desirable accomplishment, is not in our power to +acquire:--but to exercise, and improve it, is certainly in the power of +every person. + +The Orator, then, who means to be the prince of his profession, will +change and vary his voice with the most delicate propriety; and by +sometimes raising, and sometimes depressing it, pursue it gradually +through all it's different tones, and modulations. He will likewise +regulate his _gesture_, so as to avoid even a single motion which is +either superfluous or impertinent. His posture will be erect and manly:-- +he will move from his ground but seldom, and not even then too +precipitately; and his advances will be few and moderate. He will practise +no languishing, no effeminate airs of the head, no finical playing of the +fingers, no measured movement of the joints. The chief part of his gesture +will consist in the firm and graceful sway of his body, and in extending +his arm when his arguments are pressing, and drawing it again when his +vehemence abates. But as to the _countenance_, which next to the voice has +the greatest efficacy, what dignity and gracefulness is it not capable of +supporting! and when you have been careful that it may neither be +unmeaning, nor ostentatious, there is still much to be left to the +expression of the _eyes_. For if the countenance is the _image_ of the +mind, the eyes are it's _interpreters_, whose degree of pleasantry or +sadness must be proportioned to the importance of our subject. + +But we are to exhibit the portrait of a finished Orator, whose chief +excellence must be supposed, from his very name, to consist in his +_Elocution_; while his other qualifications (though equally complete) are +less conspicuous. For a mere inventor, a mere digester, or a mere actor, +are titles never made use of to comprize the whole character; but an +Orator derives his name, both in Greek and Latin, from the single talent +of Elocution. As to his other qualifications, every man of sense may claim +a share of them: but the full powers of language are exerted by himself +alone. Some of the philosophers, indeed, have expressed themselves in a +very handsome manner: for _Theophrastus_ derived his name from the +divinity of his style; _Aristotle_ rivalled the glory of _Isocrates_; and +the Muses themselves are said to have spoken from the lips of _Xenophon_; +and, to say no more, the great _Plato_ is acknowledged in majesty and +sweetness to have far exceeded all who ever wrote or spoke. But their +language has neither the nerves nor the sting which is required in the +Orator's, when he harangues the crowded Forum. They speak only to the +learned, whose passions they rather choose to compose than disturb; and +they discourse about matters of calm and untumultuous speculation, merely +as teachers, and not like eager antagonists: though even _here_, when they +endeavour to amuse and delight us, they are thought by some to exceed the +limits of their province. It will be easy, therefore, to distinguish this +species of Elocution from the Eloquence we are attempting to delineate. +For the language of philosophy is gentle and composed, and entirely +calculated for the shady walks of the Academy;--not armed with those +forcible sentiments, and rapid turns of expression, which are suited to +move the populace, nor measured by exact numbers and regular periods, but +easy, free, and unconfined. It has nothing resentful belonging to it, +nothing invidious, nothing fierce and flaming, nothing exaggerated, +nothing marvellous, nothing artful and designing; but resembles a chaste, +a bashful, and an unpolluted virgin. We may, therefore, consider it as a +kind of polite conversation, rather than a species of Oratory. + +As to the _Sophists_, whom I have already mentioned, the resemblance ought +to be more accurately distinguished: for they industriously pursue the +same flowers which are used by an Orator in the Forum. But they differ in +this,--that, as their principal aim is not to disturb the passions, but +rather to allay them, and not so much to persuade as to please,--they +attempt the latter more openly, and more frequently than we do. They seek +for agreeable sentiments, rather than probable ones; they use more +frequent digressions, intermingle tales and fables, employ more shewy +metaphors, and work them into their discourses with as much fancy and +variety as a painter does his colours; and they abound in contrasts and +antitheses, and in similar and corresponding cadences. + +Nearly allied to these is _History_, which conducts her narratives with +elegance and ease, and now and then sketches out a country, or a battle. +She likewise diversifies her story with short speeches, and florid +harangues: but in these, only neatness and fluency is to be expected, and +not the vehemence and poignant severity of an Orator [Footnote: In the +Original it is,--_sed in his tracta quaedam et fluens expetitur, nan haec +contorta, et acris Oratorio_; upon which Dr. Ward has made the following +remark:--"Sentences, with respect to their form or composition, are +distinguished into two sorts, called by Cicero _tracta_, strait or direct, +and _contorta_, bent or winding. By the former are meant such, whose +members follow each other in a direct order, without any inflexion; and by +the latter, those which strictly speaking are called periods."]. + +There is much the same difference between Eloquence and _Poetry_; for the +Poets likewise have started the question, What it is which distinguishes +them from the Orators? It was formerly supposed to be their _number_ and +_metre_: but numbers are now as familiar to the Orator, as to the Poet; +for whatever falls under the regulation of the ear, though it bears no +resemblance to verse (which in Oratory would be a capital fault) is called +_number_, and by the Greeks _rhyme_. [Footnote: [Greek: Ruthmos]] In the +opinion of some, therefore, the style of _Plato_ and _Democritus_, on +account of it's majestic flow, and the splendor of it's ornaments, though +it is far from being verse, has a nearer resemblance to poetry than the +style of the Comedians, who, excepting their metre, have nothing different +from the style of conversation. Metre, however, is far from being the +principal merit of the Poets; though it is certainly no small +recommendation, that, while they pursue all the beauties of Eloquence, the +harmony of their numbers is far more regular and exact. But, though the +language of Poetry is equally grand and ornamental with that of an Orator, +she undoubtedly takes greater liberties both in making and compounding +word; and frequently administers to the pleasure of her hearers, more by +the pomp and lustre of her expressions, than by the weight and dignity of +her sentiments. Though judgment, therefore, and a proper choice of words, +is alike common to both, yet their difference in other respects is +sufficiently discernible: but if it affords any matter of doubt (as to +some, perhaps, it may) the discussion of it is no way necessary to our +present purpose. + +We are, therefore, to delineate the Orator who differs equally from the +Eloquence of the Philosopher, the Sophist, the Historian, and the Poet. +He, then, is truly eloquent, (for after _him_ we must search, by the +direction of Antonius) who in the Forum, and in public debates, can so +speak, as to _prove_, _delight_, and _force the passions_. To _prove_, is +a matter of necessity:--to _delight_, is indispensably requisite to engage +the attention:--and to _force the passions_, is the surest means of +victory; for this contributes more effectually than both the others to get +a cause decided to our wishes. But as the duties of an Orator, so the +kinds of Elocution are three. The neat and accurate is used in _proving;_ +the moderately florid in _delighting_ apd the vehement and impetuous in +_forcing_ _the passions,_ in which alone all the power of Eloquence +consists. Great, therefore, must be the judgment, and wonderful the +talents of the man, who can properly conduct, and, as it were, temper this +threefold variety: for he will at once determine what is suitable to every +case; and be always able to express himself as the nature of his subject +may require. + +Discretion, therefore, is the basis of Eloquence, as well as of every +other accomplishment. For, as in the conduct of life, so in the practice +of Speaking, nothing is more difficult than to maintain a propriety of +character. This is called by the Greeks [Greek: to prepon], _the +becoming,_ but we shall call it _decorum;_--a subject which has been +excellently and very copiously canvassed, and richly merits our attention. +An unacquaintance with this has been the source of innumerable errors, not +only in the business of life, but in Poetry and Eloquence. An Orator, +therefore, should examine what is becoming, as well in the turn of his +language, as in that of his sentiments. For not every condition, not every +rank, not every character, nor every age, or place, or time, nor every +hearer is to be treated with the same invariable train either of sentiment +or expression:--but we should always consider in every part of a public +Oration, as well as of life, what will be most becoming,--a circumstance +which naturally depends on the nature of the subject, and the respective +characters of the Speaker and Hearer. Philosophers, therefore, have +carefully discussed this extensive and important topic in the doctrine of +Ethics, (though not, indeed, when they treat of right and wrong, because +those are invariably the fame:)--nor is it less attended to by the Critics +in their poetical Essays, or by men of Eloquence in every species and +every part of their public debates. For what would be more out of +character, than to use a lofty style, and ransack every topic of argument, +when we are speaking only of a petty trespass in some inferior court? Or, +on the other hand, to descend to any puerile subtilties, and speak with +the indifference and simplicity of a frivolous narrative, when we are +lashing treason and rebellion? + +_Here_, the indecorum would arise from the very nature and quality of the +subject: but others are equally guilty of it, by not adapting their +discourse either to their own characters, or to that of their hearers, +and, in some cafes, to that of their antagonists; and they extend the +fault not only to their sentiments, but to the turn of their expression. +It is true, indeed, that the force of language is a mere nothing, when it +is not supported by a proper solidity of sentiment: but it is also equally +true that the same thing will be either approved or rejected, according as +it is this or that way expressed. In all cases, therefore, we cannot be +too careful in examining the _how far_? for though every thing has it's +proper mean, yet an _excess_ is always more offensive and disgusting than +a proportionable _defect_. _Apelles_, therefore, justly censures some of +his cotemporary artists, because they never knew when they had performed +enough. + +This, my Brutus, as your long acquaintance with it must necessarily inform +you, is a copious subject, and would require an extensive volume to +discuss. But it is sufficient to our present purpose to observe, that in +all our words and actions, as well the smallest as the greatest, there is +a something which will appear either becoming or unbecoming, and that +almost every one is sensible of it's confluence. But what is becoming, and +what _ought to be_, are very different considerations, and belong to a +different topic:--for the _ought to be_ points out the perfection of duty, +which should be attended to upon all occasions, and by all persons: but +the _becoming_ denotes that which is merely _proper_, and suited to time +and character, which is of great importance not only in our actions and +language, but in our very looks, our gesture, and our walk; and that which +is contrary to it will always be _unbecoming_, and disagreeable. If the +Poet, therefore, carefully guards against any impropriety of the kind, and +is always condemned as guilty of a fault, when he puts the language of a +worthy man into the mouth of a ruffian, or that of a wife man into the +mouth of a fool:--if, moreover, the artist who painted the sacrifice of +_Iphigenia_, [Footnote: Agamemnon, one of the Grecian chiefs, having by +accident slain a deer belonging to Diana, the Goddess was so enraged at +this profanation of her honours, that she kept him wind-bound at Aulis +with the whole fleet. Under this heavy disaster, having recourse to the +Oracle, (their usual refuge in such cases) they were informed that the +only atonement which the angry Goddess would accept, was the sacrifice of +one of the offender's children. Ulysses having, by a stratagem, withdrawn +_Iphigenia_ from her mother for that purpose, the unhappy Virgin was +brought to the altar. But, as the story goes, the Goddess relenting at her +hard fate, substituted a deer in her stead, and conveyed her away to serve +her as a Priestess. It must be farther remarked that _Menelaus_ was the +Virgin's uncle, and Calchas the Priest who was to officiate at this horrid +sacrifice.] could see that _Chalcas_ should appear greatly concerned, +_Ulysses_ still more so, and _Menelaus_ bathed in tears, but that the head +of Agamemnon (the virgin's father) should be covered with his robe, to +intimate a degree of anguish which no pencil could express: lastly, if a +mere actor on the stage is ever cautious to keep up the character he +appears in, what must be done by the Orator? But as this is a matter of +such importance, let him consider at his leisure, what is proper to be +done in particular causes, and in their several parts and divisions:--for +it is sufficiently evident, not only that the different parts of an +Oration, but that entire causes ought to be managed, some in one manner, +and some in another. + +We must now proceed to delineate the form and character of each of the +three species of Eloquence above-mentioned; a great and an arduous talk, +as I have already observed more than once; But we should have considered +the difficulty of the voyage before we embarked: for now we have ventured +to set sail, we must run boldly before the wind, whether we reach our port +or not. + +The first character, then, to be described, is the Orator who, according +to some, is the only one that has any just pretensions to _Atticism_. He +is distinguished by his modest simplicity; and as he imitates the language +of conversation, he differs from those who are strangers to Eloquence, +rather in reality than in appearance. For this reason, those who hear him, +though totally unskilled in the art of Speaking, are apt to persuade +themselves that they can readily discourse in the same manner [Footnote: +There is a pretty remark to the same purpose in the fifteenth number of +_The Guardian_, which, as it may serve to illustrate the observation of +Cicero, I shall beg leave to insert. + +"From what I have advanced, it appears how difficult it is to write +_easily_. But when easy writings fall into the hands of an ordinary +reader, they appear to him so natural and unlaboured, that he immediately +resolves to write, and fancies that all he has to do is to take no pains. +Thus he thinks indeed simply, but the thoughts not being chosen with +judgment, are not beautiful. He, it is true, expresses himself plainly, +but flatly withal. Again, if a man of vivacity takes it into his head to +write this way, what self-denial must he undergo, when bright points of +wit occur to his fancy? How difficult will he find it to reject florid +phrases, and pretty embellishments of style? So true it is, that +simplicity of all things is the hardest to be copied, and case to be +acquired with the greatest labour."];--and the unaffected simplicity of +his language appears very imitable to an ignorant observer; though nothing +will be found less so by him who makes the trial. For, if I may so express +myself, though his veins are not over-stocked with blood, his juices must +be found and good; and though he is not possessed of any extraordinary +strength, he must have a healthy constitution. For this purpose, we must +first release him from the shackles of _number_; for there is (you know) a +kind of _number_ to be observed by an Orator, which we shall treat of in +the sequel:--but this is to be used in a different species of Eloquence, +and to be relinquished in the present. His language, therefore, must be +free and unconfined, but not loose and irregular, that he may appear to +walk at ease, without reeling or tottering. He will not be at the pains to +cement word to word with a scrupulous exactness: for those breaks which +are made by a collision of vowels, have now and then an agreeable effect, +and betray the not unpleasing negligence of a man who is more felicitous +about things than words. But though he is not to labour at a measured +flow, and a masterly arrangement of his words, he must be careful in other +respects. For even these limited and unaspiring talents are not to be +employed carelessly, but with a kind of industrious negligence: for as +some females are most becoming in a dishabille, so this artless kind of +Eloquence has her charms, though she appears in an undress. There is +something in both which renders them agreeable, without striking the eye. +Here, therefore, all the glitter of ornament, like that of jewels and +diamonds, must be laid aside; nor must we apply even the crisping-iron to +adjust the hair. There must be no colouring, no artful washes to heighten +the complexion: but elegance and neatness must be our only aim. Our style +muft be pure, and correct;--we must speak with clearness and perspicuity; +--and be always attentive to appear in character. There is one thing, +however, which must never be omitted, and which is reckoned by +Theophrastus to be one of the chief beauties of composition;--I mean that +sweet and flowing ornament, a plentiful intermixture of lively sentiments, +which seem to result from a natural fund of good sense, and are peculiarly +graceful in the Orator we are now describing. But he will be very moderate +in using the _furniture_ of Eloquence: for (if I may be allowed such an +expression) there is a species of furniture belonging to us, which +consists in the various ornaments of sentiment and language. The ornaments +of language are two-fold; the one sort relates to words as they stand +singly, and the other as they are connected together. A _single_ word (I +speak of those which are _proper_, and in common use) is then said to be +well chosen, when it founds agreeably, and is the best which could have +been taken to express our meaning. Among borrowed and _translatitious_ +[Footnote: Words which are transferred from their primitive meaning to a +metaphorical one.] words, (or those which are not used in their proper +sense) we may reckon the metaphor, the metonymy, and the rest of the +tropes; as also compounded and new-made words, and such as are obsolete +and out of date; but obsolete words should rather be considered as proper +ones, with this only difference, that we seldom make use of them. As to +words in connection, these also may be considered as ornamental, when they +have a certain gracefulness which would be destroyed by changing their +order, though the meaning would still remain the same. For as to the +ornaments of sentiment, which lose nothing of their beauty, by varying the +position of the words,--these, indeed, are very numerous, though only a +few of them are remarkably striking. + +The Orator, then, who is distinguished by the simplicity of his manner, +provided he is correct and elegant, will be sparing in the use of new +words; easy and modest in his metaphors; and very cautious in the use of +words which are antiquated;--and as to the other ornaments of language and +sentiment, here also he will be equally plain and reserved. But in the use +of metaphors, he will, perhaps, take greater liberties; because these are +frequently introduced in conversation, not only by Gentlemen, but even by +rustics, and peasants: for we often hear them say that the vine _shoots +out_ it's buds, that the fields are _thirsty_, the corn _lively_, and the +grain _rich_ and flourishing. Such expressions, indeed, are rather bold: +but the resemblance between