על שכל אדם ישר הוא בן חורין ט״וEvery Good Man is Free 15
א׳
1XV. [98] The freedom of the virtuous is also vouched for by the poets and prose writers, in whose thoughts Greeks and barbarians alike are reared almost from the cradle, and so gain improvement of character and restamp into sterling coin every bit of metal in their souls which has been debased by a faulty upbringing and mode of life.
ב׳
2[99] See, for instance, what Heracles says in Euripides:
Burn me, consume my flesh, and drink thy fill
Of my dark blood; for sooner shall the stars
Go ’neath the earth and earth go up to sky
Ere thou shalt from my lips meet fawning word.
For in very truth, fawning and flattery and dissembling, in which the words are at war with the thought, are utterly slavish. But freedom of speech, genuine without taint of bastardy, and proceeding from a pure conscience, befits the nobly born.
Burn me, consume my flesh, and drink thy fill
Of my dark blood; for sooner shall the stars
Go ’neath the earth and earth go up to sky
Ere thou shalt from my lips meet fawning word.
For in very truth, fawning and flattery and dissembling, in which the words are at war with the thought, are utterly slavish. But freedom of speech, genuine without taint of bastardy, and proceeding from a pure conscience, befits the nobly born.
ג׳
3[100] Again, observe how this same man of worth, even when put up for sale, seems to be no menial, but strikes awe into the beholders, who feel that he is not only free, but will become the master of his purchaser.
ד׳
4[101] Hermes, for example, in answer to the question whether Heracles is worthless says:
Worthless? far from it, quite the contrary:
His bearing’s dignified, no meanness here,
Not slave-like overstocked with fat, and look
How smart his dress—and he can wield a club.
To which the other replies:
Who wants to buy a stronger than himself,
And bring him home as master of the house?
It fairly frightens one to look at you,
Eyes full of fire—you look just like a bull
Watching a lion’s onset.
Then he continues:
Your looks alone are evidence enough,
Though you say nothing, that you won’t obey—
Giving, not taking, orders is your line.
Worthless? far from it, quite the contrary:
His bearing’s dignified, no meanness here,
Not slave-like overstocked with fat, and look
How smart his dress—and he can wield a club.
To which the other replies:
Who wants to buy a stronger than himself,
And bring him home as master of the house?
It fairly frightens one to look at you,
Eyes full of fire—you look just like a bull
Watching a lion’s onset.
Then he continues:
Your looks alone are evidence enough,
Though you say nothing, that you won’t obey—
Giving, not taking, orders is your line.
ה׳
5[102] And when Syleus after buying him, sent him into his estate, he showed by his actions that there was nothing of the slave in his nature. For he killed the finest bull in the stud, nominally as a sacrifice to Zeus, and feasted on it, and then brought out a great quantity of wine and lying there very comfortably drank it in huge draughts.
ו׳
6[103] When Syleus arrived, very indignant both at the loss of his property, and at his servant’s easy-going and excessively disdainful behaviour, Heracles did not change colour a whit, nor make any difference in what he was doing, but said with the utmost boldness:
Lie down and let us drink and have a try
At once, who’ll do it better, you or I.
Lie down and let us drink and have a try
At once, who’ll do it better, you or I.
ז׳
7[104] How then must we describe his standing with his master? Is he slave or lord, he who dares not only to take these liberties, but even to issue orders to his owner, ready to beat him and knock him about if he shows resistance, or if he calls others to his aid to annihilate them altogether! Surely then these title-deeds, which record the so-called purchases, are just a laughing-stock and a mass of nonsense, when they are put out of court by the superior force of those against whom they are drawn up, less valid even than blank sheets of paper and destined to perish utterly, through moths, or time, or mildew.