But Antidotus, in his play which is entitled Protochorus, introduces a man resembling those who in the Museum of Claudius still practise their sophistries; whom it is not even creditable to remember; and he represents him speaking thus—

38. And among the parasites these men are commemorated by name: Tithymallus, who is mentioned by Alexis in his Milesian Woman, and in his Ulysses the Weaver. And in his Olynthians he says—

And Dromon in his Psaltria says—

And Timocles, in his Centaur or Dexamenus, says—

And in his Caunians he says—

And in his Epistles he says—

And Antiphanes says in his Etrurian—

39. Corydus also was one of the most notorious parasites. And he is mentioned by Timocles, in his The Man who Rejoices at Misfortunes of others, thus—

And Alexis, in Demetrius or Philetærus, says—

And in his Nurse he says—

And Cratinus the younger in his Titans says—

But that Corydus used to cut jokes, and was fond of being laughed at for them, the same Alexis tells to in his Poets—

And Lynceus the Samian repeats several of his sayings, and asserts that his proper name was Eucrates. And he writes thus concerning him—"Eucrates, who was called Corydus, when he was once feasting with some one whose house was in a very shabby condition, said, 'A man who sups here ought to hold up the house with his left hand like the Caryatides.'"

40. But Philoxenus, who was surnamed Pternocopis, when it happened to be mentioned that thrushes were very dear, and that too while Corydus was present, who was said formerly to have prostituted himself—"I," said he, "can recollect when a lark (κόρυδος) only cost an obol." (And Philoxenus too was a parasite, as Axionicus has stated in his Chalcidian. But the statement is thoroughly proved.) Menander too mentions him in his Cecryphalus, calling him Pternocopis only. And Machon the comic writer mentions him.—But Machon was either a Corinthian or Sicyonian by birth, living, however, in my own city of Alexandria; and he was the tutor of Aristophanes the grammarian, as far as comedy went. And he died in Alexandria, and an inscription to the following effect is placed upon his tomb—

And surely this is equivalent to a statement that he was an Alexandrian by birth. However that may be, Machon mentions Corydus in these terms—

[381] And Lynceus, in the second book of his treatise on Menander, says the men who got a reputation for saying witty things were Euclides the son of Smicrinus, and Philoxenus called Pternocopis. And of them Euclides did at times say apophthegms not unworthy of being written down and recollected; but in all other matters he was cold and disagreeable. But Philoxenus did not particularly excel in short curt sayings, but still whatever he said, whether in the way of gossip, or of a bitter attack on any of his companions, or of relation of occurrences, was full of pleasant and witty conversation. And yet it happened that Euclides was not very popular, but that Philoxenus was loved and respected by every one.

41. But Alexis, in his Trophonius, mentions a certain Moschion, a parasite, calling him "a messmate of every one," and saying—

And in his Pancratiast, Alexis, giving a regular catalogue of the dinner hunters, says—

But Epicrates was nicknamed Cyrebion, and he was the son-in-law of Æschines the orator, as Demosthenes tells us in the oration about the False Embassy. And Anaxandrides, in his Ulysses, mentions such epithets as these, which the Athenians used to affix to people out of joke; saying—

42. And he mentions Chærephon the parasite in the passage which precedes this. But Menander mentions him likewise in the Cecryphalus: and in his Anger he says—

And in his Drunkenness he says—

And he mentions him also in his Man-woman, or the Cretan. But Timocles in his Letters mentions him especially as having attached himself as a parasite to Demotion, who was an intemperate man—

And Antiphanes says in his Scythian—

And Timotheus says in his Puppy—

43. And Apollodorus the Carystian, in his Priestess, says—

And in his Murdered Woman he says—

And Machon the comic writer says—

And in another place he says—

And Callimachus attributes to Chærephon a certain treatise, in the list which he gives, entitled, A Catalogue of all sorts of Things. And he writes thus:—"Those who have written about feasts:—Chærephon in his Cyrebion;" and then he quotes the first sentence—"Since you have often written to me;" and says that the work consisted of three hundred and seventy-five lines. And that Cyrebion was a parasite has been already mentioned.