the metaphor and the object is either +remarkably obvious; or else, when the latter has no proper name to express +it, the metaphor is so far from appearing to be laboured, that we seem to +use it merely to explain our meaning. This, therefore, is an ornament in +which our artless Orator may indulge himself more freely; but not so +openly as in the more diffusive and lofty species of Eloquence. For that +_indecorum_, which is best understood by comparing it with its opposite +quality, will even here be viable when a metaphor is too conspicuous;--or +when this simple and dispassionate sort of language is interrupted by a +bold ornament, which would have been proper enough in a different kind of +Elocution. + +As to that sort of ornament which regards the position of words, and +embellishes it with those studied graces, which are considered by the +Greeks as so many _attitudes_ of language, and are therefore called +_figures_, (a name which is likewise extended to the flowers of +sentiment;)--the Orator before us, who may justly be regarded as an +_Attic_ Speaker, provided the title is not confined to him, will make use +even of _this_, though with great caution and moderation. He will conduct +himself as if he was setting out an entertainment, and while he carefully +avoids a splendid magnificence, he will not only be plain and frugal, but +neat and elegant, and make his choice accordingly. For there is a kind of +genteel parsimony, by which his character is distinguished from that of +others. He will, therefore, avoid the more conspicuous ornaments above- +mentioned, such as the contracting word to word,--the concluding the +several members of a sentence with the same cadence, or confining them to +the same measure,--and all the studied prettiness which are formed by the +change of a letter, or an artful play of found;--that, if possible, there +may not be the slightest appearance, or even suspicion, of a design to +please. As to those repetitions which require an earnest and forcible +exertion of the voice, these also would be equally out of character in +this lower species of Eloquence; but he may use the other ornaments of +Elocution at his pleasure, provided he checks and interrupts the flow of +his language, and softens it off by using familiar expressions, and such +metaphors as are plain and obvious. Nay, even as to the figures of +sentiment, he may sometimes indulge himself in those which are not +remarkably bold and striking. Thus, for instance, we must not allow him to +introduce the Republic as speaking, nor to fetch up the dead from their +graves, nor to crowd a multitude of ideas into the same period. These +efforts demand a firmer constitution, and should be neither required nor +expected from the simple Orator before us; for as in his voice, so +likewise in his language, he should be ever easy and composed. But there +are many of the nobler ornaments which may be admitted even here, though +always in a plainer and more artless habit than in any other species of +Eloquence; for such is the character we have assigned him. His gesture +also will be neither pompous, nor theatrical, but consist in a moderate +and easy sway of the body, and derive much of it's efficacy from the +countenance,--not a stiff and affected countenance, but such a one as +handsomely corresponds with his sentiments. + +This kind of Oratory will likewise be frequently enlivened by those turns +of wit and pleasantry, which in Speaking have a much greater effect than +is imagined. There are two sorts of them; the one consisting in smart +sayings and quick repartees, and the other in what is called _humour_. Our +Orator will make use of both;--of the latter in his narratives, to make +them lively and entertaining;--and of the other, either in giving or +retorting a stroke of ridicule, of which there are several kinds; but at +present it is not our business to specify them. It will not be amiss, +however, to observe by way of caution, that the powers of _ridicule_ are +not to be employed too often, lest we sink into scurrility;--nor in loose +and indecent language, lest we degenerate into wantonness and buffoonery; +--nor with the least degree of petulance and abuse, lest we appear +audacious and ill-bred;--nor levelled against the unfortunate, lest we +incur the censure of inhumanity;--nor against atrocious crimes, lest we +raise a laugh where we ought to excite abhorrence;--nor, in the last +place, should they be used unseasonably, or when the characters either of +the Speaker, or the Hearer, and the circumstances of time and place forbid +it;--otherwise we should grossly fail in that decorum of which we have +already said so much. We should likewise avoid all affected witticisms, +which appear not to be thrown out occasionally, but to be dragged from the +closet; for such are generally cold and insipid. It is also improper to +jest upon our friends, or upon persons of quality, or to give any strokes +of wit which may appear ill-natured, or malicious. We should aim only at +our enemies; and even at these, not upon every occasion, or without any +distinction of character, or with the same invariable turn of ridicule. +Under these restrictions our artless Orator will play off his wit and +humour, as I have never seen it done by any of the modern pretenders to +Atticism, though they cannot deny that this is entirely in the Attic +taste. + +Such, then, is the idea which I have formed of a _simple and an easy +Speaker_, who is likewise a very masterly one, and a genuine Athenian; for +whatever is smart and pertinent is unquestionably _Attic_, though some of +the Attic Speakers were not remarkable for their wit. _Lysias_, indeed, +and _Hyperides_ were sufficiently so; and _Demades_, it is said, was more +so than all the others. Demosthenes, however, is thought by many to have +but little merit of the kind; but to me nothing can be more genteel than +he is; though, perhaps, he was rather smart than humourous. The one +requires a quicker genius, but the other more art and address. + +But there is a second character, which is more diffusive, and somewhat +stronger than the simple and artless, one we have been describing,--though +considerably inferior to that copious and all-commanding Eloquence we +shall notice in the sequel. In this, though there is but a moderate +exertion of the nerves and sinews of Oratory, there is abundance of melody +and sweetness. It is much fuller and richer than the close and accurate +style above-mentioned; but less elevated than the pompous and diffusive. +In _this_ all the ornaments of language may be employed without reserve; +and _here_ the flow of our numbers is ever soft and harmonious. Many of +the Greeks have pursued it with success: but, in my opinion, they must all +yield the palm to _Demetrius Phalereus_, whose Eloquence is ever mild and +placid, and bespangled with a most elegant variety of metaphors and other +tropes, like so many _stars_. By _metaphors_, as I have frequently +observed, I mean expressions which, either for the sake of ornament, or +through the natural poverty of our language, are removed and as it were +_transplanted_ from their proper objects to others, by way of similitude. +As to _tropes_ in general, they are particular forms of expression, in +which the proper name of a thing is supplied by another, which conveys the +same meaning, but is borrowed from its adjuncts or effects: for, though, +in this case, there is a kind of metaphor, (because the word is shifted +from its primary object) yet the remove is performed by _Ennius_ in a +different manner, when he says metaphorically,--"_You bereave the citadel +and the city of their offspring_,"--from what it would have been, if he +had put the citadel alone for the whole state: and thus again, when he +tells us that,--"_rugged Africa was shaken by a dreadful tumult_,"--he +puts Africa for the inhabitants. The Rhetoricians call this an +_Hypallage_, because one word is substituted for another: but the +Grammarians call it a _Metonymy_, because the words are shifted and +interchanged. Aristotle, however, subjoins it to the metaphor, as he +likewise does the _Abuse_ or _Catachresis_; by which, for instance, we say +a _narrow, contracted soul_, instead of a _mean_ one, and thus steal an +expression which has a kindred meaning with the proper one, either for the +sake of ornament or decency. When several metaphors are connected together +in a regular chain, the form of speaking is varied. The Greeks call this +an _Allegory_, which indeed is proper enough if we only attend to the +etymology; but if we mean to refer it to its particular _genus_ or kind, +he has done better who comprehends the whole under the general name of +metaphors. These, however, are frequently used by _Phalereus_, and have a +soft and pleasing effect: but though he abounds in the metaphor, he also +makes use of the other tropes with as much freedom as any writer whatever. + +This species of Eloquence (I mean the _middling_, or temperate) is +likewise embellished with all the brilliant figures of language, and many +of the figures of sentiment. By this, moreover, the most extensive and +refined topics of science are handsomely unfolded, and all the weapons of +argument are employed without violence. But what need have I to say more? +Such Speakers are the common offspring of Philosophy; and were the +nervous, and more striking Orator to keep out of sight, these alone would +fully answer our wishes. For they are masters of a brilliant, a florid, a +picturesque, and a well-wrought Elocution, which is interwoven with all +the beautiful embroidery both of language and sentiment. This character +first streamed from the limpid fountains of the _Sophists_ into the Forum; +but being afterwards despised by the more simple and refined kind of +Speakers, and disdainfully rejected by the nervous and weighty; it was +compelled to subside into the peaceful and unaspiring mediocrity we are +speaking of. + +The _third character_ is the extensive,--the copious,--the nervous,--the +majestic Orator, who possesses the powers of Elocution in their full +extent. _This_ is the man whose enchanting and diffusive language is so +much admired by listening nations, that they have tamely suffered +Eloquence to rule the world;--but an Eloquence whose course is rapid and +sonorous!--an Eloquence which every one gazes at, and admires, and +despairs to equal! This is the Eloquence that bends and sways the +passions!--_this_ the Eloquence that alarms or sooths them at her +pleasure! This is the Eloquence that sometimes tears up all before it like +a whirlwind; and, at other times, steals imperceptibly upon the senses, +and probes to the bottom of the heart!--the Eloquence which ingrafts +opinions that are new, and eradicates the old; but yet is widely different +from the two characters of Speaking before-mentioned. + +He who exerts himself in the simple and accurate character, and speaks +neatly and smartly without aiming any higher!--_he_, by this alone, if +carried to perfection, becomes a great, if not the greatest of Orators; +nor does he walk upon slippery ground, so that if he has but learned to +tread firm, he is in no danger of falling. Also the middle kind of Orator, +who is distinguished by his equability, provided he only draws up his +forces to advantage, fears not the perilous and doubtful hazards of a +public Harangue; and, though sometimes he may not succeed to his wishes, +yet he is never exposed to an absolute defeat; for as he never soars, his +fall must be inconsiderable. But the Orator, whom we regard as the prince +of his profession,--the nervous,--the fierce,--the flaming Orator, if he +is born for this alone, and only practices and applies himself to this, +without tempering his copiousness with the two inferior characters of +Eloquence, is of all others the most contemptible. For the plain and +simple Orator, as speaking acutely and expertly, has an appearance of +wisdom and good-sense; and the middle kind of Orator is sufficiently +recommended by his sweetness:--but the copious and diffusive Speaker, if +he has no other qualification, will scarcely appear to be in his senses. +For he who can say nothing calmly,--nothing gently--nothing methodically, +--nothing clearly, distinctly, or humourously, (though a number of causes +should be so managed throughout, and others in one or more of their +parts:)--he, moreover, who proceeds to amplify and exaggerate without +preparing the attention of his audience, will appear to rave before men of +understanding, and to vapour like a person intoxicated before the sober +and sedate. + +Thus then, my Brutus, we have at last discovered the finished Orator we +are seeking for: but we have caught him in imagination only;--for if I +could have seized him with my hands, not all his Eloquence should persuade +me to release him. We have at length, however, discovered the eloquent +Speaker, whom Antonius never saw.--But who, then, is he?--I will comprize +his character in a few words, and afterwards unfold it more at large.--He, +then, is an Orator indeed! who can speak upon trivial subjects with +simplicity and art, upon weighty ones with energy and pathos, and upon +those of middling import with calmness and moderation. You will tell me, +perhaps, that such a Speaker has never existed. Be it so:--for I am now +discoursing not upon what I _have_ seen, but upon what I could _wish_ to +see; and must therefore recur to that primary semblance or ideal form of +Plato which I have mentioned before, and which, though it cannot be seen +with our bodily eyes, may be comprehended by the powers of imagination. +For I am not seeking after a living Orator, or after any thing which is +mortal and perishing, but after that which confers a right to the title of +_eloquent_; in other words, I am seeking after Eloquence herself, who can +be discerned only by the eye of the mind. + +He then is truly an _Orator_, (I again repeat it,) who can speak upon +trivial subjects with simplicity, upon indifferent ones with moderation, +and upon weighty subjects with energy and pathos. [Footnote: Our Author is +now going to indulge himself in the _Egotism_,--a figure, which, upon many +occasions, he uses as freely as any of the figures of Rhetoric. How the +Reader will relish it, I know not; but it is evident from what follows, +and from another passage of the same kind further on, that Cicero had as +great a veneration for his own talents as any man living. His merit, +however, was so uncommon both as a Statesman, a Philosopher, and an +Orator, and he has obliged posterity with so many useful and amazing +productions of genius, that we ought in gratitude to forgive the vanity of +the _man_. Although he has ornamented the socket in which he has _set_ his +character, with an extravagant (and I had almost said ridiculous) +profusion of self-applause, it must be remembered that the diamond it +contains is a gem of inestimable value.] The cause I pleaded for Caecina +related entirely to the bare letter of the Interdict: here, therefore, I +explained what was intricate by a definition,--spoke in praise of the +Civil Law,--and dissolved the ambiguities which embarrassed the meaning of +the Statute.--In recommending the Manilian Law, I was to blazon the +character of _Pompey_, and therefore indulged myself in all that variety +of ornament which is peculiar to the second species of Eloquence. In the +cause of Rabirius, as the honour of the Republic was at stake, I blazed +forth in every species of amplification. But these characters are +sometimes to be intermingled and diversified. Which of them, therefore, is +not to be met with in my seven Invectives against _Verres_? or in the +cause of _Habitus_? or in that of _Cornelius_? or indeed in most of my +Defences? I would have specified the particular examples, did I not +believe them to be sufficiently known; or, at least, very easy to be +discovered by those who will take the trouble to seek for them. For there +is nothing which can recommend an Orator in the different characters of +speaking, but what has been exemplified in my Orations,--if not to +perfection, yet at least it has been attempted, and faintly delineated. I +have not, indeed, the vanity to think I have arrived at the summit; but I +can easily discern what Eloquence ought to be. For I am not to speak of +myself, but to attend to my subject; and so far am I from admiring my own +productions, that, on the contrary, I am so nice and difficult, as not to +be entirely satisfied with Demosthenes himself, who, though he rises with +superior eminence in every species of Eloquence, does not always fill my +ear;--so eager is it, and so insatiable, as to be ever coveting what is +boundless and immense. But as, by the assistance of _Pammenes_, who is +very fond of that Orator, you made yourself thoroughly acquainted with him +when you was at _Athens_, and to this day scarcely ever part with him from +your hands, and yet frequently condescend to peruse what has been written +by _me_; you must certainly have taken notice that he hath _done_ much, +and that I have _attempted_ much,--that he has been _happy_ enough, and I +_willing_ enough to speak, upon every occasion, as the nature of the +subject required. But he, beyond dispute, was a consummate Orator; for he +not only succeeded several eminent Speakers, but had many such for his +cotemporaries:--and I also, if I could have reached the perfection I aimed +at, should have made no despicable figure in a city, where (according to +Antonius) the voice of genuine Eloquence was never heard. + +But if to Antonius neither Crassus, nor even himself, appeared to be +_eloquent_, we may presume that neither Cotta, Sulpicius, nor Hortensius +would have succeeded any better. For _Cotta_ had no expansion, _Sulpicius_ +no temper, and _Hortensius_ too little dignity. But the two former (I mean +Crassus and Antonius) had a capacity which was better adapted to every +species of Oratory. I had, therefore, to address myself to the ears of a +city which had never been filled by that multifarious and extensive +Eloquence we are discoursing of; and I first allured them (let me have +been what you please, or what ever were my talents) to an incredible +desire of hearing the finished Speaker who is the subject of the present +Essay. For with what acclamations did I deliver that passage in my youth +concerning the punishment of parricides [Footnote: Those unnatural and +infamous wretches, among the Romans, were sown into a leathern sack, and +thus thrown into the sea; to intimate that they were unworthy of having +the lead communication with the common elements of water, earth, and +air.], though I was afterwards sensible it was too warm and extravagant? +--"What is so common, said I, as air to the living, earth to the dead, the +sea to floating corpses, and the shore to those who are caft upon it by +the waves! But these wretches, as long as life remains, so live as not to +breathe the air of heaven;--they so perish, that their limbs are not +suffered to touch the earth;--they are so tossed to and fro' by the waves, +as never to be warned by them;--and when they are cast on the shore, their +dead, carcases cannot rest upon the surface of the rocks!" All this, as +coming from a youth, was much applauded, not for it's ripeness and +solidity, but for the hopes it gave the Public of my future improvement. +From the same capacity came those riper expressions,--"She was the spouse +of her son-in-law, the step-mother of her own offspring? and the mistress +of her daughter's husband [Footnote: This passage occurs in the peroration +of his Defence of Cluentius]." + +But I did not always indulge myself in this excessive ardour of +expression, or speak every thing in the same manner: for even that +youthful redundance which was so visible in the defence of _Roscius_, had +many passages which were plain and simple, and some which were, tolerably +humourous. But the Orations in defence of _Habitus_, and _Cornelius_, and +indeed many others; (for no single Orator, even among the peaceful and +speculative Athenians, has composed such a number as I have;)--these, I +say, have all that variety which I so much approve. For have _Homer_ and +_Ennius_, and the rest of the Poets, but especially the tragic writers, +not expressed themselves at