Page:Xenophon by Alexander Grant.djvu/73

Rh you," he continued, "in what way the affair happened, for it is worth listening to. A man was being left behind because he was able to march no farther. I knew nothing of him, except that he was one of us. And I compelled you, sir, to bring him, that he might not perish; for, if I mistake not, the enemy was pressing upon us." This the complainant acknowledged. "Well, then," said Xenophon, "after I had sent you on, did not I catch you, as I came up with the rearguard, digging a trench to bury the man, when I stopped and commended you? But while we were standing by, the man drew up his leg, and those who were there cried out that he was alive. And you said, 'He may be as much alive as he likes, for I shan't carry him.' On this I struck you, it is quite true, for you seemed to me to have been aware that the man was alive." "Well, then," exclaimed the other, "did he die any the less after I had rendered him up to you?" "Why, we shall all die," said Xenophon; "but is that any reason that we should be buried alive?" Hereupon all the assembly cried out that Xenophon had not beaten the fellow half enough. And this complaint having been disposed of, no others were brought against Xenophon, who then addressed the soldiers, saying, "I acknowledge to have struck many men for breach of discipline—men who were content to owe their preservation to your orderly march and constant fighting, while they themselves left the ranks and ran on before, so as to have an advantage over you in looting. Had we all acted as they did, we should have perished to a man. Sometimes, too, I struck men who were lagging behind with cold and fatigue, or were stopping the way so as to hinder others from getting forward. I struck them with my fist, in order to prevent them from being struck by the lance of the enemy. It is a plain case: if I punished any one for his good, I claim the privilege of parents with their children, masters with their scholars, and surgeons with their patients. In the time of storm the captain must be rough