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The Sportsman
by Xenophon
Translation by H. G. Dakyns
Xenophon the Athenian was born 431 B.C. He was a pupil of Socrates. He marched with the Spartans, and was exiled from Athens. Sparta gave him land and property in Scillus, where he lived for many years before having to move once more, to settle in Corinth. He died in 354 B.C.
The Sportsman is a manual on hunting hares, deer and wild boar, including the topics of dogs, and the benefits of hunting for the young.
ON HUNTING A Sportsman's Manual
Commonly Called
CYNEGETICUS
I
To the gods themselves is due the discovery, to Apollo and Artemis, patrons of the chase and protectors of the hound.[1] As a guerdon they bestowed it upon Cheiron,[2] by reason of his uprightness, and he took it and was glad, and turned the gift to good account. At his feet sat many a disciple, to whom he taught the mystery of hunting and of chivalry[3]--to wit, Cephalus, Asclepius, Melanion, Nestor, Amphiaraus, Peleus, Telamon, Meleager, Theseus and Hippolytus, Palamedes, Odysseus, Menestheus, Diomed, Castor and Polydeuces, Machaon and Podaleirius, Antilochus, Aeneas and Achilles: of whom each in his turn was honoured by the gods. And let none marvel that of these the greater part, albeit well-pleasing to the gods, nevertheless were subject to death--which is the way of nature,[4] but their fame has grown--nor yet that their prime of manhood so far differed. The lifetime of Cheiron sufficed for all his scholars; the fact being that Zeus and Cheiron were brethren, sons of the same father but of different mothers--Zeus of Rhea, and Cheiron of the nymph Nais;[5] and so it is that, though older than all of them, he died not before he had taught the youngest--to wit, the boy Achilles.[6]
[1] Or, "This thing is the invention of no mortal man, but of Apollo and Artemis, to whom belong hunting and dogs." For the style of exordium L. Dind. cf (Ps.) Dion. "Art. rhet." ad in.; Galen, "Isagog." ad in.; Alex. Aphrodis. "Probl." 2 proem.
[2] The wisest and "justest of all the centaurs," Hom. "Il." xi. 831. See Kingsley, "The Heroes," p. 84.
[3] Or, "the discipline of the hunting field and other noble lore."
[4] Lit. "since that is nature, but the praise of them grew greatly."
[5] According to others, Philyra. Pind. "Pyth." iii. 1, {ethelon Kheirona ke Philuridan}; cf. "Pyth." vi. 22; "Nem." iii. 43.
[6] See Paus. iii. 18. 12.
Thanks to the careful heed they paid to dogs and things pertaining to the chase, thanks also to the other training of their boyhood, all these greatly excelled, and on the score of virtue were admired.
If Cephalus was caught into the arms of one that was a goddess,[7] Asclepius[8] obtained yet greater honour. To him it was given to raise the dead and to heal the sick, whereby,[9] even as a god among mortal men, he has obtained to himself imperishable glory. Melanion[10] so far excelled in zest for toil that he alone of all that flower of chivalry who were his rivals[11] obtained the prize of noblest wedlock with Atalanta; while as to Nestor, what need to repeat the well-known tale? so far and wide for many a day has the fame of his virtue penetrated the ears of Hellas.[12]
[7] Hemera (al. Eos). For the rape of Cephalus see Hes. "Theog." 986; Eur. "Ion," 269; Paus. i. 3. 1; iii. 18. 7.
[8] Lat. Aesculapius. Father of Podaleirius and Machaon, "the noble leech," "Il." ii. 731, iv. 194, 219, xi. 518; "Od." iv. 232.
[9] Cf. "Anab." I. ii. 8; Lincke, "z. Xen. Krit." p. 299.
[10] Melanion, s. Meilanion, Paus. iii. 12. 9; v. 17. 10; v. 19. 1.
[11] "Which were his rival suitors." As to Atalanta see Paus. viii. 45. 2; iii. 24. 2; v. 19. 2; Grote, "H. G." i. 199 foll.