all times with the same elevation, but +frequently varied their manner, and sometimes lowered it to the style of +conversation; and shall I oblige myself never to descend from that highest +energy of language? Bit why do I mention the Poets whose talents are +divine! The very actors on the stage, who have most excelled in their +profession, have not only succeeded in very different characters, though +still in the same province; but a comedian has often acted tragedies, and +a tragedian comedies so as to give us universal satisfaction. Wherefore, +then, should not _I_ also exert my efforts? But when I say _myself_, my +worthy Brutus I mean _you_: for as to _me_, I have already done all, I was +capable of doing. Would _you_, then, plead every cause in the same manner? +Or is there any sort of causes which your genius would decline? Or even in +the same cause, would you always express yourself in the same strain, and +without any variety? Your favourite _Demosthenes_, whose brazen statue I +lately beheld among your own, and your family images, when I had the +pleasure to visit you at Tusculanum,--Demosthenes, I say, was nothing +inferior to _Lysias_ in simplicity; to _Hyperides_ in smartness and +poignancy, or to _Aeschines_ in the smoothness and splendor of his +language. There are many of his Orations which are entirely of the close +and simple character, as that against _Lepsines_; many which are all +nervous, and striking, as those against _Philip_; and many which are of a +mixed character, as that against _Aeschines_, concerning the false +embassy, and another against the same person in defence of _Ctesiphon_. At +other times he strikes into the _mean_ at his pleasure, and quitting the +nervous character, descends to this with all the ease imaginable. But he +raises the acclamations of his audience, and his Oratory is then most +weighty and powerful, when he applies himself to the _nervous_. + +But as our enquiries relate to the art, and not to the artist, let us +leave _him_ for the present, and consider the nature and the properties of +the object before us,--that is, of _Eloquence_. We must keep in mind, +however, what I have already hinted,--that we are not required to deliver +a system of precepts, but to write as judges and critics, rather than +teachers. But I have expatiated so largely upon the subject, because I +foresee that you (who are, indeed, much better versed in it, than I who +pretend to inform you) will not be my only reader; but that my little +essay, though not much perhaps to my credit, will be made public, and with +your name prefixed to it. + +I am of opinion, therefore, that a finished Orator should not only possess +the talent (which, indeed, is peculiar, to himself) of speaking copiously +and diffusively: but that he should also borrow the assistance of it's +nearest neighbour, the art of Logic. For though public speaking is one +thing, and disputing another; and though there is a visible difference +between a private controversy, and a public Harangue; yet both the one and +the other come under the notion of reasoning. But mere discourse and +argument belongs to the Logician, and the art of Speaking gracefully and +ornamentally is the prerogative of the Orator. _Zeno_, the father of the +_Stoics_, used to illustrate the difference between the two by holding up +his hand;--for when he clenched his fingers, and presented a close fist,-- +"_that_," he said, "was an emblem of Logic:"--but when he spread them out +again, and displayed his open hand,--"this," said he, "resembles +Eloquence." But Aristotle observed before him, in the introduction to his +Rhetoric, that it is an art which has a near resemblance to that of +Logic;--and that the only difference between them is, that the method of +reasoning in the former is more diffusive, and in the latter more close +and contracted. + +I, therefore, advise that our finished Orator make himself master of every +thing in the art of Logic, which is applicable to his profession:--an art +(as your thorough knowledge of it has already informed you) which is +taught after two methods. For Aristotle himself has delivered a variety of +precepts concerning the art of Reasoning:--and besides these, the +_Dialecticians_ (as they are called) have produced many intricate and +thorny speculations of their own. I am, therefore, of opinion, that he who +is ambitious to be applauded for his Eloquence, should not be wholly +unacquainted with this branch of Erudition; but that he ought (at least) +to be properly instructed either in the old method, or in that of +_Chrysippus_. In the first place, he should understand the force, the +extension, and the different species of words as they stand singly, or +connected into sentences. He should likewise be acquainted with the +various modes and forms in which any conception of the mind may be +expressed--the methods of distinguishing a true proposition from a false +one;--the different conclusions which result from different premises;--the +true consequences and opposites to any given proposition;--and, if an +argument is embarrassed by ambiguities, how to unravel each of them by an +accurate distinction. These particulars, I say, should be well understood +by an Orator, because they are such as frequently occur: but as they are +naturally rugged and unpleasing, they should be relieved in practice by an +easy brilliance of expression. + +But as in every topic which is discussed by reason and method, we should +first settle what it is we are to discourse upon,--(for unless the parties +in a dispute are agreed about the subject of it, they can neither reason +with propriety, nor bring the argument to an issue;)--it will frequently +be necessary to explain our notions of it, and, when the matter is +intricate, to lay it open by a _definition_;--for a _definition_ is only a +sentence, or explanation, which specifies, in as few words as possible, +the nature of the object we propose to consider. After the _genus_, or +kind, has been sufficiently determined, we must then proceed (you know) to +examine into it's different species, or subordinate parts, that our whole +discourse may be properly distributed among them. Our Orator, then, should +be qualified to make a just definition;--though not in such a close and +contracted form, as in the critical debates of the Academy, but more +explicitly and copiously, and as will be best adapted to the common way of +thinking, and the capacity of the vulgar. He is likewise, as often as +occasion requires, to divide the genus into it's proper species, so as to +be neither defective, nor redundant. But _how_ and _when_ this should be +done, is not our present business to consider: because, as I observed +before, I am not to assume the part of a teacher, but only of a critic and +a judge. + +But he ought to acquaint himself not only with the art of Logic, but with +all the common and most useful branches of Morality. For without a +competent knowledge of these, nothing can be advanced and unfolded with +any spirit and energy, or with becoming dignity and freedom, either +concerning religion,--death,--filial piety,--the love of our country,-- +things good or evil,--the several virtues and vices,--the nature of moral +obligation,--grief or pleasure, and the other emotions of the mind,--or +the various errors and frailties of humanity,--and a variety of important +topics which are often closely connected with forensic causes; though +_here_(it is true) they must be touched upon more slightly and +superficially. I am now speaking of the _materials_ of Eloquence, and not +of the _art_ itself:--for an Orator should always be furnished with a +plentiful stock of sentiments,--(I mean such as may claim the attention of +the learned, as well as of the vulgar)--before he concerns himself about +the language and the manner in which he ought to express himself. + +That he may make a still more respectable and elevated figure (as we have +already observed of _Pericles_) he should not be unacquainted with the +principles of Natural Philosophy. For when he descends, as it were, from +the starry heavens, to the little concerns of humanity, he will both think +and speak with greater dignity and splendor. But after acquainting himself +with those divine and nobler objects of contemplation, I would have him +attend to human concerns. In particular, let him make himself master of +the _Civil Law_, which is of daily, and indeed necessary use in every kind +of causes. For what can be more scandalous, than to undertake the +management of judicial suits and controversies, without a proper knowledge +of the laws, and of the principles of Equity and Jurisprudence? He +should also be well versed in History and the venerable records of +Antiquity, but particularly those of his own country: not neglecting, +however, to peruse the annals of other powerful nations, and illustrious +monarchs;--a toil which has been considerably shortened by our friend +_Atticus_, who (though he has carefully specified the time of every +event, and omitted no transaction of consequence) has comprized the +history of seven hundred years in a single volume. To be unacquainted with +what has passed in the world, before we came into it ourselves, is to be +always children. For what is the age of a single mortal, unless it is +connected, by the aid of History, with the times of our ancestors? +Besides, the relation of past occurrences, and the producing pertinent and +striking examples, is not only very entertaining, but adds a great deal of +dignity and weight to what we say. + +Thus furnished and equipped our Orator may undertake the management of +causes. But, in the first place, he should be well acquainted with their +different kinds. He should know, for instance, that every judicial +controversy must turn either upon a matter of _fact_, or upon the meaning +of some particular expression. As to the former, this must always relate +either to the _reality_ of a fast, the _equity_ of it, or the _name_ it +bears in law. As to forms of expression, these may become the subject of +controversy, when they are either _ambiguous_, or _contradictory_. For +when the _spirit_ of a law appears to be at variance with the _letter_ of +it, this must cause an ambiguity which commonly arises from some of the +preceding terms; so that in this case (for such is the nature of an +ambiguity) the law will appear to have a double meaning. + +As the kinds of causes are so few, the rules for the invention of +arguments must be few also. The topics, or common places from which those +arguments are derived, are twofold,--the one _inherent_ in the subject, +and the other _assumptive_. A skilful management of the former contributes +most to, give weight to a discourse, and strike the attention of the +hearer: because they are easy, and familiar to the understanding. + +What farther remains (within the province of the Art) but that we should +begin our discourses so as to conciliate the hearer's good-will, or raise +his expectation, or prepare him to receive what follows?--to state the +case before us so concisely, and yet so plausibly and clearly, as that the +substance of it may be easily comprehended?--to support our own proofs, +and refute those of our antagonist, not in a confused and disorderly +manner, but so that every inference may be fairly deducible from the +premises?--and, in the last place, to conclude the whole with a peroration +either to inflame or allay the passions of the audience? How each of these +parts should be conducted is a subject too intricate and extensive for our +present consideration: for they are not always to be managed in the same +manner. + +But as I am not seeking a pupil to instruct, but an Orator who is to be +the model of his profession, _he_ must have the preference who can always +discern what is proper and becoming. For Eloquence should, above all, +things, have that kind of discretion which makes her a _perfect mistress +of time and character_: because we are not to speak upon every occasion, +or before every audience, or against every opponent, or in defence of +every client, and to every Judge, in the same invariable manner. He, +therefore, is the man of genuine Eloquence, who can adapt his language to +what is most suitable to each. By doing this, he will be sure to say every +thing as it ought to be said. He will neither speak drily upon copious +subjects, nor without dignity and spirit upon things of importance; but +his language will always be proportioned, and equal to his subject. His +introduction will be modest,--not flaming with all the glare of +expression, but composed of quick and lively turns of sentiment, either to +wound the cause of his antagonist, or recommend his own. His narratives +will be clear and plausible,--not delivered with the grave formality of an +Historian, but in the style of polite conversation. If his cause be +slight, the thread of his argument, both in proving and refuting, will be +so likewise, and he will so conduct it in every part, that his language +may rise and expand itself, as the dignity of his subject encreases. But +when his cause will admit a full exertion of the powers of Eloquence, he +will then display himself more openly;--he will then rule, and bend the +passions, and direct them, at his pleasure,--that is, as the nature of his +cause and the circumstances of the time shall require. + +But his powers of ornament will be chiefly exerted upon two occasions; I +mean that striking kind of ornament, from which Eloquence derives her +greatest glory. For though every part of an Oration should have so much +merit, as not to contain a single word but what is either weighty or +elegant; there are two very interesting parts which are susceptible of the +greatest variety of ornament. The one is the discussion of an indefinite +question, or general truth, which by the Greeks (as I have before +observed) is called a _thesis_: and the other is employed in amplifying +and exaggerating, which they call an _auxesis_. Though the latter, indeed, +should diffuse itself more or less through the whole body of a discourse, +it's powers will be more conspicuous in the use and improvement of the +_common places_:--which are so called, as being alike _common_ to a number +of causes, though (in the application of them) they are constantly +appropriated to a single one. But as to the other part, which regards +universal truths, or indefinite questions, this frequently extends through +a whole cause:--for the leading point in debate, or that which the +controversy hinges upon, is always most conveniently discussed when it can +be reduced to a general question, and considered as an universal +proposition:--unless, indeed, when the mere truth of a matter of fact: is +the object: of disquisition: for then the case must be wholly conjectural. +We are not, however, to argue like the _Peripatetics_ (who have a neat +method of controversy which they derive from _Aristotle_) but more +nervously and pressingly; and general sentiments must be so applied to +particular cases, as to leave us room to say many extenuating things in +behalf of the Defendant, and many severe ones against the Plaintiff. But +in heightening or softening a circumstance, the powers of language are +unlimited, and may be properly exerted, even in the middle of an argument, +as often as any thing presents itself which may be either exaggerated, or +extenuated; but, in, controul. + +There are two parts, however, which must not be omitted;--for when these +are judiciously conducted, the sorce of Eloquence will be amazing. The one +is a certain _propriety of manner_ (called the _ethic_ by the Greeks) +which readily adapts itself to different dispositions and humours, and to +every station of life:--and the other is the pathetic, which rouses and +alarms the passions, and may be considered as the _scepter_ of Eloquence. +The former is mild and insinuating, and entirely calculated to conciliate +the good-will of the hearer: but the latter is all energy and fire, and +snatches a cause by open violence;--and when it's course is rapid and +unrestrained, the shock is irresistible. I [footnote: Here follows the +second passage above-referred to, in which there is a long string of +_Egotisms_. But as they furnish some very instructive hints, the Reader +will peruse them with more pleasure than pain] myself have possessed a +tolerable share of this, or, it may be, a trifling one:--but as I always +spoke with uncommon warmth and impetuosity, I have frequently forced my +antagonist to relinquish the field. _Hortensius_, an eminent Speaker, once +declined to answer me, though in defence of an intimate friend. +_Cataline_, a most audacious traitor, being publicly accused by me in the +Senate-house, was struck dumb with shame: and _Curio_, the father, when he +attempted to reply to me in a weighty and important cause which concerned +the honour of his family, sat suddenly down, and complained that I had +_bewitched_ him out of his memory. As to moving the pity of my audience, +it will be unnecessary to mention this. I have frequently attempted it +with good success, and when several of us have pleaded on the same side, +this part of the defence was always resigned to me; in which my supposed +excellence was not owing to the superiority of my genius, but to the real +concern I felt for the distresses of my client. But what in this respect +have been my talents (for I have had no reason to complain of them) may be +easily discovered in my Orations:--though a book, indeed, must lose much +of the spirit which makes a speech delivered in public appear to greater +advantage than when it is perused in the closet. + +But we are to raise not only the pity of our judges, (which I have +endeavoured so passionately, that I once took up an infant in my arms +while I was speaking;--and, at another time, calling up the nobleman in +whose defence I spoke, and holding up a little child of his before the +whole assembly, I filled the Forum with my cries and lamentations:)--but +it is also necessary to rouse the judge's indignation, to appease it, to +excite his jealousy, his benevolence, his contempt, his wonder, his +abhorrence, his love, his desire, his aversion, his hope, his fear, his +joy, and his grief:--in all which variety, you may find examples, in many +accusatory speeches, of rousing the harsher passions; and my Defences will +furnish instances enough of the methods of working upon the gentler. For +there is no method either of alarming or soothing the passions, but what +has been attempted by _me_. I would say I have carried it to perfection, +if I either thought so, or was not afraid that (in this case) even truth +itself might incur the charge of arrogance. But (as I have before +observed) I have been so much transported, not by the force of my genius, +but by the real fervor of my heart, that I was unable to restrain myself: +--and, indeed, no language will inflame the mind of the hearer, unless the +Speaker himself first catches the ardor, and glows with the importance of +his subject. I would refer to examples of my own, unless you had seen them +already; and to those of other Speakers among the Romans, if I could +produce any, or among the Greeks, if I judged it proper. But _Crassus_ +will only furnish us with a few, and those not of the forensic kind:-- +_Antonius, Cotta_, and _Sulpicius_ with none:--and as to _Hortensius_, he +spoke much better than he wrote. We may, therefore, easily judge how +amazing must be the force of a talent, of which we have so few examples:-- +but if we are resolved to seek for them, we must have recourse to +_Demosthenes_, in whom we find almost a continued succession of them, in +that part of his Oration for _Ctesiphon_, where he enlarges on his own +actions, his measures, and his good services to the State, For that +Oration, I must own, approaches so near to the primary form or semblance +of Eloquence which exists in my mind, that a more complete and exalted +pattern is scarcely desirable. But still, there will remain a general +model or character, the true nature and excellence of which may be easily +collected from the hints I have already offered. + +We have slightly touched upon the ornaments +of language, both in single words, and in words as they stand connected +with each other;--in which our Orator will so indulge himself, that not a +single expression may escape him, but what is either elegant or weighty. +But he will most abound in the _metaphor_; which, by an aptness of +similitude, conveys and transports the mind from object to object, and +hurries it backwards and forwards through a pleasing variety of images;--a +motion which, in its own nature, (as being full of life and action) can +never fail to be highly delightful. As to the other ornaments of language +which regard words as they are connected with each other, an Oration will +derive much of its lustre from these. They are like the decorations in the +Theatre, or the Forum, which not only embellish, but surprize. [Footnote: +In the following Abstract of the Figures of _Language_ and _Sentiment_, I +have often paraphrased upon my author, to make him intelligible to the +English reader;--a liberty which I have likewise taken in several other +places, where I judged it necessary.] For such also is the effect of the +various _figures_ or decorations of language;--such as the doubling or +repetition of the same word;--the repeating it with a slight variation; +--the beginning or concluding several sentences in the same manner, or +both at once;--the making a word, which concludes a preceding sentence, to +begin the following;--the concluding a sentence with the same expression +which began it;--the repeating the same word with a different meaning; +--the using several corresponding words in the same case, or with the same +termination;--the contrasting opposite expressions;--the using words whose +meaning rises in gradation;--the leaving out the conjunctive particles to +shew our earnestness;--the passing by, or suddenly dropping a circumstance +we were going to mention, and assigning a reason for so doing; +--[Footnote: We have an instance of this, considered as a figure of +language, in the following line of Virgil; + Quos ego--, sed praestat motos componere fluctus. + Aeneid. I. + Whom I--, but let me still the raging waves. +This may likewise serve as an example of the figure which is next +mentioned.] the pretending to correct or reprove ourselves, that we may +seem to speak without artifice or partiality;--the breaking out into a +sudden exclamation, to express our wonder, our abhorrence, or our grief;-- +and the using the same noun in different cases. + +But the figures of _sentiment_ are more weighty and powerful; and there +are some who place the highest merit of _Demosthenes_ in the frequent use +he makes of them. For be his subject what it will, almost all his +sentences have a figurative air: and, indeed, a plentiful intermixture of +this sort of figures is the very life and soul of a popular Eloquence. But +as you are thoroughly acquainted with these, my Brutus, what occasion is +there to explain and exemplify them? The bare mention of them will be +sufficient.