The Literature of All Nations and All Ages (Volume 6); History, Character, and Incident (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos, missing text, images, or index. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. 1900. Not illustrated. Excerpt: ... DEMOSTHENES. In the oratory of more than two thousand years Demosthenes stands in the front rank, and will always hold first place among the orators of the ancient world. He was born in 384 B.C. When he was only seven years of age, his father, a wealthy manufacturer of arms in Athens, died. When the youth came of age he found himself stripped of his inheritance by dishonest trustees. Aided by Isaeus he commenced a lawsuit against the chief embezzler, and succeeded in recovering about a third of his father's estate. The loss of his patrimony was the means of developing a spirit of courage and self-reliance, which might otherwise have remained latent. When Demosthenes first appeared before the public assembly he was utterly derided. He was weak in voice, awkward in manner, defective in articulation, wanting in wit or pathos, and not prepossessing in appearance. But perseverance enabled him to overcome all obstacles. Dramatic manners were fashionable; therefore he copied the example of actors. He sought in a lonely cave the solitude he desired for study and practice; he recited his speeches to the raging billows; he remedied defects of articulation by rolling pebbles in his mouth, and corrected awkwardness of manner by practising gestures before a mirror. For years he gave much of his time to writing speeches for the courts. From the charge of civil cases of increasing importance he gradually rose to the management of state questions. His critics remarked that his discourses smelt of the lamp, and the orator did not repudiate the impeachment. He made no claim to extempore speaking, but prepared all his speeches with the greatest care. Thus he became master of a style which is accepted as a type of clear, direct, and effective oratory. For thirteen years De...