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322 LITERATURE OF ANCIENT GREECE the Peloponnesiaii War. Books III.-VII. contain the annals of Greece to the battle of Mantinea, ending with the sentence : " So far I have written ; what came after will perhaps be another's study!' The first part, though far below Thucydides in accuracy, in grasp, in unity of view, and in style, is noticeably above the rest of the work. The Hellenica, though often bright and clear in detail, forms a weak history. Outside his personal ex- perience, Xenophon is at sea. The chronology is faulty; there is little understanding of the series of events as a whole ; there is no appreciation of Epaminondas. The fact that the history is the work of an able man with large experience and exceptional opportunities for getting information, helps us to appreciate the extraordinary genius of Thucydides. We possess a tract on the Constitution of LacedcBinon^ an essay on Athenian Finances, a Manual for a Cavalry Commander, and another for a Cavalry Private, and a tract on Hunting with Hounds, bearing the name of Xenophon. The last is suspected on grounds of style, but may be a youthful work. The genuineness of the Finances depends partly upon chronological questions not yet definitely settled : it is an interesting book, and seems to be written in support of the peace policy of Eubulus. The cavalry manuals do not raise one's opinions of Greek military discipline, and are less systematic than the Manual for Resisting a Siege by Xenophon's Arcadian contemporary, ^neas Tacticus. The Cyropcedeia is not a historical romance ; if it were, Xenophon would be one of the great originators of literary forms : it is a treatment of the Ideal Ruler and the Best Form of Government, in the shape of a history ^ For The Constitution of Athens, see above, p. 167.