--Our Orator, then, will sometimes exhibit an idea in different +points of view, and when he has started a good argument, he will dwell +upon it with an honest exultation;--he will extenuate what is +unfavourable, and have frequent recourse to raillery;--he will sometimes +deviate from his plan, and seem to alter his first purpose:--he will +inform his audience beforehand, what are the principal points upon which +he intends to rest his cause;--he will collect and point out the force of +the arguments he has already discussed; he will check an ardent +expression, or boldly reiterate what he has said;--he will close a lively +paragraph with some weighty and convincing sentiment;--he will press upon +his adversary by repeated interrogations;--he will reason with himself, +and answer questions of his own proposing;--he will throw out expressions +which he designs to be otherwise understood than they seem to mean;--he +will pretend to doubt what is most proper to be said, and in what order;-- +he will divide an action, &c. into its several parts and circumstances, to +render it more striking;--he will pretend to pass over and relinquish a +circumstance which might have been urged to advantage;--he will secure +himself against the known prejudices of his audience;--he will turn the +very circumstance which is alledged against him to the prejudice of his +antagonist;--he will frequently appeal to his hearers, and sometimes to +his opponent;--he will represent the very language and manners of the +persons he is speaking of;--he will introduce irrational and even +inanimate beings, as addressing themselves to his audience;--he will (to +serve some necessary purpose) steal off their attention from the point in +debate;--he will frequently move them to mirth and laughter;--he will +answer every thing which he foresees will be objected;--he will compare +similar incidents,--refer to past examples,--and by way of amplification +assign their distinguishing qualities to opposite characters and +circumstances;--he will check an impertinent plea which may interrupt his +argument;--he will pretend not to mention what he might have urged to good +purpose;--he will caution his hearers against the various artifices and +subterfuges which may be employed to deceive them;--he will sometimes +appear to speak with an honest, but unguarded freedom;--he will avow his +resentment;--he will entreat;--he will earnestly supplicate;--he will +apologize;--he will seem for a moment to forget himself;--he will express +his hearty good wishes for the deserving, and vent his execrations against +notorious villainy;--and now and then he will descend imperceptibly to the +most tender and insinuating familiarities. There are likewise Other +beauties of composition which he will not fail to pursue;--such as brevity +where the subject requires it;--a lively and pathetic description of +important occurrences;--a passionate exaggeration of remarkable +circumstances;--an earnestness of expression which implies more than is +said;--a well-timed variety of humour;--and a happy imitation of different +characters and dispositions. Assisted and adorned by such figures as +these, which are very numerous, the force of Eloquence will appear in its +brightest lustre. But even these, unless they are properly formed and +regulated, by a skilful disposition of their constituent words, will never +attain the merit we require;--a subject which I shall be obliged to treat +of in the sequel, though I am restrained partly by the circumstances +already mentioned, but much more so by the following. For I am sensible +not only that there are some invidious people, to whom every improvement +appears vain and superfluous; but that even those, who are well-wishers to +my reputation, may think it beneath the dignity of a man whose public +services have been so honourably distinguished by the Senate, and the +whole body of the Roman people, to employ my pen so largely upon the art +of Speaking. [Footnote: The long apology which our author is now going to +make for bestowing his time in composing a treatise of Oratory, is in fact +a very artful as well as an elegant digression; to relieve the dryness and +intricacy of the abstract he has just given us of the figures of rhetoric, +and of the subsequent account of the rules of prosaic harmony. He has also +enlivened that account (which is a very long one) in the same manner, by +interspersing it, at convenient distances, with fine examples, agreeable +companions, and short historical digressions to elucidate the subject.] + +If, however, I was to return no other answer to the latter, but that I was +unwilling to deny any thing to the request of Brutus, the apology must be +unexceptionable; because I am only aiming at the satisfaction of an +intimate friend, and a worthy man, who desires nothing of me but what is +just and honourable. + +But was I even to profess (what I wish I was capable of) that I mean to +give the necessary precepts, and point out the road to Eloquence to those +who are desirous to qualify themselves for the Forum, what man of sense +could blame me for it? For who ever doubted that in the decision of +political matters, and in time of peace, Eloquence has always borne the +sway in the Roman state, while Jurisprudence has possessed only the second +post of honour? For whereas the former is a constant source of authority +and reputation, and enables us to defend ourselves and our friends in the +most effectual manner;--the other only furnishes us with formal rules for +indictments, pleas, protests, &c. in conducting which she is frequently +obliged to sue for the assistance of Eloquence;--but if the latter +condescends to oppose her, she is scarcely able to maintain her ground, +and defend her own territories. If therefore to teach the Civil Law has +always been reckoned a very honourable employment, and the houses of the +most eminent men of that profession, have been crowded with disciples; who +can be reasonably censured for exciting our youth to the study of +Eloquence, and furnishing them with all the assistance in his power? If it +is a fault to speak gracefully, let Eloquence be for ever banished from +the state. But if, on the contrary, it reflects an honour, not only upon +the man who possesses it, but upon the country which gave him birth, how +can it be a disgrace to _learn_, what it is so glorious to _know_? Or why +should it not be a credit to _teach_ what it is the highest honour to +have _learned_? + +But, in one case, they will tell me, the practice has been sanctified by +custom, and in the other it has not. This I grant: but We may easily +account for both. As to the gentlemen of the law, it was sufficient to +hear them, when they decided upon such cases as were laid before them in +the course of business;--so that when they taught, they did not set apart +any particular time for that purpose, but the same answers satisfied their +clients and their pupils. On the other hand, as our Speakers of eminence +spent their time, while at home, in examining and digesting their causes, +and while in the Forum in pleading them, and the remainder of it in a +seasonable relaxation, what opportunity had they for teaching and +instructing others? I might venture to add that most of our Orators have +been more distinguishied by their _genius_, than by their _learning_; and +for that reason were much better qualified to be _Speakers_ than +_Teachers_; which it is possible may be the reverse of my case.--"True," +say they; "but teaching is an employment which is far from being +recommended by its dignity." And so indeed it is, if we teach like mere +pedagogues. But if we only direct, encourage, examine, and inform our +pupils; and sometimes accompany them in reading or hearing the +performances of the most eminent Speakers;--if by these means we are able +to contribute to their improvement, what should hinder us from +communicating a few instructions, as opportunity offers? Shall we deem it +an honourable employment, as indeed with us it is, to teach the form of a +legal process, or an excommunication from the rites and privileges of our +religion; and shall it not be equally honourable to teach the methods by +which those privileges may be defended and secured?--"Perhaps it may," +they will reply; "but even those who know scarcely any thing of the law +are ambitious to be thought masters of it; whereas those who are well +furnished with the powers of Eloquence pretend to be wholly unacquainted +with them; because they are sensible that useful knowledge is a valuable +recommendation, whereas an artful tongue is suspected by every one." But +is it possible, then, to exert the powers of Eloquence without discovering +them? Or is an Orator really thought to be no Orator, because he disclaims +the title? Or is it likely that, in a great and noble art, the world will +judge it a scandal to _teach_ what it is the greatest honour to _learn_? +Others, indeed, may have been more reserved; but, for my part, I have +always owned my profession. For how could I do otherwise, when, in my +youth, I left my native land, and crossed the sea, with no other view but +to improve myself in this kind of knowledge; and, when afterwards my house +was crowded with the ablest professors, and my very style betrayed some +traces of a liberal education? Nay, when my own writings were in every +body's hands, with what face could I pretend that I had not studied? Or +what excuse could I have for submitting my abilities to the judgment of +the public, if I had been apprehensive that they would think I had studied +to no purpose? [Footnote: This sentence in the original runs thus;--_Quid +erat cur probarem_ (i.e. scripta nostra), _nisi quod parum fortasse +profeceram_?--"Wherefore did I approve of them," (that is, of my writings, +so far as to make them public) "but because I had," (in my own opinion) +"made a progress, though perhaps a small one, in useful literature?" This, +at least, is the only meaning I am able to affix to it; and I flatter +myself, that the translation I have given of it, will be found to +correspond with the general sense of my author.] But the points we have +already discussed are susceptible of greater dignity and elevation, than +those which remain to be considered. For we are next to treat of the +arrangement of our words; and, indeed, I might have said, of the art of +numbering and measuring our very syllables; which, though it may, in +reality, be a matter of as much consequence as I judge it to be, cannot +however be supposed to have such a striking appearance in precept as in +practice. This, indeed, might be said of every other branch of useful +knowledge; but it is more remarkably true with respect to this. For the +actual growth and improving height of all the sublimer arts, like that of +trees, affords a pleasing prospect; whereas the roots and stems are +scarcely beheld with indifference: and yet the former cannot subsist +without the latter. But whether I am restrained from dissembling the +pleasure I take in the subject, by the honest advice of the Poet, who +says, + + "Blush not to own the art you love to practise." + +or whether this treatise has been extorted from me by the importunity of +my friend, it was proper to obviate the censures to which it will probably +expose me. And yet, even supposing that I am mistaken in my sentiments, +who would shew himself so much of a savage, as to refuse me his indulgence +(now all my forensic employments and public business are at an end) for +not resigning myself to that stupid inactivity which is contrary to my +nature, or to that unavailing sorrow which I do my best to overcome, +rather than devote myself to my favourite studies? These first conducted +me into the Forum and the Senate-House, and they are now the chief +comforts of my retirement. I have, however, applied myself not only to +such speculations as form the subject of the present Essay, but to others +more sublime and interesting; and if I am able to discuss them in a proper +manner, my private studies will be no disparagement to my forensic +employments. + +But it is time to return to our subject.--Our words, then, should be so +disposed that every following one may be aptly connected with the +preceding, so as to make an agreeable sound;--or that the mere form and +_concinnity_ of our language may give our sentences their proper measure +and dimensions;--or, lastly, that our periods may have a numerous and +measured cadence. + +The first thing, then, to be attended to, is the _structure_ of our +language, or the agreeable connection of one word with another; which, +though it certainly requires care, ought not to be practised with a +laborious nicety. For this would be an endless and puerile attempt, and is +justly ridiculed by _Lucilius_, when he introduces _Scaevola_ thus +reflecting upon _Albucius_: + + "As in the checquer'd pavement ev'ry square + Is nicely fitted by the mason's care: + So all thy words are plac'd with curious art, + And ev'ry syllable performs its part." + +But though we are not to be minutely exact in the _structure_ of our +language, a moderate share of practice will habituate us to every thing of +this nature which is necessary. For as the eye in _reading_, so the mind +in _speaking_, will readily discern what ought to follow,--that, in +connecting our words, there may neither be a chasm, nor a disagreeable +harshness. The most lively and interesting sentiments, if they are harshly +expressed, will offend the ear, that delicate and fastidious judge of +rhetorical harmony. This circumstance, therefore, is so carefully attended +to in the Roman language, that there is scarcely a rustic among us who is +not averse to a collision of vowels,--a defect which, in the opinion of +some, was too scrupulously avoided by _Theopompus_, though his master +_Isocrates_ was equally cautious. But _Thucydides_ was not so exact; nor +was Plato, (though a much better writer)--not only in his _Dialogues_, in +which it was necessary to maintain an easy negligence, to resemble the +style of conversation, but in the famous _Panegyric_, in which (according +to the custom of the Athenians) he celebrated the praises of those who +fell in battle, and which was so greatly esteemed, that it is publicly +repeated every year. In that Oration a collision of vowels occurs very +frequently; though _Demosthenes_ generally avoids it as a fault. + +But let the Greeks determine for themselves: we Romans are not allowed to +interrupt the connection of our words. Even the rude and unpolished +Orations of _Cato_ are a proof of this; as are likewise all our poets, +except in particular instances, in which they were obliged to admit a few +breaks, to preserve their metre. Thus we find in _Naevius_, + + "_Vos_ QUI ACCOLITIS _histrum_ FLUVIUM ATQUE ALGIDUM." + +And in another place, + + "_Quam nunquam vobis_ GRAII ATQUE _Barbari_." + +But _Ennius_ admits it only once, when he says, + + "_Scipio invicte_;" + +and likewise I myself in + + "_Hoc motu radiantis_ ETESIAE IN _Vada Ponti_." + +This, however, would seldom be suffered among us, though the Greeks often +commend it as a beauty. + +But why do I speak of a collision of vowels? for, omitting this, we have +frequently _contracted_ our words for the sake of brevity; as in _multi' +modis, vas' argenteis, palm' et crinibus, tecti' fractis_, &c. We have +sometimes also contracted our proper _names_, to give them a smoother +sound: for as we have changed _Duellum_ into _Bellum_, and _duis_ into +_bis_, so _Duellius_, who defeated the Carthagenians at sea, was called +_Bellius_, though all his ancestors were named _Duellii_. We likewise +abbreviate our words, not only for convenience, but to please and gratify +the ear. For how otherwise came _axilla_ to be changed into _ala_, but by +the omission of an unweildy consonant, which the elegant pronunciation of +our language has likewise banished from the words _maxillae, taxillae, +vexillum_, and _paxillum_? + +Upon the same principle, two or more words have been contracted into one, +as _sodes_ for _si audes_, _sis_ for _si vis_, _capsis_ for _cape si vis_, +_ain'_ for _aisne_, _nequire_ for _non quire_, _malle_ for _magis velle_, +and _nolle_ for _non velle_; and we often say _dein'_ and _exin'_ for +_deinde_ and _exinde_. It is equally evident why we never say _cum nobis_, +but _nobiscum_; though we do not scruple to say _cum illis_;--_viz._ +because, in the former case, the union of the consonants _m_ and _n_ would +produce a jarring sound: and we also say _mecum_ and _tecum_, and not _cum +me_ and _cum te_, to correspond with _nobiscum_ and _vobiscum_. But some, +who would correct antiquity rather too late, object to these contractions: +for, instead of _prob_ DEŪM _atque hominum fidem_, they say _Deorum_. They +are not aware, I suppose, that custom has sanctified the licence. The same +Poet, therefore, who, almost without a precedent, has said _patris mei +MEŪM FACTŪM pudet_, instead of _meorum factorum_,--and _textitur exitiūm +examen rapit_ for _exitiorum_, does not choose to say _liberum_, as we +generally do in the expressions _cupidos liberūm_, and _in liberūm loco_, +but, as the literary virtuosos above-mentioned would have it, + + _neque tuum unquam in gremium extollas_ + LIBERORUM _ex te genus_, + +and, + + _namque Aesculapī_ LIBERORUM. + +But the author before quoted says in his Chryses, not only + + _Cives, antiqui amici majorum_ MEŪM, + +which was common enough--, but more harshly still, + + CONSILIŪM, AUGURIŪM, _atque_ EXTŪM _interpretes_; + +and in another place, + + _Postquam_ PRODIGIŪM HORRIFERŪM PORTENTŪM _pavos_. + +a licence which is not customary in all neuters indifferently: for I +should not be so willing to say armūm _judicium_, as _armorum_; though in +the same writer we meet with _nihilne ad te de judicio_ armūm _accidit_? +And yet (as we find it in the public registers) I would venture to say +_fabrūm_, and _procūm_, and not _fabrorum_ and _procorum_. But I would +never say duorum virorum _judicium_, or _trium_ virorum _capitalium_, or +_decem_ virorum _litibus judicandis_. In Accius, however, we meet with + + _Video sepulchra duo_ duorum _corporum_; + +though in another place he says, + + _Mulier una_ duum virum. + +I know, indeed, which is most conformable to the rules of grammar: but yet +I sometimes express myself as the freedom of our language allows me, as +when I say at pleasure, either _prob deum_, or _prob deorum_;--and, at +other times, as I am obliged by custom, as when I say _trium_ virum for +_virorum_, or sestertium nummum for _nummorum_: because in the latter case +the mode of expression is invariable. + +But what shall we say when these humourists forbid us to say _nosse_ and +_judicasse_ for _novisse_ and _judicavisse_; as if we did not know, as +well as themselves, that, in these instances, the verb at full length is +most agreeable to the laws of grammar, though custom has given the +preference to the contracted verb? Terence, therefore, has made use of +both, as when he says, _eho tu cognatum tuum non norās_? and afterwards, + + _Stilphonem, inquam, noveras_? + +Thus also, _fiet_ is a perfect verb, and _fit_ a contracted one; and +accordingly we find in the same Comedian, + + _Quam cara_ SINTQUE _post carendo intelligunt_, + +and + + _Quamque attinendi magni dominatus_ SIENT. + +In the same manner I have no objection to _scripsere alii rem_, though I +am sensible that _scripserunt_ is more grammatical; because I submit with +pleasure to the indulgent laws of custom which delights to gratify the +ear. _Idem campus habet_, says Ennius; and in another place, _in templis +īsdem_; _eisdem_, indeed, would have been more grammatical, but not +sufficiently harmonious; and _iisdem_ would have sounded still worse. + +But we are allowed by custom even to dispense with the rules of etymology +to improve the sweetness of our language; and I would therefore rather +say, _pomeridianas Quadrigas_, than _postmeridianas_; and _mehercule_, +than _mehercules_. For the same reason _non scire_ would now be deemed a +barbarism, becaule _nescire_ has a smoother sound; and we have likewise +substituted _meridiem_ for _medidiem_, because the latter was offensive to +the ear. Even the preposition _ab_, which so frequently occurs in our +compound verbs is preserved entire only in the formality of a Journal, +and, indeed, not always there: in every other sort of language it is +frequently altered. Thus we say _amovit_, _abegit_, and _abstulit_; so +that you can scarcely determine whether the primitive preposition should +be _ab_ or _abs_. We have likewise rejected even _abfugit_, and _abfer_, +and introduced _aufugit_ and _aufer_ in their stead;--thus forming a new +preposition, which is to be found in no other verb but these. _Noti_, +_navi_, and _nari_, have all been words in common use: but when they were +afterwards to be compounded with the preposition _in_, it was thought more +harmonious to say _ignoti_, _ignavi_, and _ignari_, than to adhere +strictly to the rules of etymology. We likewise say _ex usu_, and _e +Republicā_; because, in the former case, the preposition is followed by a +vowel, and, in the latter, it would have sounded harshly without omitting +the consonant; as may also be observed in _exegit, edixit, refecit, +retulit_, and _reddidit_. + +Sometimes the preposition alters or otherwise affects the first letter of +the verb with which it happens to be compounded; as in _subegit, +summutavit_, and _sustutit_. At other times it changes one of the +subsequent letters; as when we say _insipientem_ for _insapientem_, +_iniquum_ for inaequum_, _tricipitem_ for _tricapitem_, and _concisum_ for +_concaesum_: and from hence some have ventured to say _pertisum_ for +_pertaesum_, which custom has never warranted. + +But what can be more delicate than our changing even the natural quantity +of our syllables to humour the ear? Thus in the adjectives _inclytus_, and +_inhumanus_, the first syllable after the preposition is short, whereas +_insanus_ and _infelix_ have it long; and, in general, those words whose +first letters are the same as in _sapiens_ and _felix_, have their first +syllable long in composition, but all others have the same syllable short, +as _composuit, consuevit, concrepuit, confecit_. Examine these liberties +by the strict rules of etymology, and they must certainly be condemned; +but refer them to the decision of the ear, and they will be instantly +approved.--What is the reason? Your ear will inform you they have an +easier sound; and every language must submit to gratify the ear. I myself, +because our ancestors never admitted the aspirate, unless where a syllable +began with a vowel, used to say _pulcros, Cetegos, triumpos_, and +_Cartaginem_: but some time afterwards, though not very soon, when this +grammatical accuracy was wrested from me by the censure of the ear, I +resigned the mode of language to the vulgar, and reserved the theory to +myself. But we still say, without any hesitation, _Orcivios, Matones, +Otones, coepiones, sepulcra, coronas_, and _lacrymas_, because the ear +allows it. _Ennius_ always uses _Burrum_, and never _Pyrrhum_; and the +ancient copies of the same author have + + _Vi patefecerunt BRUGES_, + +not _Phryges_; because the Greek vowel had not then been adopted, though +we now admit both that and the aspirate:--and, in fact, when we had +afterwards occasion to say _Phrygum_ and _Phrygibus_, it was rather absurd +to adopt the Greek letter without adopting their cases, [Footnote: This +passage, as it stands in the original, appears to me unintelligible: I +have therefore taken the liberty to give it a slight alteration.] or at +least not to confine it to the nominative; and yet (in the accusative) we +say _Phryges_, and _Pyrrhum_, to please the ear. Formerly it was esteemed +an elegancy, though it would now be considered as a rusticism, to omit the +_s_ in all words which terminate in _us_, except when they were followed +by a vowel; and the same elision which is so carefully avoided by the +modern Poets, was very far from being reckoned a fault among the ancient: +for they made no scruple to say, + + _Qui est OMNIBU' princeps_, + +not, as we do, OMNIBUS princeps; and, + + _Vitā illā DIGNU' locoque_, + +not _dignus_. + +But if untaught custom has been so ingenious in the formation of agreeable +sounds, what may we not expect from the improvements of art and erudition? +I have, however, been much shorter upon this subject, than I should have +been if I had written upon it professedly: for a comparison of the natural +and customary laws of language would have opened a wide field for +speculation: but I have already enlarged upon it sufficiently, and more, +perhaps, than the nature of my design required. + +To proceed then;--as the choice of proper matter, and of suitable words to +express it, depends upon the judgment of the Speaker, but that of +agreeable sounds, and harmonious numbers, upon the decision of the ear; +and because the former is intended for information, and the latter for +pleasure; it is evident that reason must determine the rules of art in one +case, and mere sensation in the other. For we must either neglect the +gratification of those by whom we wish to be approved, or apply ourselves +to invent the most likely methods to promote it. + +There are two things which contribute to gratify the ear,--agreeable +_sounds_, and harmonious _numbers_. We shall treat of numbers in the +sequel, and at present confine ourselves to _sound_.--Those words, then, +as we have already observed, are to have the preference which sound +agreeably;--not such as are exquisitely melodious, like those of the +Poets, but such as can be found to our purpose in common language.--_Quą +Pontus Helles_ is rather beyond the mark:--but in + + _Auratos aries Colchorum_, + +the verse glitters with a moderate harmony of expression; whereas the +next, as ending with a letter which is remarkably flat, is unmusical, + + _Frugifera et ferta arva Alfiae tenet_, + +Let us, therefore, rather content ourselves with the agreeable mediocrity +of our own language, than emulate the splendor of the Greeks; unless we +are so bigotted to the latter as to hesitate to say with the poet, + + _Quą tempestate Paris Helenam, &c_. + +we might even imitate what follows, and avoid, as far as possible, the +smallest asperity of sound, + + _habeo istam ego PERTERRICREPAM_; + +or say, with the same author, in another passage, + + _versutiloquas MALITIAS_. + +But our words must have a proper _compass_, as well as be connected +together in an agreeable manner; for this, we have observed, is another +circumstance which falls under the notice of the ear. They are confined to +a proper compass, either by certain rules of composition, as by a kind of +natural pause, or by the use of particular forms of expression, which have +a peculiar _concinnity_ in their very texture; such as a succession of +several words which have the same termination, or the comparing similar, +and contrasting opposite circumstances, which will always terminate in a +measured cadence, though no immediate pains should be taken for that +purpose. Gorgias, it is said, was the first Orator who practised this +species of _concinnity_. The following passage in my Defence of _Milo_ is +an example. + +"Est enim, Judices, haec non _scripta_, fed _nata_ Lex; quam non +_didicimus, accepimus, legimus_, verum ex Naturā ipsā _arripuimus, +hausimus, expressimus_; ad quam non _docti_, sed _facti_; non +_instituti_, sed _imbuti_ simus." + +"For this, my Lords, is a law not written upon tables, but impressed upon +our hearts;--a law which we have not learned, or heard, or read, but +eagerly caught and imbibed from the hand of Nature;--a law to which we +have not been train'd, but originally form'd; and with the principles of +which we have not been furnished by education, but tinctured and +impregnated from the moment of our birth." + +In these forms of expression every circumstance is so aptly referred to +some other circumstance, that the regular turn of them does not appear to +have been studied, but to result entirely from the sense. The same effect +is produced by contrasting opposite circumstances; as in the following +lines, where it not only forms a measured sentence, but a verse: + + _Eam, quam nihil accusas, damnas,_ + +Her, whom you ne'er accus'd, you now condemn; + +(in prose we should say _condemnas_) and again, + + _Bene quam meritam esse autumas, dicis male mereri_, + +Her merit, once confess'd, you now deny; and, + + _Id quod scis, prodest nihil; id quod nescis, obest_, + +From what you've learnt no real good accrues, +But ev'ry ill your ignorance pursues. + +Here you see the mere opposition of the terms produces a verse; but in +prosaic composition, the proper form of the last line would be, _quod scis +nihil prodest; quod nescis multum obest_. This contrasting of opposite +circumstances, which the Greeks call an Antithesis, will necessarily +produce what is styled _rhetorical metre_, even without our intending it. +The ancient Orators, a considerable time before it was practised and +recommended by _Isocrates_, were fond of using it; and particularly +_Gorgias_, whose measured cadences are generally owing to the mere +_concinnity_ of his language. I have frequently practised it myself; as, +for instance, in the following passage of my fourth Invective against +_Verres_: + +"Conferte _hanc Pacem_ cum _illo Bello_;--_hujus_ Praetoris _Adventum_, +cum _illius_ Imperatoris _Victoriā_;--hujas _Cohortem impuram_, cum illius +_Exercitu invicto_;--hujus _Libidines_, cum illius _Continentiā_;--ab illo +qui cepit _conditas_; ab hoc, qui constitutas accepit, _captas_ dicetis +Syracusas." + +"Compare this detestable _peace_ with that glorious _war_,--the _arrival_ +of this governor with the _victory_ of that commander,--his _ruffian +guards_, with the _invincible forces_ of the other;--the brutal luxury of +the former, with the modest temperance of the latter;--and you will say, +that Syracuse was really _founded_ by him who _stormed_ it, and _stormed_ +by him who received it already _founded_ to his hands."--So much, then, +for that kind of measure which results from particular forms of +expression, and which ought to be known by every Orator. + +We must now proceed to the third thing proposed,--that _numerous_ and +well-adjusted style; of the beauty of which, if any are so insensible as +not to feel it, I cannot imagine what kind of ears they have, or what +resemblance of a human Being! For my part, my ears are always fond of a +complete and full-measured flow of words, and perceive in an instant what +is either defective or redundant. But wherefore do I say _mine_? I have +frequently seen a whole assembly burst into raptures of applause at a +happy period: for the ear naturally expects that our sentences should be +properly tuned and measured. This, however, is an accomplishment which is +not to be met with among the ancients. But to compensate the want of it, +they had almost every other perfection: for they had a happy choice of +words, and abounded in pithy and agreeable sentiments, though they had not +the art of harmonizing and completing their periods. This, say some, is +the very thing we admire. But what if they should take it into their heads +to prefer the ancient _peinture_, with all its poverty of colouring, to +the rich and finished style of the moderns? The former, I suppose, must be +again adopted, to compliment their delicacy, and the latter rejected. But +these pretended connoisseurs regard nothing but the mere _name_ of +antiquity. It must, indeed, be owned that antiquity has an equal claim to +authority in matters of imitation, as grey hairs in the precedence of age. +I myself have as great a veneration for it as any man: nor do I so much +upbraid antiquity with her defects, as admire the beauties she was +mistress of:--especially as I judge the latter to be of far greater +consequence than the former. For there is certainly more real merit in a +masterly choice of words and sentiments, in which the ancients are allowed +to excell, than in those measured periods with which they were totally +unacquainted. This species of composition was not known among the Romans +till lately: but the ancients, I believe, would readily have adopted it, +if it had then been discovered: and we accordingly find, that it is now +made use of by all Orators of reputation. "But when _number_, or (as the +Greeks call it) prosaic _metre_, is professedly introduced into judicial +and forensic discourses, the very name, say they, has a suspicious sound: +for people will conclude that there is too much artifice employed to sooth +and captivate their ears, when the Speaker is so over-exact as to attend +to the harmony of his periods." Relying upon the force of this objection, +these pretenders are perpetually grating our ears with their broken and +mutilated sentences; and censure those, without mercy, who have the +presumption to utter an agreeable and a well-turned period. If, indeed, it +was our design to spread a varnish over empty words and trifling +sentiments, the censure would be just: but when the matter is good, and +the words are proper and expressive, what reason can be assigned why we +should prefer a limping and imperfect period to one which terminates and +keeps pace with the sense? For this invidious and persecuted _metre_ aims +at nothing more than to adapt the compass of our words to that of our +thoughts; which is sometimes done even by the ancients,--though generally, +I believe, by mere accident, and often by the natural delicacy of the ear; +and the very passages which are now most admired in them, commonly derive +their merit from the agreeable and measured flow of the language. + +This is an art which was in common use among the Greek Orators, about four +hundred years ago, though it has been but lately introduced among the +Romans. Ennius, therefore, when he ridicules the inharmonious numbers of +his predecessors, might be allowed to say, + + "_Such verses as the rustic Bards and Satyrs sung_:" + +But I must not take the same liberty; especially as I cannot say with him, + + _Before this bold adventurer_, &c. + +(meaning himself:) nor, as he afterwards exults to the same purpose, + + _I first have dar'd t'unfold_, &c. + +for I have both read and heard several who were almost complete masters of +the numerous and measured style I am speaking of: But many, who are still +absolute strangers to it, are not content to be exempted from the ridicule +they deserve, but claim a right to our warmest applause. I must own, +indeed, that I admire the venerable patterns, of which those persons +pretend to be the faithful imitators, notwithstanding the defects I +observe in them: but I can by no means commend the folly of those who copy +nothing but their blemishes, and have no pretensions even to the most +distant resemblance in what is truly excellent. + +But if their own ears are so indelicate and devoid of taste, will they pay +no deference to the judgment of others, who are universally celebrated for +their learning? I will not mention _Isocrates_, and his two scholars, +_Ephorus_ and _Naucrates_; though they may claim the honour of giving the +richest precepts of composition, and were themselves very eminent Orators. +But who was possessed of a more ample fund of erudition?--who more subtle +and acute?--or who furnished with quicker powers of invention, and a +greater strength of understanding, than _Aristotle_? I may add, who made a +warmer opposition to the rising fame of _Isocrates_? And yet _he_, though +he forbids us to versify in prose, recommends the use of _numbers_. His +hearer _Theodectes_ (whom he often mentions as a polished writer, and an +excellent artist) both approves and advises the same thing: and +_Theophrastus_ is still more copious and explicit. Who, then, can have +patience with those dull and conceited humourists, who dare to oppose +themselves to such venerable names as these? The only excuse that can be +made for them is, that they have never perused their writings, and are +therefore ignorant that they actually recommend the prosaic _metre_ we are +speaking of. If this is the case with them (and I cannot think otherwise) +will they reject the evidence of their own sensations? Is there nothing +which their ears will inform them is defective?--nothing which is harsh +and unpolished?--nothing imperfect?--nothing lame and mutilated?