Phocion

And again, in a time of peril, when the people were behaving very harshly towards him and demanding that he render up accounts of his generalship, My good friends, said he, make sure of your safety first. Again, when they had been humble and timorous during a war, but then, after peace had been made, were getting bold and denouncing Phocion on the ground that he had robbed them of the victory, Ye are fortunate, said he, in having a general who knows you; since otherwise ye had long ago perished.

Once, too, when the people were unwilling to adjudicate with the Boeotians a question of territory, but wanted to go to war about it, he counselled them to fight with words, in which they were superior, and not with arms, in which they were inferior. Again, when he was speaking and they would not heed or even consent to hear him, he said: Ye can force me to act against my wishes, but ye shall not compel me to speak against my judgement.

And when Demosthenes, one of the orators in opposition to him, said to him, The Athenians will kill thee, Phocion, should they go crazy, he replied: But they will kill thee, should they come to their senses. Again, when he saw Polyeuctus the Sphettian, on a hot day, counselling the Athenians to go to war with Philip, and then, from much panting and sweating, since he was really very corpulent, frequently gulping down water, Phocion said: It is meet that ye should be persuaded by this man to go to war; for what do ye think he would do under breastplate and shield, when the enemy were near, if, in making you a premeditated speech, he is in danger of choking to death?

At another time Lycurgus heaped much abuse upon him in the assembly, and above all because, when Alexander demanded ten of the citizens of Athens,[*](Cf. chapter xvii. 2 f.) Phocion counselled their surrender; Phocion, however, merely said: I have given this people much good and profitable counsel, but they will not listen to me.

There was a certain Archibiades, nicknamed Laconistes, because, in imitation of the Spartans, he let his beard grow to an extravagant size, always wore a short cloak, and had a scowl on his face. Phocion was once stormily interrupted in the council, and called upon this man for testimony and support in what he said. But when the man rose up and gave such counsel as was pleasing to the Athenians, Phocion seized him by the beard and said: O Archibiades, why, then, didst thou not shave thyself?

Again, when Aristogeiton the public informer, who was always warlike in the assemblies and tried to urge the people on to action, came to the place of muster leaning on a staff and with both legs bandaged, Phocion spied him from the tribunal when he was afar off, and cried out: Put down Aristogeiton, too, as lame and worthless. So that one might wonder how and why a man so harsh and stern got the surname of The Good.