VII
HOME AGAIN
Under the guidance and protection of Anaxagoras and the slave, thechildren were soon ushered into the court of the richest house in Athens,and then Anaxagoras sent a message to Pericles, who was dining with agroup of men in a large room opening off the court. When the slave openedthe door of the banquet-room, the children caught a glimpse of menreclining on couches, with wreaths about their heads, and heard for aninstant the sound of laughter and gay voices. The smell of food camealso, and the Twins sniffed the delicious odor hungrily. Soon Periclesappeared, wearing a wreath upon his brow, and, as Daphne thought, lookingmore like a God than ever. Anaxagoras told him the story which the Twinshad told to him.
"A very neat plot! Is it not?" said Pericles gravely, when Anaxagoras hadfinished.
"They said something about you too," said Daphne, lifting her eyes toAnaxagoras.
"Indeed!" said Anaxagoras. "So I am in it, too! What did they say?"
"They said you were an old fox," said Daphne. The two men laughed.
"I trust I may live up to their opinion of me," said Anaxagoras.
Then Pericles looked at the children and laid his hand gently upon theirtousled heads.
"So you ran alone through Athens at night to warn me, did you?" he said."And you have been in great danger for my sake? I shall know how to dealwith those two pious old serpents of the Acropolis. Thanks to you, Ishall not fall into their coils. And Pericles does not forget anobligation. Now, my little Spartans," he added, tipping up their chinsand looking at their pale and pinched faces, "it's time you had somethingto eat!"
He clapped his hands and a slave appeared. "Say to Hipponicus that twofriends of Pericles are in the court, and he begs that they may be servedthere with the best the house affords."
The slave disappeared and soon returned bringing such a feast as theTwins had never tasted in their whole lives before. Pericles waited,talking quietly with Anaxagoras, until their hunger was partly appeased,and then he spoke to them again.
"Now, my brave Spartans," he said, "since you have been so considerate ofmy safety, it is well that I should look after yours. Have you any ideawhere your Father may be found? He is probably searching the town foryou."
"We were to spend the night at the house of my Uncle Phaon, thestone-cutter," said Dion, "but we don't know where he lives."
"Phaon," said Pericles, stroking his beard. "Is he not a workman in theshop of Phidias the sculptor? He has a stone-cutter of that name, and,now I think of it, he is called Phaon the Spartan."
"That must be my uncle," said Dion, "but I don't know where he lives. Ihave never been to Athens before, and Uncle Phaon does not come to thefarm."
"We can find out from Phidias," said Anaxagoras, and, turning to hisslave, he said, "Run quickly to the house of Phidias and say to him thatPericles the Archon wishes to know where to find the house of Phaon thestone-cutter."
The slave sped away and returned in a short time with the message thatPhaon lived near the northwest gate. "And I know the way there," addedthe slave.
"Very well," said Anaxagoras. "We will take these children there. Then Iwill await you at your house, Pericles, for I wish to hear the end of thestory, and to know how you deal with those two old traitors."
"Now that I know their purpose," said Pericles, "it is easy to defeat it!I shall return no word to their abuse. When I reach my house, I shallpolitely offer my assailant the escort of my slave, to light him homewith his torch."
Anaxagoras laughed heartily.
"Good," he cried, "and humorous as well. A torch to light up their evilfaces is the last thing in the world they would wish to have. You couldnot devise a more perfect plan to foil their wicked schemes."
"I wish all plots might be as easily frustrated," said Pericles gravely.Then, turning to the children, he added kindly: "You have nothing furtherto fear. My good friend Anaxagoras and his slave will see you safely toyour uncle's house, and he will surely know where to find your Father."
"You won't let Lampon catch us and sell us for slaves, will you?" beggedDaphne, shuddering. "They said they would sell us in Alexandria."
Pericles' brow darkened. "They threatened that, did they?" he exclaimed."The wretches shall not lay a finger on you! Pericles the Archon has saidit. And now you must hurry away. Your Father will be torn with anxietyuntil he sees you again. To-morrow morning I shall send a messenger toyour uncle's house with a package for you, which you must not open untilyou are safe at home again. And when you grow up to be strong, bravemen, I shall expect you to be generals in the army of Athens at the veryleast."
"I can't grow up to be a strong, brave man," said Daphne in a very smallvoice. "I wish I could. But I'm a girl."