--nothing +redundant? In dramatic performances, a whole theatre will exclaim against +a verse which has only a syllable either too short or too long: and yet +the bulk of an audience are unacquainted with _feet_ and _numbers_, and +are totally ignorant what the fault is, and where it lies: but Nature +herself has taught the ear to measure the quantity of sound, and determine +the propriety of its various accents, whether grave, or acute. + +Do you desire, then, my Brutus, that we should discuss the subject more +fully than those writers who have already elucidated this, and the other +parts of rhetoric? Or shall we content ourselves with the instructions +which _they_ have provided for us? But wherefore do I offer such a +question, when your elegant letters have informed me, that this is the +chief object of your request? We shall proceed, therefore, to give an +account of the commencement, the origin, and the nature and use of +_prosaic numbers_. + +The admirers of Isocrates place the first invention of numbers among those +other improvements which do honour to his memory. For observing, say they, +that the Orators were heard with a kind of sullen attention, while the +Poets were listened to with pleasure, he applied himself to introduce a +species of metre into prose, which might have a pleasing effect upon the +ear, and prevent that satiety which will always arise from a continued +uniformity of sound. This, however, is partly true, and partly otherwise; +for though it must be owned that no person was better skilled in the +subject than _Isocrates_; yet the first honour of the invention belongs to +_Thrasymachus_, whose style (in all his writings which are extant) is +_numerous_ even to a fault. But _Gorgias_, as I have already remarked, was +the original inventor of those measured forms of expression which have a +kind of spontaneous harmony,--such as a regular succession of words with +the same termination, and the comparing similar, or contracting opposite +circumstances: though it is also notoriously true that he used them to +excess. This, however, is one of the three branches of composition above- +mentioned. But each of these authors was prior to _Isocrates_: so that the +preference can be due to _him_ only for his _moderate use_, and not for +the _invention_ of the art: for as he is certainly much easier in the turn +of his metaphors, and the choice of his words, so his numbers are more +composed and sedate. But _Gorgias_, he observed, was too eager, and +indulged himself in this measured play of words to a ridiculous excess. +He, therefore, endeavoured to moderate and correct it; but not till he had +first studied in his youth under the same _Gorgias_, who was then in +Thessaly, and in the last decline of life. Nay, as he advanced in years +(for he lived almost a hundred) he corrected _himself_, and gradually +relaxed the over-strict regularity of his numbers; as he particularly +informs us in the treatise which he dedicated to Philip of Macedon, in the +latter part of his life; for he there says, that he had thrown off that +servile attention to his numbers, to which he was before accustomed:--so +that he discovered and corrected his _own_ faults, as well as those of his +predecessors. + +Having thus specified the several authors and inventors, and the first +commencement of prosaic harmony, we must next enquire what was the natural +source and origin of it. But this lies so open to observation, that I am +astonished the ancients did not notice it: especially as they often, by +mere accident, threw out harmonious and measured sentences, which, when +they had struck the ears and the passions with so much force, as to make +it obvious that there was something particularly agreeable in what chance +alone had uttered, one would imagine that such a singular species of +ornament would have been immediately attended to, and that they would have +taken the pains to imitate what they found so pleasing in themselves. For +the ear, or at least the mind by the intervention of the ear, has a +natural capacity to measure the harmony of language: and we accordingly +feel that it instantly determines what is either too short or too long, +and always expects to be gratified with that which is complete and well- +proportioned. Some expressions it perceives to be imperfect, and +mutilated; and at these it is immediately offended, as if it was defrauded +of it's natural due. In others it discovers an immoderate length, and a +tedious superfluity of words; and with these it is still more disgusted +than with the former; for in this, as in most other cases, an excess is +always more offensive than a proportional defect. As versification, +therefore, and poetic competition was invented by the regulation of the +ear, and the successive observations of men of taste and judgment; so in +prose (though indeed long afterwards, but still, however, by the guidance +of nature) it was discovered that the career and compass of our language +should be adjusted and circumscribed within proper limits. + +So much for the source, or natural origin of prosaic harmony. We must next +proceed (for that was the third thing proposed) to enquire into the nature +of it, and determine it's essential principles;--a subject which exceeds +the limits of the present essay, and would be more properly discussed in a +professed and accurate system of the art. For we might here inquire what +is meant by prosaic _number_, wherein it consists, and from whence it +arises; as likewise whether it is simple and uniform, or admits of any +variety, and in what manner it is formed, for what purpose, and when and +where it should be employed, and how it contributes to gratify the ear. +But as in other subjects, so in this, there are two methods of +disquisition;--the one more copious and diffusive, and the other more +concise, and, I might also add, more easy and comprehensible. In the +former, the first question which would occur is, whether there is any such +thing as _prosaic number_: some are of opinion there is not; because no +fixed and certain rules have been yet assigned for it, as there long have +been for poetic numbers; and because the very persons, who contend for +it's existence, have hitherto been unable to determine it. Granting, +however, that prose is susceptible of numbers, it will next be enquired of +what kind they are;--whether they are to be selected from those of the +poets, or from a different species;--and, if from the former, which of +them may claim the preference; for some authors admit only one or two, and +some more, while others object to none. We might then proceed to enquire +(be the number of them to be admitted, more or less) whether they are +equally common to every kind of style; for the narrative, the persuasive, +and the didactic have each a manner peculiar to itself; or whether the +different species of Oratory should be accommodated with their different +numbers. If the same numbers are equally common to all subjects, we must +next enquire what those numbers are; and if they are to be differently +applied, we must examine wherein they differ, and for what reason they are +not to be used so openly in prose as in verse. It might likewise be a +matter of enquiry, whether a _numerous_ style is formed entirely by the +use of numbers, or not also in some measure by the harmonious juncture of +our words, and the application of certain figurative forms of expression; +--and, in the next place, whether each of these has not its peculiar +province, so that number may regard the time or _quantity_, composition +the _sound_, and figurative expression the _form_ and _polish_ of our +language,--and yet, in fact, composition be the source and fountain of all +the rest, and give rise both to the varieties of _number_, and to those +figurative and luminous dashes of expression, which by the Greeks, as I +have before observed, are called ([Greek: _schaemaia_],) _attitudes_ or +_figures_. But to me there appears to be a real distinction between what +is agreeable in _sound_, exact in _measure_, and ornamental in the mode of +_expression_; though the latter, it must be owned, is very closely +connected with _number_, as being for the most part sufficiently numerous +without any labour to make it so: but composition is apparently different +from both, as attending entirely either to the _majestic_ or _agreeable_ +sound of our words. Such then are the enquiries which relate to the +_nature_ of prosaic harmony. + +From what has been said it is easy to infer that prose is susceptible of +_number_. Our sensations tell us so: and it would be excessively unfair to +reject their evidence, because we cannot account for the fact. Even poetic +metre was not discovered by any effort of reason, but by mere natural +taste and sensation, which reason afterwards correcting, improved and +methodized what had been noticed by accident; and thus an attention to +nature, and an accurate observation of her various feelings and sensations +gave birth to art. But in verse the use of _number_ is more obvious; +though some particular species of it, without the assistance of music, +have the air of harmonious prose, and especially the lyric poetry, and +that even the best of the kind, which, if divested of the aid of music, +would be almost as plain and naked as common language. We have several +specimens of this nature in our own poets [Footnote: It must here be +remarked, that the Romans had no lyric poet before _Horace_, who did not +flourish till after the times of _Cicero_.]; such as the following line in +the tragedy of _Thyestes_, + + "_Quemnam te esse dicam? qui in tardā senectute_; + +"Whom shall I call thee? who in tardy age," &c.; + +which, unless when accompanied by the lyre, might easily be mistaken for +prose. But the iambic verses of the comic poets, to maintain a resemblance +to the style of conversation, are often so low and simple that you can +scarcely discover in them either number or metre; from whence it is +evident that it is more difficult to adapt numbers to prose than to verse. + +There are two things, however, which give a relish to our language,--well- +chosen words, and harmonious _numbers_. Words may be considered as the +_materials_ of language, and it is the business of _number_ to smooth and +polish them. But as in other cases, what was invented to serve our +necessities was always prior to that which was invented for pleasure; so, +in the present, a rude and simple style which was merely adapted to +express our thoughts, was discovered many centuries before the invention +of _numbers_, which are designed to please the ear. Accordingly +_Herodotus_, and both his and the preceding age had not the least idea of +prosaic _number_, nor produced any thing of the kind, unless at random, +and by mere accident:--and even the ancient masters of rhetoric (I mean +those of the earliest date) have not so much as mentioned it, though they +have left us a multitude of precepts upon the conduct and management of +our style. For what is easiest, and most necessary to be known, is, for +that reason, always first discovered. Metaphors, therefore, and new-made +and compounded words, were easily invented, because they were borrowed +from custom and conversation: but _number_ was not selected from our +domestic treasures, nor had the least intimacy or connection with common +language; and, of consequence, not being noticed and understood till every +other improvement had been made, it gave the finishing grace, and the last +touches to the style of Eloquence. + +As it may be remarked that one sort of language is interrupted by frequent +breaks and intermissions, while another is flowing and diffusive; it is +evident that the difference cannot result from the natural sounds of +different letters, but from the various combinations of long and short +syllables, with which our language, being differently blended and +intermingled, will be either dull and motionless, or lively and fluent; so +that every circumstance of this nature must be regulated by _number_. For +by the assistance of _numbers_, the _period_, which I have so often +mentioned before, pursues it's course with greater strength and freedom +till it comes to a natural pause. It is therefore plain that the style of +an Orator should be measured and harmonized by _numbers_, though entirely +free from verse; but whether these numbers should be the same as those of +the poets, or of a different species, is the next thing to be considered. +In my opinion there can be no sort of numbers but those of the poets; +because they have already specified all their different kinds with the +utmost precision; for every number may be comprized in the three following +varieties:--_viz_. a _foot_ (which is the measure we apply to numbers) +must be so divided, that one part of it will be either equal to the other, +or twice as long, or equal to three halves of it. Thus, in a _dactyl_ +(breve-macron-macron) (long-short-short) the first syllable, which is the +former part of the foot, is equal to the two others, in the _iambic_ +(macron-breve)(short-long) the last is double the first, and in the +_paeon_ (macron-macron-macron-breve, or breve-macron-macron-macron)(short- +short-short-long, or long-short-short-short) one of its parts, which is +the long syllable, is equal to two-thirds of the other. These are feet +which are unavoidably incident to language; and a proper arrangement of +them will produce a _numerous_ style. + +But it will here be enquired, What numbers should have the preference? To +which I answer, They must all occur promiscuously; as is evident from our +sometimes speaking verse without knowing it, which in prose is reckoned a +capital fault; but in the hurry of discourse we cannot always watch and +criticise ourselves. As to _senarian_ and _hipponactic_ [Footnote: Verses +chiefly composed of iambics] verses, it is scarcely possible to avoid +them; for a considerable part, even of our common language, is composed of +_iambics_. To these, however, the hearer is easily reconciled; because +custom has made them familiar to his ear. But through inattention we are +often betrayed into verses which are not so familiar;--a fault which may +easily be avoided by a course of habitual circumspection. _Hieronymus_, an +eminent Peripatetic, has collected out of the numerous writings of +Isocrates about thirty verses, most of them senarian, and some of them +anapest, which in prose have a more disagreeable effect than any others. +But he quotes them with a malicious partiality: for he cuts off the first +syllable of the first word in a sentence, and annexes to the last word the +first syllable of the following sentence; and thus he forms what is called +an _Aristophanean_ anapest, which it is neither possible nor necessary to +avoid entirely. But, this redoubtable critic, as I discovered upon a +closer inspection, has himself been betrayed into a senarian or iambic +verse in the very paragraph in which he censures the composition of +_Isocrates_. + +Upon the whole, it is sufficiently plain that prose is susceptible of +_numbers_, and that the numbers of an Orator must be the same as those of +a Poet. The next thing to be considered is, what are the numbers which are +most suitable to his character, and, for that reason, should occur more +frequently than the rest? Some prefer the _Iambic_ (macron-breve)(short- +long) as approaching the nearest to common language; for which reason, +they say, it is generally made use of in fables and comedies, on account +of it's resemblance to conversation; and because the dactyl, which is the +favourite number of hexameters, is more adapted to a pompous style. +_Ephorus_, on the other hand, declares for the paeon and the dactyl; and +rejects the spondee and the trochee (long short). For as the paeon +has three short syllables, and the dactyl two, he thinks their shortness +and celerity give a brisk and lively flow to our language; and that a +different effect would be produced by the trochee and the spondee, the one +consisting of short syllables, and the other of long ones;--so that by +using the former, the current of our words would become too rapid, and too +heavy by employing the latter, losing, in either case, that easy +moderation which best satisfies the ear. But both parties seem to be +equally mistaken: for those who exclude the paeon, are not aware that they +reject the sweetest and fullest number we have. Aristotle was far from +thinking as they do: he was of opinion that heroic numbers are too +sonorous for prose; and that, on the other hand, the iambic has too much +the resemblance of vulgar talk:--and, accordingly, he recommends the style +which is neither too low and common, nor too lofty and extravagant, but +retains such a just proportion of dignity, as to win the attention, and +excite the admiration of the hearer. He, therefore, calls the _trochee_ +(which has precisely the same quantity as the _choree_) _the rhetorical +jigg_ [Footnote: _Cordacem appellat_. The _cordax_ was a lascivious dance +very full of agitation.]; because the shortness and rapidity of it's +syllables are incompatible with the majesty of Eloquence. For this reason +he recommends the _paeon_, and says that every person makes use of it, +even without being sensible when he does so. He likewise observes that it +is a proper medium between the different feet above-mentioned:--the +proportion between the long and short syllables, in every foot, being +either sesquiplicate, duple, or equal. + +The authors, therefore, whom I mentioned before attended merely to the +easy flow of our language, without any regard to it's dignity. For the +iambic and the dactyl are chiefly used in poetry; so that to avoid +versifying in prose, we must shun, as much as possible, a continued +repetition of either; because the language of prose is of a different +cast, and absolutely incompatible with verse. As the paeon, therefore, is +of all other feet the most improper for poetry, it may, for that reason be +more readily admitted into prose. But as to _Ephorus_, he did not reflect +that even the _spondee_, which he rejects, is equal in time to his +favourite dactyl; because he supposed that feet were to be measured not by +the quantity, but the number of their syllables;--a mistake of which he is +equally guilty when he excludes the _trochee_, which, in time and +quantity, is precisely equal to the iambic; though it is undoubtedly +faulty at the end of a period, which always terminates more agreeably in a +long syllable than a short one. As to what Aristotle has said of the +_paeon_, the same has likewise been said by _Theophrastus_ and +_Theodectes_. + +But, for my part, I am rather of opinion that our language should be +intermingled and diversified with all the varieties of number; for should +we confine ourselves to any particular feet, it would be impossible to +escape the censure of the hearer; because our style should neither be so +exactly measured as that of the poets, nor entirely destitute of number, +like that of the common people. The former, as being too regular and +uniform, betrays an appearance of art; and the other, which is as much too +loose and undetermined, has the air of ordinary talk; so that we receive +no pleasure from the one, and are absolutely disgusted with the other. Our +style, therefore, as I have just observed, should be so blended and +diversified with different numbers, as to be neither too vague and +unrestrained, nor too openly numerous, but abound most in the paeon (so +much recommended by the excellent author above-mentioned) though still in +conjunction with many other feet which he entirely omits. + +But we must now consider what number like so many dashes of purple, should +tincture and enrich the rest, and to what species of style they are each +of them best adapted. The iambic, then, should be the leading number in +those subjects which require a plain and simple style;--the paeon in such +as require more compass and elevation; and the dactyl is equally +applicable to both. So that in a discourse of any length and variety, it +will be occasionally necessary to blend and intermingle them all. By this +means, our endeavours to modulate our periods, and captivate the ear, will +be most effectually concealed; especially, if we maintain a suitable +dignity both of language and sentiment. For the hearer will naturally +attend to these (I mean our words and sentiments) and to them alone +attribute the pleasure he receives; so that while he listens to these with +admiration, the harmony of our numbers will escape his notice: though it +must indeed be acknowledged that the former would have their charms +without the assistance of the latter. But the flow of our numbers is not +to be so exact (I mean in prose, for in poetry the case is different) as +that nothing may exceed the bounds of regularity; for this would be to +compose a poem. On the contrary, if our language neither limps nor +fluctuates, but keeps an even and a steady pace, it is sufficiently +_numerous_; and it accordingly derives the title, not from its consisting +entirely of numbers, but from its near approach to a numerous form. This +is the reason why it is more difficult to make elegant prose, than to make +verses; because there are fixed and invariable rules for the latter; +whereas nothing is determined in the former, but that the current of our +language should be neither immoderate nor defective, nor loose and +unconfined. It cannot be supposed, therefore, to admit of regular beats +and divisions, like a piece of music; but it is only necessary that the +general compass and arrangement of our words should be properly restrained +and limited,--a circumstance which must be left entirely to the decision +of the ear. + +Another question which occurs before us, is--whether an attention to our +numbers should be extended to every part of a sentence, or only to the +beginning and the end. Most authors are of opinion that it is only +necessary that our periods should end well, and have a numerous cadence. +It is true, indeed, that this ought to be principally attended to, but not +solely: for the whole compass of our periods ought likewise to be +regulated, and not totally neglected. As the ear, therefore, always +directs it's view to the close of a sentence, and there fixes it's +attention, it is by no means proper that this should be destitute of +_number_: but it must also be observed that a period, from it's first +commencement, should run freely on, so as to correspond to the conclusion; +and the whole advance from the beginning with such an easy flow, as to +make a natural, and a kind of voluntary pause. To those who have been +we'll practised in the art, and who have both written much; and often +attempted to discourse _extempore_ with the same accuracy which they +observe in their writings, this will be far less difficult than is +imagined. For every sentence is previously formed and circumscribed in the +mind of the Speaker, and is then immediately attended by the proper words +to express it, which the same mental faculty (than which there is nothing +more lively and expeditious) instantly dismisses, and sends off each to +its proper post: but, in different sentences, their particular order and +arrangement will be differently terminated; though, in every sentence, the +words both in the beginning and the middle of it, should have a constant +reference to the end. Our language, for instance, must sometimes advance +with rapidity, and at other times it's pace must be moderate and easy; so +that it will be necessary at the very beginning of a sentence, to resolve +upon the manner in which you would have it terminate; but we must avoid +the least appearance of poetry, both in our numbers, and in the other +ornaments of language; though it is true, indeed, that the labours of the +Orator must be conducted on the same principles as those of the Poet. For +in each we have the same materials to work upon, and a similar art of +managing them; the materials being words, and the art of managing them +relating, in both cases, to the manner in which they ought to be disposed. +The words also in each may be divided into three classes,--the +__metaphorical_,--the new-coined,--and the antique;--for at present we +have no concern with words _proper_:--and three parts may also be +distinguished in the art of disposing them; which, I have already +observed, are _juncture_, _concinnity_, and _number_. The poets make use +both of one and the other more frequently, and with greater liberty than +we do; for they employ the _tropes_ not only much oftener, but more boldly +and openly; and they introduce _antique_ words with a higher taste, and +new ones with less reserve. The same may be said in their numbers, in the +use of which they are subjected to invariable rules, which they are +scarcely ever allowed to transgress. The two arts, therefore, are to be +considered neither as wholly distinct, nor perfectly conjoined. This is +the reason why our numbers are not to be so conspicuous in prose as in +verse; and that in prose, what is called a _numerous_ style, does not +always become so by the use of numbers, but sometimes either by the +concinnity of our language, or the smooth juncture of our words. + +To conclude this head; If it should be enquired, "What are the numbers to +be used in prose?" I answer, "_All_; though some are certainly better, and +more adapted to it's character than others."--If "_Where_ is their proper +seat?"--"In the different quantity of our syllables:"--If "From whence +their _origin_?"--"From the sole pleasure of the ear:"--If "What the +method of blending and intermingling them?"--"This shall be explained in +the sequel, because it properly relates to the manner of using them, which +was the fourth and last article in my division of the subject." If it be +farther enquired, "For what purpose they are employed?" I answer,--"To +gratify the ear:"--If "_When_?" I reply, "At all times:"--If "In what part +of a sentence?" "Through the whole length of it:"--and if "What is the +circumstance which gives them a pleasing effect?" "The same as in poetical +compositions, whose metre is regulated by art, though the ear alone, +without the assistance of art, can determine it's limits by the natural +powers of sensation." Enough, therefore, has been said concerning the +nature and properties of _number_. The next article to be considered is +the manner in which our numbers should be employed,--a circumstance which +requires to be accurately discussed. + +Here it is usual to enquire, whether it is necessary to attend to our +numbers through the whole compass of a period, [Footnote: Our author here +informs us, that what the Greeks called [Greek: periodos], a _period_, was +distinguished among the Romans by the words _ambitus, circuitus, +comprehensio, continuatio_, and _circumscriptio_. As I thought this remark +would appear much better in the form of a note, than in the body of the +work, I have introduced it accordingly.] or only at the beginning or end +of it, or equally in both. In the next place, as _exact number_ seems to +be one thing, and that which is merely _numerous_ another, it might be +enquired wherein lies the difference. We might likewise consider whether +the members of a sentence should all indifferently be of the same length, +whatever be the numbers they are composed of;--or whether, on this +account, they should not be sometimes longer, and sometimes shorter;--and +when, and for what reasons, they should be made so, and of what numbers +they should be composed;--whether of several sorts, or only of one; and +whether of equal or unequal numbers;--and upon what occasions either the +one or the other of these are to be used;-and what numbers accord best +together, and in what order; or whether, in this respect, there is no +difference between them;--and (which has still a more immediate reference +to our subject) by what means our style may be rendered _numerous_. It +will likewise be necessary to specify the rise and origin of a +_periodical_ form of language, and what degree of compass should be +allowed to it. After this, we may consider the members or divisions of a +period, and enquire of how many kinds, and of what different lengths they +are; and, if they vary in these respects, _where_ and _when_ each +particular sort is to be employed: and, in the last place, the _use_ and +application of the whole is to be fully explained;--a very extensive +subject, and which is capable of being accommodated not only to one, but +to many different occasions. But without adverting to particulars, we may +discuss the subject at large in such a manner as to furnish a satisfactory +answer in all subordinate cases. + +Omitting, therefore, every other species of composition, we shall attend +to that which is peculiar to forensic causes. For in those performances +which are of a different kind, such as history, panegyric, and all +discourses which are merely ornamental, every sentence should be +constructed after the exact manner of _Isocrates_ and _Theopompus_; and +with that regular compass, and measured flow of language, that our words +may constantly run within the limits prescribed by art, and pursue a +uniform course, till the period is completed. We may, therefore, observe +that after the invention of this, _periodical_ form, no writer of any +account has made a discourse which was intended as a mere display of +ornament, and not for the service of the Forum, without _squaring_ his +language, (if I may so express myself) and confining every sentence of it +to the strictest laws of _number_. For as, in this case, the hearer has no +motive to alarm his suspicions against the artifice of the speaker, he +will rather think himself obliged to him than otherwise, for the pains he +takes to amuse and gratify his ear. But, in forensic causes, this accurate +species of composition is neither to be wholly adopted, nor entirely +rejected. For if we pursue it too closely, it will create a satiety, and +our attention to it will be discovered by the most illiterate observer. We +may add, it will check the pathos and force of action, restrain the +sensibility of the Speaker, and destroy all appearance of truth and open +dealing. But as it will sometimes be necessary to adopt it, we must +consider _when_, and _how long_, this ought to be done, and how many ways +it may be changed and varied. + +A _numerous_ style, then, may be properly employed, either when any thing +is to be commended in a free and ornamental manner, (as in my second +Invective against _Verres_, where I spoke in praise of _Sicily_, and in my +Speech before the Senate, in which I vindicated the honour of my +consulship;)--or; in the next place, when a narrative is to be delivered +which requires more dignity than pathos, (as in my fourth Invective, where +I described the Ceres of the Ennensians, the Diana of the Segestani, and +the situation of Syracuse.) It is likewise often allowable to speak in a +numerous and flowing style, when a material circumstance is to be +amplified. If I myself have not succeeded in this so well as might be +wished, I have at least attempted it very frequently; and it is still +visible in many of my Perorations, that I have exerted all the talents I +was master of for that purpose. But this will always have most efficacy, +when the Speaker has previously possessed himself of the hearer's +attention, and got the better of his judgment. For then he is no longer +apprehensive of any artifice to mislead him; but hears every thing with a +favourable ear, wishes the Orator to proceed, and, admiring the force of +his Eloquence, has no inclination to censure it. + +But this measured and numerous flow of language is never to be continued +too long, I will not say in the peroration, (of which the hearer himself +will always be a capable judge) but in any other part of a discourse: for, +except in the cases above-mentioned, in which I have shewn it is +allowable, our style must be wholly confined to those clauses or divisions +which we erroneously call _incisa_ and _membra_; but the Greeks, with more +propriety, the _comma_ and _colon_ [Footnote: The ancients apply these +terms to the sense, and not to any points of distinction. A very short +member, whether simple or compound, with them is a _comma_; and a longer, +a _colon_; for they have no such term as a _semicolon_. Besides, they call +a very short sentence, whether simple or compound, a _comma_; and one of +somewhat a greater length, a _colon_. And therefore, if a person expressed +himself either of these ways, in any considerable number of sentences +together, he was said to speak by _commas_, or _colons_. But a sentence +containing more words than will consist with either of these terms, they +call a simple _period_; the least compound period with them requiring the +length of two colons. + +Ward's Rhetoric, volume 1st, page 344.]. For it is impossible that the +names of things should be rightly applied, when the things themselves are +not sufficiently understood: and as we often make use of metaphorical +terms, either for the sake of ornament, or to supply the place of proper +ones, so in other arts, when we have occasion to mention any thing which +(through our unacquaintance with it) has not yet received a name, we are +obliged either to invent a new one, or to borrow it from something +similar. We shall soon consider what it is to speak in _commas_ and +_colons_, and the proper method of doing it: but we must first attend to +the various numbers by which the cadence of our periods should be +diversified. + +Our numbers will advance more rapidly by the use of short feet, and more +coolly and sedately by the use of long ones. The former are best adapted +to a warm and spirited style, and the latter to sober narratives and +explanations. But there are several numbers for concluding a period, one +of which (called the _dichoree_, or double _choree_, and consisting of a +long and a short syllable repeated alternately) is much in vogue with the +Asiatics; though among different people the same feet are distinguished by +different names. The _dichoree_, indeed, is not essentially bad for the +close of a sentence: but in prosaic numbers nothing can be more faulty +than a continued or frequent repetition of the same cadence: as the +_dichoree_, therefore, is a very sonorous number, we should be the more +sparing in the use of it, to prevent a satiety. _C. Carbo_, the son of +_Caius_, and a Tribune of the people, once said in a public trial in which +I was personally engaged,--"_O Marce Druse, Patrem appello_;" where you +may observe two _commas_, each consisting of two feet. He then made use of +the two following _colons_, each consisting of three feet,--"_Tu dicere +solebas, sacram esse Rempublicam:"--and afterwards of the period,-- +"_Quicunque eam violavissent, ab omnibus esse ei poenas persolutas_" which +ends with a _dichoree_; for it is immaterial whether the last syllable is +long or short. He added, "_Patris dictum sapiens, temeritas filii +comprobavit_" concluding here also with a _dichoree_; which was received +with such a general burst of applause, as perfectly astonished me. But was +not this the effect of _number_?--Only change the order of the words, and +say,--"_Comprobavit filii temeritas_" and the spirit of them will be lost, +though the word _temeritas_ consists of three short syllables and a long +one, which is the favourite number of Aristotle, from whom, however, I +here beg leave to dissent. The words and sentiments are indeed the fame in +both cases; and yet, in the latter, though the understanding is satisfied, +the ear is not. But these harmonious cadences are not to be repeated too +often: for, in the first place, our _numbers_ will be soon discovered,--in +the next, they will excite the hearer's disgust,--and, at last, be +heartily despised on account of the apparent facility with which they are +formed. + +But there are several other cadences which will have a numerous and +pleasing effect: for even the _cretic_, which consists of a long, a short, +and a long syllable, and it's companion the _paeon_, which is equal to it +in quantity, though it exceeds it in the number of syllables, is reckoned +a proper and a very useful ingredient in harmonious prose: especially as +the latter admits of two varieties, as consisting either of one long and +three short syllables, which will be lively enough at the beginning of a +sentence, but extremely flat at the end;--or of three short syllables and +a long one, which was highly approved of by the ancients at the _close_ of +a sentence, and which I would not wholly reject, though I give the +preference to others. Even the sober _spondee_ is not to be entirely +discarded; for though it consists of two long syllables, and for that +reason may seem rather dull and heavy, it has yet a firm and steady step, +which gives it an air of dignity, and especially in the _comma_ and the +_colon_; so that it sufficiently compensates for the slowness of it's +motion, by it's peculiar weight and solemnity. When I speak of feet at the +close of a period, I do not mean precisely the last. I would be +understood, at least, to include the foot which immediately precedes it; +and, in many cases, even the foot before _that_. The _iambic_, therefore, +which consists of a long syllable and a short one, and is equal in time, +though not in the number of it's syllables, to a _choree_, which has three +short ones; or even the _dactyl_, which consists of one long and two short +syllables, will unite agreeably enough with the last foot of a sentence, +when that foot is either a _choree_ or a _spondee_; for it is immaterial +which of them is employed. But the three feet I am mentioning, are neither +of them very proper for closing a period, (that is, to form the last foot +of it) unless when a _dactyl_ is substituted for a _cretic_, for you may +use either of them at pleasure; because, even in verse, it is of no +consequence whether the last syllable is long or short. He, therefore, who +recommended the _paeon_, as having the long syllable last, was certainly +guilty of an oversight; because the quantity of the last syllable is never +regarded. The _paeon_, however, as consisting of four syllables, is +reckoned by some to be only a _number_, and not a _foot_. But call it +which you please, it is in general, what all the ancients have represented +it, (such as _Aristotle, Theophrastus, Theodectes_, and _Euphorus_) the +fittest of all others both for the beginning and the middle of a period. +They are likewise of opinion, that it is equally proper at the end; where, +in my opinion, the _cretic_ deserves the preference. The _dochimus_, which +consists of five syllables, (i.e. a short and two long ones, and a short, +and a long one, as in _amicos tenes_) may be used indifferently in any +part of a sentence, provided it occurs but once: for if it is continued or +repeated, our attention to our numbers will be discovered, and alarm the +suspicion of the hearer. On the other hand, if we properly blend and +intermingle the several varieties above-mentioned, our design will not be +so readily noticed; and we shall also prevent that satiety which would +arise from an elaborate uniformity of cadence. + +But the harmony of language does not result entirely from the use of +_numbers_, but from the _juncture_ and _composition_ of our words; and +from that neatness and _concinnity_ of expression which I have already +mentioned. By _composition_, I here mean when our words are so judiciously +connected as to produce an agreeable sound (independent of _numbers_) +which rather appears to be the effect of nature than of art; as in the +following passage from Crassus, _Nam ubi lubido dominatur, innocentiae +leve praesidium est_ [Footnote: In the sentence which is here quoted from +Crassus, every word which ends with a consonant is immediately succeeded +by another which begins with a vowel; and, _vice versa_, if the preceding +word ends with a vowel, the next begins with a consonant.]: for here the +mere order in which the words are connected, produces a harmony of sound, +without any visible attention of the Speaker. When the ancients, +therefore, (I mean _Herodotus_, and _Thucydides_, and all who flourished +in the same age) composed a numerous and a musical period, it must rather +be attributed to the casual order of their words, than to the labour and +artifice of the writer. + +But there are likewise certain forms of expression, which have such a +natural concinnity, as will necessarily have a similar effect to that of +regular numbers. For when parallel circumstances are compared, or opposite +ones contrasted, or words of the same termination are placed in a regular +succesion, they seldom fail to produce a numerous cadence. But I have +already treated of these, and subjoined a few examples; so that we are +hereby furnished with an additional and a copious variety of means to +avoid the uniformity of cadence above-mentioned; especially as these +measured forms of expression may be occasionally relaxed and dilated. +There is, however, a material difference between a style which is merely +_numerous_, (or, in other words, which has a moderate resemblance to +_metre_) and that which is entirely composed of _numbers_: the latter is +an insufferable fault; but our language, without the former, would be +absolutely vague, unpolished, and dissipated. + +But as a numerous style (strictly so called) is not frequently, and indeed +but seldom admissible in forensic causes,--it seems necessary to enquire, +in the next place, what are those _commas_ and _colons_ before-mentioned, +and which, in real causes, should occupy the major part of an Oration. The +_period_, or complete sentence, is usually composed of four divisions, +which are called _members_, (or _colons_) that it may properly fill the +ear, and be neither longer nor shorter than is requisite for that purpose. +But it sometimes, or rather frequently happens, that a sentence either +falls short of, or exceeds the limits of a regular period, to prevent it +from fatiguing the ear on the one hand, or disappointing it on the other. +What I mean is to recommend an agreeable mediocrity: for we are not +treating of verse, but of rhetorical prose, which is confessedly more free +and unconfined. A full period, then, is generally composed of four parts, +which may be compared to as many hexameter verses, each of which have +their proper points, or particles of continuation, by which they are +connected so as to form a perfect period. But when we speak by _colons_, +we interupt their union, and, as often as occasion requires (which indeed +will frequently be the case) break off with ease from this laboured and +suspicious flow of language; but yet nothing should be so numerous in +reality as that which appears to be least so, and yet has a forcible +effect. Such is the following passage in Crassus:--"_Missos faciant +patronos; ipsi prodeant_." "Let them dismiss their patrons: let them +answer for themselves." Unless "_ipsi prodeant_" was pronounced after a +pause, the hearer must have discovered a complete iambic verse. It would +have had a better cadence in prose if he had said "_prodeant ipsi_." But I +am only to consider the species, and not the cadence of the sentence. He +goes on, "_Cur clandestinis consiliis nos oppugnant? cur de perfugis +nostris copias comparant contra nos_?" "Why do they attack us by +clandestine measures? why do they collect forces against us from our own +deserters?" In the former passage there are two _commas_: in the latter he +first makes use of the _colon_, and afterwards of the _period_: but the +period is not a long one, as only consisting of two _colons_, and the +whole terminates in _spondees_. In this manner Crassus generally expressed +himself; and I much approve his method. But when we speak either in +_commas_, or _colons_, we should be very attentive to the harmony of their +cadence: as in the following instance.