[12] Lit. "the virtue of Nestor has so far penetrated the ears of Hellas that I should speak to those who know." See Hom. "Il." i. 247, and passim.
Amphiaraus,[13] what time he served as a warrior against Thebes, won for himself the highest praise; and from heaven obtained the honour of a deathless life.[14]
[13] Amphiaraus. Pind. "Nem." ix. 13-27; "Olymp." vi. 11-16; Herod. i. 52; Paus. ix. 8. 2; 18. 2-4; ii. 23.2; i. 34; Liv. xlv. 27; Cic. "de Div." i. 40. See Aesch. "Sept. c. Th." 392; Eur. "Phoen." 1122 foll.; Apollod. iii. 6; Strab. ix. 399, 404.
[14] Lit. "to be honoured ever living."
Peleus kindled in the gods desire to give him Thetis, and to hymn their nuptials at the board of Cheiron.[15]
[15] For the marriage of Peleus and Thetis see Hom. "Il." xxiv. 61; cf. Pope's rendering:
To grace those nuptials from the bright abode Yourselves were present; when this minstrel god (Well pleased to share the feast) amid the quire Stood proud to hymn, and tune his youthful lyre ("Homer's Il." xxiv.)
Prof. Robinson Ellis ("Comment on Catull." lxiv.) cites numerous passages: Eur. "I. in T." 701 foll., 1036 foll.; Pind. "Isthm." v. 24; "Pyth." iii. 87-96; Isocr. "Evag." 192. 6; Apoll. Rh. iv. 791; "Il." xxiv. 61; Hes. "Theog." 1006, and "Epithal." (ap. Tsetz, "Prol. ad Lycophr.):
{tris makar Aiakide kai tetrakis olbie Peleu os toisd' en megarois ieron lekhos eisanabaineis}.
The mighty Telamon[16] won from the greatest of all states and wedded her whom he desired, Periboea the daughter of Alcathus;[17] and when the first of Hellenes,[18] Heracles[19] the son of Zeus, distributed rewards of valour after taking Troy, to Telamon he gave Hesione.[20]
[16] See "Il." viii. 283l Paus. i. 42. 1-4.
[17] Or Alcathous, who rebuilt the walls of Megara by Apollo's aid. Ov. "Met." viii. 15 foll.
[18] Reading {o protos}; or if with L. D. {tois protois}, "what time Heracles was distributing to the heroes of Hellas (lit. the first of the Hellenes) prizes of valour, to Telamon he gave."
[19] See Hom. "Il." v. 640; Strab. xiii. 595.
[20] See Diod. iv. 32; i. 42.
Of Meleager[21] be it said, whereas the honours which he won are manifest, the misfortunes on which he fell, when his father[22] in old age forgot the goddess, were not of his own causing.[23]
[21] For the legend of Meleager see "Il." ix. 524-599, dramatised by both Sophocles and Euripides, and in our day by Swinburne, "Atalanta in Calydon." Cf. Paus. iii. 8. 9; viii. 54. 4; Ov. "Met." viii. 300; Grote, "H. G." i. 195.
[22] i.e. Oeneus. "Il." ix. 535.
[23] Or, "may not be laid to his charge."
Theseus[24] single-handed destroyed the enemies of collective Hellas; and in that he greatly enlarged the boundaries of his fatherland, is still to-day the wonder of mankind.[25]
[24] See "Mem." II. i. 14; III. v. 10; cf. Isocr. "Phil." 111; Plut. "Thes." x. foll.; Diod. iv. 59; Ov. "Met." vii. 433.
[25] Or, "is held in admiration still to-day." See Thuc. ii. 15; Strab. ix. 397.
Hippolytus[26] was honoured by our lady Artemis and with her conversed,[27] and in his latter end, by reason of his sobriety and holiness, was reckoned among the blest.
[26] See the play of Euripides. Paus. i. 22; Diod. iv. 62.
