Page:Plutarch's Lives (Clough, v.5, 1865).djvu/29

 DEMOSTHENES. 21 with to speak in favor of Philip. The Thebans he put in iniud of Epaminondas, the Athenians, of Pericles, who always took their own measures and governed their actions by reason, looking upon things of this kind as mere pretexts for cowardice. Thus far, therefore, De- mosthenes acquitted himself like a brave man. But m the fight he did nothing honoraible, nor was his ^^erform- auce answerable to his speeches. For he fled, deserting his place disgracefully, and tkrowing away his arms, not ashamed, as Pytheas observed, to belie the inscription written on his shield, in letters of gold, " With good for- tune." " In the mean time Philip, in the first moment of vic- tory, was so transported with joy, that he grew extrava- gant, and going out, after he had drunk largely, to visit the dead bodies, he chanted the first words of the decree that had been 2)assed on the motion of Demosthenes, The motion of Demosthenes, Demosthenes's son,* dividing it metrically into feet, and marking the beats. But when he came to himself, and had well considered the danger he was lately imder, he could not forbear from shuddering at the wonderful ability and power of an orator who had made him hazard his life and empire on the issue of a few brief hours. The fame of it also reached even to the court of Persia, and the king sent letters to his lieutenants, commanding them to supply Demosthenes with money, and to pay every attention to him, as the only man of all the Grecians who was able to give Philip occupation and find employment for his forces near home, in the troubles of Greece. This afterwai'ds Paianieus, tad' eipen. " Demosthe- commencement of the Votes of the nes, the son of Demosthenes, of Athenian Assembly, the Paanian township, made this
 * Demosthenes Deraosthenous, motion," — the usual form of the