--"_Domus tibi deerat? at habebas. +Pecunia superabat? at egebas_." "Was you without a habitation? You had a +house of your own. Was your pocket well provided? You was not master of a +farthing." These are four _commas_; but the two following members are both +_colons_;--"_Incurristi omens in columnas, in alienos insanus insanisti_." + +"You rushed like a madman upon your best supporters; you vented your fury +on your enemies withput mercy." The whole is afterwards supported by a +full period, as by a solid basis;--"Depressam, caecam, jacentem domum, +pluris quam te, et fortunas tuas aestimāsti." "You have shewn more regard +to an unprosperous, an obscure, and a fallen family, than to your own +safety and reputation." This sentence ends with a _dichoree_, but the +preceeding one in a _double spondee_. For in those sentences which are to +be used like daggers for close-fighting, their very shortness makes our +numbers less exceptionable. They frequently consist of a single number;-- +generally of _two_, with the addition perhaps of half a foot to each: and +very seldom of more than three. To speak in _commas_ or _colons_ has a +very good effect in real causes; and especially in those parts of an +Oration where it is your business either to prove or refute: as in my +second defence of Cornelius, where I exclaimed, "O callidos homines! O rem +excogitatam! O ingenia metuenda!" "What admirable schemers! what a curious +contrivance! what formidable talents!" Thus far I spoke in _colons_; and +afterwards by _commas_; and then returned to the colon, in "_Testes dare +volumus_," "We are willing to produce our witnesses." This was succeeded +by the following _period_, consisting of two _colons_, which is the +shortest that can be formed,--"_Quem, quaeso, nostrūm sesellit ita vos +esse facturos?_" "Which of us, think you, had not the sense to foresee +that you would proceed in this manner?" + +There is no method of expressing ourselves which, if properly timed, is +more agreeable or forcible, than these rapid turns, which are completed in +two or three words, and sometimes in a single one; especially, when they +are properly diversified, and intermingled here and there with a +_numerous_ period; which _Egesias_ avoids with such a ridiculous nicety, +that while he affects to imitate _Lysias_ (who was almost a second +_Demosthenes_) he seems to be continually cutting capers, and clipping +sentence after sentence. He is as frivolous in his sentiments as in his +language: so that no person who is acquainted with his writings, need to +seek any farther for a coxcomb. But I have selected several examples from +Crassus, and a few of my own, that any person, who is so inclined, may +have an opportunity of judging with his own ears, what is really +_numerous_, as well in the shortest as in any other kind of sentences. + +Having, therefore, treated of a _numerous_ style more copiously than any +author before me, I shall now proceed to say something of it's _utility_. +For to speak handsomely, and like an Orator (as no one, my Brutus, knows +better than yourself) is nothing more than to express the choicest +sentiments in the finest language. The noblest thoughts will be of little +service to an orator, unless he is able to communicate them in a correct +and agreeable style: nor will the splendor of our expressions appear to a +proper advantage, unless they are carefully and judiciously ranged. Permit +me to add, that the beauty of both will be considerably heightened by the +harmony of our numbers:--such numbers (for I cannot repeat it too often) +as are not only not cemented together, like those of the poets, but which +avoid all appearance of metre, and have as little resemblance to it as +possible; though it is certainly true that the numbers themselves are the +same, not only of the Poets and Orators, but of all in general who +exercise the faculty of speech, and, indeed, of every instrument which +produces a sound whose time can be measured by the ear. It is owing +entirely to the different arrangement of our feet that a sentence assumes +either the easy air of prose, or the uniformity of verse. Call it, +therefore, by what name you please (_Composition, Perfection_, or +_Number_) it is a necessary restraint upon our language; not only (as +_Aristotle_ and _Theophrastus_ have observed) to prevent our sentences +(which should be limited neither by the breath of the speaker, nor the +pointing of a transcriber, but by the sole restraint of _number_) from +running on without intermission like a babbling current of water; but +chiefly, because our language, when properly measured, has a much greater +effect than when it is loose and unconfined. For as Wrestlers and +Gladiators, whether they parry or make an assault, have a certain grace in +their motions, so that every effort which contributes to the defence or +the victory of the combatants, presents an agreeable attitude to the eye: +so the powers of language can neither give nor evade an important blow, +unless they are gracefully exerted. That style, therefore, which is not +regulated by _numbers_, is to me as unbecoming as the motions of a +Gladiator who has not been properly trained and exercised: and so far is +our language from being _enervated_ by a skilful arrangement of our words +(as is pretended by those who, for want either of proper instructors, +capacity, or diligence, have not been able to attain it) that, on the +contrary, without this, it is impossible it should have any force or +efficacy. + +But it requires a long and attentive course of practice to avoid the +blemishes of those who were unacquainted with this numerous species of +composition, so as not to transpose our words too openly to assist the +cadence and harmony of our periods; which _L. Caelius Antipater_, in the +Introduction to his Punic War, declares he would never attempt, unless +when compelled by necessity. "_O virum simplicem_," (says he, speaking of +himself) "_qui nos nihil celat; sapientem, qui serviendum necessitati +putet_." "O simple man, who has not the skill his art to conceal; and yet +to the rigid laws of necessity he has the wisdom to submit." But he was +totally unskilled in composition. By us, however, both in writing and +speaking, necessity is never admitted as a valid plea; for, in fact, there +is no such thing as an absolute constraint upon the order and arrangement +of our words; and, if there was, it is certainly unnecessary to own it. +But _Antipater_, though he requests the indulgence of Laelius, to whom he +dedicates his work, and attempts to excuse himself, frequently transposes +his words without contributing in the least either to the harmony, or +agreeable cadence of his periods. + +There are others, and particularly the _Asiatics_, who are such slaves to +_number_, as to insert words which have no use nor meaning to fill up the +vacuities in a sentence. There are likewise some who, in imitation of +_Hegesias_ (a notorious trifler as well in this as in every other respect) +curtail and mince their numbers, and are thus betrayed into the low and +paltry style of the Sicilians. Another fault in composition is that which +occurs in the speeches of _Hierocles_ and _Menecles_, two brothers, who +may be considered as the princes of Asiatic Eloquence, and, in my opinion, +are by no means contemptible: for though they deviate from the style of +nature, and the strict laws of Atticism, yet they abundantly compensate +the defect by the richness and fertility of their language. But they have +no variety of cadence, and their sentences are almost always terminated in +the same manner. He therefore, who carefully avoids these blemishes, and +who neither transposes his words too openly,--nor inserts any thing +superfluous or unmeaning to fill up the chasms of a period,--nor curtails +and clips his language, so as to interrupt and enervate the force of it,-- +nor confines himself to a dull uniformity of cadence,--_he_ may justly be +said to avoid the principal and most striking defects of prosaic harmony. +As to its positive graces, these we have already specified; and from +thence the particular blemishes which are opposite to each, will readily +occur to the attentive reader. + +Of what consequence it is to regulate the structure of our language, may +be easily tried by selecting a well-wrought period from some Orator of +reputation, and changing the arrangement of the words; [Footnote: +Professor _Ward_ has commented upon an example of this kind from the +preface to the Vth volume of the Spectator:--"_You have acted in so much +consistency with yourself, and promoted the interests of your country in +so uniform a manner; that even those, who would misrepresent your generous +designs for the public good, cannot but approve the steadiness and +intredipity, with which you pursue them_." I think, says the Doctor, this +may be justly esteemed an handsome period. It begins with ease, rises +gradually till the voice is inflected, then sinks again, and ends with a +just cadency, And perhaps there is not a word in it, whole situation would +be altered to an advantage. Let us now but shift the place of one word in +the last member, and we shall spoil the beauty of the whole sentence. For +if, instead of saying, as it now stands, _cannot but approve the +steadiness and intrepidity, with which you pursue them_; we put it thus, +_cannot but approve the steadiness and intrepidity which you pursue them +with_; the cadency will be flat and languid, and the harmony of the period +entirely lost. Let us try it again by altering the place of the two last +members, which at present stand in this order, _that even those who would +misrepresent your generous designs for the public good, cannot but approve +the steadiness and intrepidity, with which you pursue them_. Now if the +former member be thrown last, they will run thus, _that even those cannot +but approve the steadiness and intrepidity, with which you pursue them, +who would misrepresent your generous designs for the public good_. Here +the sense is much obscured by the inversion of the relative _them_, which +ought to refer to something that went before, and not to the words +_generous designs_, which in this situation of the members are placed +after it. WARD'S Rhetoric. Vol. 1, p. 338, 339.] the beauty of it would +then be mangled and destroyed. Suppose, for instance, we take the +following passage from my Defence of _Cornelius,--"Neque me divitae +movent, quibus omnes Africanos et Laelios, multi venalitii mercatoresque +superarunt._" "Nor am I dazzled by the splendor of wealth, in which many +retailers, and private tradesmen have outvied all the _Africani_ and the +_Lelii_" Only invert the order a little, and say,--"_Multi superārunt +mercatores, venatitiique_," and the harmony of the period will be loft. +Try the experiment on the next sentence;--"_Neque vestes, aut celatum +aurum, & argentum, quo nostros veteres Marcellos, Maximosque multi eunuchi +e Syriā Egyptoque vicerunt_:" Nor do. I pay the least regard to costly +habits, or magnificent services of plate, in which many eunuchs, imported +from Syria and Egypt, have far surpassed the illustrious _Marcelli_, and +the _Maximi_. Alter the disposition of the words into, "_vicerunt eunuchi +e Syria, Egyptoque,_" and the whole beauty of the sentence will be +destroyed. Take a third passage from the same paragraph;--"_Neque vero +ornamenta ista villarum, quibus Paulum & L. Mummium, qui rebus his urbem, +Italiamque omnem reserserunt, ab aliquo video perfacile Deliaco aut Syro +potuisse superari:"--"Nor the splendid ornaments of a rural villa, in +which I daily behold every paltry Delian and Syrian outvying the dignity +of Paulus and Lucius Mummius, who, by their victories, supplied the whole +city, and indeed every part of Italy, with a super- fluity of these +glittering trifles!" Only change the latter part of the sentence into,-- +"_potuisse superari ab aliquo Syro aut Deliaco,_" and you will see, though +the meaning and the words are still the same, that, by making this slight +alteration in the order, and breaking the form of the period, the whole +force and spirit of it will be lost. + +On the other hand, take one of the broken sentences of a writer unskilled +in composition, and make the smallest alteration in the arrangement of the +words,--and that which before was loose and disordered, will assume a +just and a regular form. Let us, for instance, take the following passage +from the speech of Gracchus to the Censors;--"_Abesse non potest, quin +ejusdem hominis fit, probos improbare, qui improbos probet_;" "There is no +possibility of doubting that the same person who is an enemy to virtue, +must be a friend to vice." How much better would the period have +terminated if he had said,--"_quin ejusdem hominis fit, qui improbos +probet, probos improbare_!"--"that the same person who is a friend to +vice, must be an enemy to virtue!" There is no one who would object to the +last:--nay, it is impossible that any one who was able to speak thus, +should have been willing to express himself otherwise. But those who have +pretended to speak in a different manner, had not skill enough to speak as +they ought; and for that reason, truly, we must applaud them for their +_Attic_ taste;--as if the great DEMOSTHENES could speak like an _Asiatic_ +[Footnote: Quasi vero Trallianus fuerit Demosthenes.] _Trallianus_ +signifies an inhabitant of _Tralles_, a city in the lesser Asia, between +_Caria_ and _Lydia_. The Asiatics, in the estimation of Cicero, were not +distinguished by the delicacy of their taste.,--that Demosthenes, whose +thunder would have lost half it's force, if it's flight had not been +accelerated by the rapidity of his numbers. + +But if any are better pleased with a broken and dissipated style, let them +follow their humour, provided they condescend to counterbalance it by the +weight, and dignity of their sentiments: in the same manner, as if a +person should dash to pieces the celebrated shield of _Phidias_, though he +would destroy the symmetry of the whole, the fragments would still retain +their separate beauty;--or, as in the history of Thucydides, though we +discover no harmony in the structure of his periods, there are yet many +beauties which excite our admiration. But these triflers, when they +present us with one of their rugged and broken sentences, in which there +is neither a thought, nor word, but what is low and puerile, appear to me +(if I may venture on a comparison which is not indeed very elevated, but +is strictly applicable to the case in hand) to have untied a besom, that +we may contemplate the scattered twigs. If, however, they wish to convince +us that they really despise the species of composition which I have now +recommended, let them favour us with a few lines in the taste of +Isocrates, or such as we find in the orations of _Aeschines_ and +_Demosthenes_. I will then believe they decline the use of it, not from a +consciousness of their inability to put it in practice, but from a real +conviction of it's futility; or, at least, I will engage to find a person, +who, on the same condition, will undertake either to speak or write, in +any language they may please to fix upon, in the very manner they propose. +For it is much easier to disorder a good period, than to harmonize a bad +one. + +But, to speak my whole meaning at once, to be scrupulously attentive to +the measure and harmony of our periods, without a proper regard to our +sentiments, is absolute madness:--and, on the other hand, to speak +sensibly and judiciously, without attending to the arrangement of our +words, and the regularity of our periods, is (at the best) to speak very +awkwardly; but it is such a kind of awkwardness that those who are guilty +of it, may not only escape the title of blockheads, but pass for men of +good-sense and understanding;--a character which those speakers who are +contented with it, are heartily welcome to enjoy! But an Orator who is +expected not only to merit the approbation, but to excite the wonder, the +acclamations, and the plaudits of those who hear him, must excel in every +part of Eloquence, and be so thoroughly accomplished, that it would be a +disgrace to him that any thing should be either seen or heard with greater +pleasure than himself. + + * * * * * + +Thus, my Brutus, I have given you my opinion of a complete Orator; which +you are at liberty either to adopt or reject, as your better judgment +shall incline you. If you see reason to think differently, I shall have no +objection to it; nor so far indulge my vanity as to presume that my +sentiments, which I have so freely communicated in the present Essay, are +more just and accurate than yours. For it is very possible not only that +you and I may have different notions, but that what appears true even to +myself at one time, may appear otherwise at another. Nor only in the +present case, which be determined by the taste of the multitude, and the +capricious pleasure of the ear (which are, perhaps, the most uncertain +judges we can fix upon)--but in the most important branches of science, +have I yet been able to discover a surer rule to direct my judgment, than +to embrace that which has the greatest appearance of probability: for +_Truth_ is covered with too thick a veil to be distinguished to a +certainty. I request, therefore, if what I have advanced should not have +the happiness to merit your approbation, that you will be so much my +friend as to conclude, either that the talk I have attempted is +impracticable, or that my unwillingness to disoblige you has betrayed me +into the rash presumption of undertaking a subject to which my abilities +are unequal. + + + + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK, CICERO'S BRUTUS OR HISTORY OF FAMOUS ORATORS; ALSO HIS ORATOR, OR ACCOMPLISHED SPEAKER. *** + +This file should be named 8cbho10.txt or 8cbho10.zip +Corrected EDITIONS of our eBooks get a new NUMBER, 8cbho11.txt +VERSIONS based on separate sources get new LETTER, 8cbho10a.txt + +Project Gutenberg eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the US +unless a copyright notice is included. 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