[27] Al. "lived on the lips of men." But cf. Eur. "Hipp." 85, {soi kai xeneimi kai logois s' ameibomai}. See Frazer, "Golden Bough," i. 6, for the Hippolytus-Virbius myth.
Palamedes[28] all his days on earth far outshone those of his own times in wisdom, and when slain unjustly, won from heaven a vengeance such as no other mortal man may boast of.[29] Yet died he not at their hands[30] whom some suppose; else how could the one of them have been accounted all but best, and the other a compeer of the good? No, not they, but base men wrought that deed.
[28] As to Palamedes, son of Nauplius, his genius and treacherous death, see Grote, "H. G." i. 400; "Mem." IV. ii. 33; "Apol." 26; Plat. "Apol." 41; "Rep." vii. 522; Eur. fr. "Palam."; Ov. "Met." xiii. 56; Paus. x. 31. 1; ii. 20. 3.
[29] For the vengeance see Schol. ad Eur. "Orest." 422; Philostr. "Her." x. Cf. Strab. viii. 6. 2 (368); Leake, "Morea," ii. 358; Baedeker, "Greece," 245.
[30] i.e. Odysseus and Diomed. (S. 11, I confess, strikes me as somewhat in Xenophon's manner.) See "Mem." IV. ii. 33; "Apol." 26.
Menestheus,[31] through diligence and patient care, the outcome of the chase, so far overshot all men in love of toil that even the chiefs of Hellas must confess themselves inferior in the concerns of war save Nestor only; and Nestor, it is said,[32] excelled not but alone might rival him.
[31] For Menestheus, who led the Athenians against Troy, cf. Hom. "Il." ii. 552; iv. 327; Philostr. "Her." ii. 16; Paus. ii. 25. 6; i. 17. 6; Plut. "Thes." 32, 35.
[32] Or, "so runs the tale," e.g. in "The Catalogue." See "Il." ii. l.c.: {Nestor oios erizen}, "Only Nestor rivalled him, for he was the elder by birth" (W. Leaf).
Odysseus and Diomedes[33] were brilliant for many a single deed of arms, and mainly to these two was due the taking of Troy town.[34]
[33] The two heroes are frequently coupled in Homer, e.g. "Il." v. 519; x. 241, etc.
[34] Or, "were brilliant in single points, and broadly speaking were the cause that Troy was taken." See Hygin. "Fab." 108; Virg. "Aen." ii. 163.
Castor and Polydeuces,[35] by reason of their glorious display of arts obtained from Cheiron, and for the high honour and prestige therefrom derived, are now immortal.
[35] Castor, Polydeuces, s. Pollux--the great twin brethren. See Grote, "H. G." i. 232 foll.
Machaon and Podaleirius[36] were trained in this same lore, and proved themselves adepts in works of skill, in argument and feats of arms.[37]
[36] As to the two sons of Asclepius, Machaon and Podaleirius, the leaders of the Achaeans, see "Il." ii. 728; Schol. ad Pind. "Pyth." iii. 14; Paus. iii. 26; iv. 3; Strab. vi. 4 (284); Diod. iv. 71. 4; Grote, "H. G." i. 248.
[37] Or, "in crafts, in reasonings, and in deeds of war."
Antilochus,[38] in that he died for his father, obtained so great a glory that, in the judgment of Hellas, to him alone belongs the title "philopator," "who loved his father."[39]
[38] Antilochus, son of Nestor, slain by Memnon. "Od." iv. 186 foll.; Pind. "Pyth." vi. 28; Philostr. "Her." iv.; "Icon." ii. 281.
[39] Lit. "to be alone proclaimed Philopator among the Hellenes." Cf. Plat. "Laws," 730 D, "He shall be proclaimed the great and perfect citizen, and bear away the palm of virtue"; and for the epithet see Eur. "Or." 1605; "I. A." 68.
Aeneas[40] saved the ancestral gods--his father's and his mother's;[41] yea, and his own father also, whereby he bore off a reputation for piety so great that to him alone among all on whom they laid their conquering hand in Troy even the enemy granted not to be despoiled.
