LYCURGUS

One of the Ten Attic Orators, born about B.C. 390 at Athens, of a noble family, pupil of Plato and Socrates. With Demosthenes and Hyperides he was a principal representative of the patriotic party, and directed his exertions especially to the improvemetit of the internal affairs of Athens. During his administration of the finances, a period of twelve years (338-326), lie won great credit by increasing the revenues of the state and the military strength of Athens, by beautifying the city with magnificent buildings, such as the completion of the theatre of Dionysus, and the building of the Panathenaic Stadium, and by causing copies of the plays of Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides to be preserved in the public archives. He died in 329, and was interred at the public expense. The Athenians did honour to his memory by raising a statue of bronze in his honour on the market-place and by a decree which is still extant [Hicks, Greek Historical Inscriptions, No. 145]. His speeches, of which the ancients possessed fifteen, elaborated with the greatest care, were remarkable for their serious moral tone and noble manner, though they were wanting in grace of form, and apt to become tedious owing to frequent digressions. These merits and defects are exemplified in the only speech of his now extant, that against Leocrates.