Page:History of Greece Vol III.djvu/10

VJ CONTENTS. CHAPTER X IONIC PORTION OF HELLAS. ATHENS KEFORE SOLON. History of Athens bcforo Drako only a list of names. No king after Kodrus. Life arclions. Decennial archons. Annual archons, nine in number. Archonship of Kreon. u. c. 683 commencement of Attic chronology. Obscurity of the civil condition of Attica before Solon. Alleged duodecimal division of Attica in early times. Four Ionic tribes Geleontcs, Hoplctes, ^Egikorcis, Argadeis. These names are not names of castes or professions. Component portions of the four tribes. The Trittys and the Naukrary. The Phratry and the Gens. What constituted the gens or gentile communion. Artificial enlargement of the primitive family association. Ideas of worship and ancestry coalesce. Belief in a common divine ancestor. This ancestry fabulous, yet still accredited. Analogies from other nations. Roman and Grecian gentes. Rights and obligations of the gentile and phratric brethren. The gens and phratry after the revolution of Kleisthenes became extra-political. Many distinct political communities originally in Athens. Theseus. Long continuance of the cantonal feeling. What demes were originally independent of Athens. Eleusis. Eupatridre, Geomori, and Demiurgi. Eupatridas originally held all political power. Senate of Areopagus. The nine archons their functions. Drako and his laws. Different tribunals for homicide at Athens. Regulations of Drako about tho Ephetas. Local superstitions at Athens about trial of homicide. Attempted usurpation by Kylon. His failure, and massacre of his parti- sans by order of the Alkmseonids. Trial and condemnation of tho Alkmaconids. Pestilence and suffering at Athens. Mystic sects an 3 brotherhoods in the sixth century B. c. Epimenides of Krete. Epime nides visits and purifies Athens. His life and character. Contrast of his age with that of Plato 48-88 CHAPTER XI. SOI.ONIAN LAWS AND CONSTITUTION. Life, character, and poems of Solon. War between Athens and Mcgara about Salamis. Acquisition of Salamis by Athens. Settlement of the dispute by Spartan arbitration in favor of Athens. State of Athens im mediately before the legislation of Solon. Internal dissension misery of the poorer population. Slavery of the debtors law of debtor and creditor. Injustice and rapacity of the rich. General mutiny, and ne- cessity for a large reform. Solon made archon, and invested with full powers of legislation. He refuses to make himself despot. His sci- sachtheia, or relief-law for the poorer debtors. Debasing of the money standard. General popularity of the measure after partial dissatisfac- tion. Different statements afterwards as to the nature and extent of th seisachtheia. Necessity of the measure mischievous contracts tc which the previous law had given rise. Solon's law finally settled the Question 'm sulraequcnt complaint as '.o private debts respect fo