[40] As to Aeneas see Poseidon's speech, "Il." xx. 293 foll.; Grote, "H. G." i. 413, 427 foll.
[41] Cf. "Hell." II. iv. 21.
Achilles,[42] lastly, being nursed in this same training, bequeathed to after-days memorials so fair, so ample, that to speak or hear concerning him no man wearies.
[42] "The highest form that floated before Greek imagination was Achilles," Hegel, "Lectures on the Philosophy of History" (Eng. tr. p. 233); and for a beautiful elaboration of that idea, J. A. Symonds, "Greek Poets," 2nd series, ch. ii.
Such, by dint of that paintstaking care derived from Cheiron, these all proved themselves; of whom all good men yet still to-day are lovers and all base men envious. So much so that if throughout the length and breadth of Hellas misfortunes at any time befell city or king, it was they who loosed the knot of them;[43] or if all Hellas found herself confronted with the hosts of the Barbarians in strife and battle, once again it was these who nerved the arms of Hellenes to victory and rendered Hellas unconquered and unconquerable.
[43] Reading {eluonto autous}, or if as L. D., {di autous}, transl. "thanks to them, they were loosed."
For my part, then, my advice to the young is, do not despise hunting or the other training of your boyhood, if you desire to grow up to be good men, good not only in war but in all else of which the issue is perfection in thought, word, and deed.
II
The first efforts of a youth emerging from boyhood should be directed to the institution of the chase, after which he should come to the rest of education, provided he have the means and with an eye to the same; if his means be ample, in a style worthy of the profit to be derived; or, if they be scant, let him at any rate contribute enthusiasm, in nothing falling short of the power he possesses.
What are the aids and implements of divers sorts with which he who would enter on this field must equip himself? These and the theory of each in particular I will now explain. With a view to success in the work, forewarned is forearmed. Nor let such details be looked upon as insignificant. Without them there will be an end to practical results.[1]
[1] Or, "The question suggests itself--how many instruments and of what sort are required by any one wishing to enter this field? A list of these I propose to give, not omitting the theoretical side of the matter in each case, so that whoever lays his hand to this work may have some knowledge to go upon. It would be a mistake to regard these details as trivial. In fact, without them the undertaking might as well be let alone."
The net-keeper should be a man with a real passion for the work, and in tongue a Hellene, about twenty years of age, of wiry build, agile at once and strong, with pluck enough to overcome the toils imposed on him,[2] and to take pleasure in the work.
[2] {toutous}, "by this, that, or the other good quality."
The ordinary small nets should be made of fine Phasian or Carthaginian[3] flax, and so too should the road nets and the larger hayes.[4] These small nets should be nine-threaded [made of three strandes, and each strand of three threads],[5] five spans[6] in depth,[7] and two palms[8] at the nooses or pockets.[9] There should be no knots in the cords that run round, which should be so inserted as to run quite smoothly.[10] The road net should be twelve-threaded, and the larger net (or haye) sixteen. They may be of different sizes, the former varying from twelve to twenty-four or thirty feet, the latter from sixty to one hundred and twenty or one hundred and eighty feet.[11] If larger they will be unwieldy and hard to manage. Both should be thirty-knotted, and the interval of the nooses the same as in the ordinary small nets. At the elbow ends[12] the road net should be furnished with nipples[13] (or eyes), and the larger sort (the haye) with rings, and both alike with a running line of twisted cord. The pronged stakes[14] for the small nets should be ten palms high,[15] as a rule, but there should be some shorter ones besides; those of unequal length will be convenient to equalise the height on uneven ground, and those of equal length on level. They should be sharp-tipped so as to draw out easily[16] and smooth throughout. Those for the road nets should be twice the height,[17] and those for the big (haye) nets five spans long,[18] with small forks, the notches not deep; they should be stout and solid, of a thickness proportionate to their length. The number of props needed for the nets will vary--many or few, according to circumstances; a less number if the tension on the net be great, and a larger number when the nets are slack.[19]