"A girl!" cried Pericles in amazement, "and so brave! Surely then youwill at least be the mother of heroes some time. But after this stay morequietly at home, my child. Women should have no history." And hedisappeared through the door into the banquet-hall.
When the Twins, accompanied by Anaxagoras and the slave, finally reachedthe house of their uncle, they found the door open and people hurryingexcitedly to and fro, carrying torches in their hands. In the court ofthe house stood Melas, talking with Phaon and his wife.
"I have searched every nook and cranny of the Acropolis," Melas wassaying. "I do not see how they could have escaped me."
"It's a punishment of the Gods," said the wife of Phaon. "You should nothave let Daphne run the streets like a boy. It's against nature. Nodecent Athenian girl would be allowed to. I never put my nose out of myMother's house exeept on the days of women's festivals until I wasmarried."
"But, my dear," said Phaon mildly, "you forget the Spartans aredifferent."
"I should say they were!" snapped the wife of Phaon, "and now they maysee what comes of it. It's my opinion these wild children have fallen offthe cliffs on the north side of the Acropolis."
Melas shuddered, sank down upon a stool, and hid his face. Just at thatmoment there was a sudden rush of feet behind him and he felt four armsflung about his neck. Spartan though he was, Melas trembled, and his eyeswere wet as he clasped his children in his arms, Anaxagoras stood in thedoorway a moment smiling at the happy group, and then gently slipped awaywithout waiting for any thanks.
Early the next morning a basket addressed to the "brave children of Melasthe Spartan, from Pericles the Archon," was delivered by a slave at thedoor of Phaon. The Twins had been eagerly expecting it, and when itarrived they were no less eager to start for home, since Pericles hadtold them not to open it until they were under their own roof once more.Their aunt, the wife of Phaon, was filled with curiosity to know thecontents. Moreover, since she had learned the whole story of the nightbefore and knew that the children had won the favor and were now underthe avowed protection of Pericles, her respect for them and for Spartansin general had greatly increased.
"Let us see what gifts the great Pericles has sent you!" she cried, whenthe package came.
"No, no," said Daphne hastily. "He said we should not open it until wegot home."
"Very well, then," said the wife of Phaon, sulkily, "only then I shallnever see what's in it."
"Well," said Daphne piously, "you remember about Pandora, don't you? Iwouldn't dare open it until the time comes!"
To this the aunt could make no reply, Melas, too, had no wish to lingerin Athens after the experience of the day before. The children were interror of meeting Lampon, and Melas himself felt it would be a greatload off his mind to get them safely back to their quiet house on Salamisonce more and into their Mother's care. So they bade Phaon and his wifegood-bye and started before noon for the Piraeus.
At the dock they found the boat ready for its return journey across thebay. Nearby was the large black hull of an African ship, bound forAlexandria. Dion pointed to it.
"Suppose we were on that this minute," he said to Daphne, and Daphnecovered her eyes and shook with horror at the mere thought of it.
It was nearly night when the three weary wander
ers climbed the lasthill and turned from the roadway into the path which led to the oldfarm-house. Lydia was standing in the doorway with Chloe behind her,smiling, and Argos came bounding out to meet them, wagging his tail andbarking for joy.
It was a happy party that gathered around the hearth fire that night.Lydia had prepared a wonderful feast to greet the travelers. There wereroast chicken, and sausages too, and goat's milk, and figs. They openedthe basket by fire-light, and if all the Christmases of your whole lifehad been rolled into one, it couldn't have been more wonderful to youthan the gifts of Pericles were to Dion and Daphne. There was a soft robeof scarlet for each of them, with golden clasps to fasten it. There werea purse of gold coins and two beautiful parchment books--all written byhand, for of course there were no printed books in those days. There weregifts for their Father and Mother, too, and, best of all, a letterwritten with Pericles' own hand and addressed to "Euripides the Poet, ofSalamis." With it came a note to Melas, saying he might read the letter,as he wished him to know its contents. This was the letter:--
"Pericles the Archon to Euripides the Poet, Greetings.
"The bearers of this letter are friends of mine who have rendered me agreat service. By their timely warning I was enabled to foil a plot tomake me appear to the public as an enemy of the Gods. As sufficientrecompense I commend them to your friendship. No greater service can berendered Athens than to raise up noble and patriotic defenders. To thisend I commit these children to your guidance, the girl no less thanthe boy. Give them, I beg, the benefit of your wisdom, since they haveproven themselves worthy of such honor, and Athens shall one day thankyou for this service."
And so it was that Dion and Daphne, the Spartans, not only mastered thelearning of their time, but also became the friends of Pericles theAthenian and of Euripides the Poet, and perhaps now wander with them inthe Elysian Fields.
* * * * *
A study period for the working out of the pronunciation of the moredifficult names and words will be the only preparation for reading _TheSpartan Twins_ needed by the average fifth grade class. The story canusually be read at sight in the sixth grade.
It will admirably supplement the study of Greek History in these grades.The essential thing is for the teacher to provide the proper backgroundfor the story. The value in the history of the Greeks lies in the lessonsof bravery and of love of country that it brings us, and in theinspiration and beauty of the myths, dramas, poems, and orations, thestatues and temples that survive to our time. The fundamental aim in itsstudy in the fifth and sixth grades is not so much to store the child'smind with details as to make such impressions as will guide him to alater appreciation of why we remember the Greeks, and what we havelearned from them.
In these days of a "new internationalism," the teacher's most immediateduty is to bring her pupils to a realization of what Americanism anddemocracy mean, and that each is a development from the past. To do this,she should explain that before there were immigrants, there werediscoverers and colonists, from Spain, England, and France; and thatthese countries had their origin in colonies from Rome, herself a colonyfrom Greece. The teacher should explain that the spirit in these ancientcities that inspired colonization, trade, and empire was the inherent andineradicable desire of men, first, for the opportunity of rulingthemselves, and then to establish bonds of union against foreignaggression. Children will then perceive that the ancient Greeks were menquite like ourselves; and that they began the ways of government which wehave, and which our forefathers brought to America. So much for what welearned from the Greeks.
As to why we remember them, let the teacher recall the stories alreadyfamiliar through supplementary reading in literature, the Golden Fleece,Hercules, the Siege of Troy, the Wanderings of Ulysses; let her point outGreek cities which still exist, Athens, Marseilles, Alexandria,Constantinople; let her tell the stories of Marathon, of Leonidas andThermopylae, and of Salamis; let her show pictures of Athens, the mostsplendid city of ancient Greece, of the Acropolis, the Parthenon, theVenus of Milo, the Hermes of Praxiteles, the Discus Thrower, and so on.
This book affords opportunity to contrast the way in which children werebrought up in Sparta with the way in which they were brought up inAthens. The ideals of these two city-states also may be contrasted.Although cities might have separate interests, it should be shown thatthroughout Greece there were interests in common, of which the peoplewere reminded through the Olympic games.
The teacher is referred to the following volumes for further assistancein re-creating the atmosphere of ancient Greece:--
Tappan's _The Story of the Greek People_, _Old World Hero Stories_, and_Our European Ancestors_; Hawthorne's _Wonder-Book_ and _TanglewoodTales_; Peabody's _Old Creek Folk Stories_; Bryant's translation of the_Odyssey_ and of the _Iliad_; Palmer's translation of the _Odyssey_;Hopkinson's _Greek Leaders_; Plutarch's _Alexander the Great_; Marden's_Greece and the AEgean Islands_; Hurll's _Greek Sculpture_ and _How toShow Pictures to Children_; _Masterpieces of Greek Literature_.
Like all the other Volumes in the "Twins Series," _The Spartan Twins_furnishes ample subjects for dramatization. The unique illustrationsshould be of assistance, and other illustrations in most of the booksreferred to above also will help to show scenery, costumes, furniture,and utensils.
The story will suggest many topics for class discussion, and in additionsuch questions as the following will help the pupils to visualize theGreece of the past:--
1. Why would ancient Greece have been a pleasant country to live in?
2. How would it affect your home town if it were shut off from allothers?
3. Judging from the Greek stories, what sort of men did they regard asheroes? What sort of men do we regard as heroes to-day?
4. In the stories of gods and heroes, are there scenes that would makegood pictures?
5. Imagine you are Pericles, and make a speech telling the Athenians whythey ought to beautify their city.
6. What could be done to beautify the place in which you live?
7. Which one of the Greeks or their heroes do you regard as the greatestman? Why?
8. What was good and what was not good in the training of the Spartanboys?
9. In what respects was the training of the Athenian boys better?
10. How do the ideas of one child become known to other children? Howdo the ideas of one country become known to other countries?
11. Had the Greeks good reasons for emigrating?
12. Imagine that you are an ancient Greek and tell why you became acolonist.
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