44. Machon also mentions Archephon the parasite, and says—

45. And Alexis in his Wine-Bibber introduces Stratius the parasite as grumbling at the man who gives him his dinner, and speaking thus—

And a little afterwards he says—

And Axionicus the comic poet, in his Etrurian, mentions Gryllion the parasite in these words—

And Aristodemus, in the second book of his Memoranda of Laughable Things, gives the following list of parasites—Sostratus the parasite of Antiochus the king, Evagoras the Hunchback, parasite of Demetrius Poliorcetes, and Phormio parasite of Seleucus. And Lynceus the Samian, in his Apophthegms, says—"Silanus the Athenian, when Gryllion the parasite of Menander the satrap was passing by in a superb robe, and accompanied by a great number of attendants, being asked who he was, said, "He is a jaw worthy of Menander." But Chærephon the parasite, coming once to a wedding feast [385]without being invited, and sitting down the last of all, when the gynæconomi had counted those who were invited, and desired him to depart as having made the number of guests to exceed the legitimate number of thirty, said, 'Count us over again, and begin with me.'"

46. And that it was a custom for the officers called gynæconomi[385:1] to superintend the banquets, and to examine into the number of those who had been invited, and see whether it was in accordance with the law, we may learn from Timocles in his Litigious Man, where he says—

And Menander says in his Cecryphalus—

And Philochorus, in the seventh book of his history of the Affairs of Attica, says—The gynæconomi used, in conjunction with the judges of the Areopagus, to examine the parties in private houses, and at marriage feasts, and at all other festivals and sacrifices.

47. And Lynceus records the following sayings of Corydus:—"Once when a courtesan whose name was Gnome was supping with Corydus, the wine ran short, on which he desired every one to contribute two obols; and said that Gnome should contribute whatever the people thought fit. And once when Polyctor the harp-player was eating lentil porridge, and had got a stone between his teeth, 'O you unhappy man!' said Corydus, 'even a lentil strikes you.'" [386]And perhaps he is the same person whom Machon mentions; for he says—

And once, when somebody said to Corydus that he sometimes kissed the neck, and the breasts, and even the navel (ὀμφαλὸς) of his wife, "That is very wrong," said he; "for even Hercules went from Omphale to Hebe." And when Phyromachus dipped a piece of bread into some lentil porridge, and upset the dish, he said that it was right that he should be fined, because he did not know how to eat properly, though he professed to. And once, at Ptolemy's table, when a ragout was carried round to the guests, but was finished before it came to him—"O Ptolemy," said he, "am I drunk, or am I right in thinking that these dishes are carried round?" And when Chærephon the parasite said that he was unable to stand much wine, he rejoined, "No, nor stand what is put into the wine either." And once, when at some entertainment Chærephon rose up from supper quite naked—"O Chærephon," said he, "you are just like a bottle, so that we can see how nearly full you are." And when Demosthenes received that goblet from Harpalus—"This man," said he, "who calls other men hard drinkers, has himself swallowed a large cup." And, as he was in the habit of bringing dirty loaves to supper, once, when somebody else brought some which were blacker still, he said, "that he had not brought loaves, but the shades of loaves."

48. And Philoxenus the parasite, who was surnamed Pternocopis, once was dining with Python, and olives (ἐλάαι) were put on the table, and after a little while a dish of fish was brought; and he, striking the dish, said—

And once, at supper, when the man who had invited him had set loaves of black bread before him, he said; "Do not give me too many, lest you should darken the room." And Pausimachus said of a certain parasite who was maintained by an old woman, "That the man who lived with the old woman fared in exactly the contrary manner to the old woman [387]herself; for that he was always large." And he is the man of whom Machon writes in this manner:—

And the same man, hearing of a parasite who was maintained by an old woman, and who lived in habits of daily intimacy with her, said—

And Ptolemy, the son of Agesarchus, a native of Megalopolis, in the second book of his history of Philopator, says that men to dine with the king were collected from every city, and that they were called jesters.

49. And Posidonius of Apamea, in the twenty-third book of his histories, says, "The Celtæ, even when they make war, take about with them companions to dine with them, whom they call parasites. And these men celebrate their praises before large companies assembled together, and also to private individuals who are willing to listen to them: they have also a description of people called Bards, who make them music; and these are poets, who recite their praises with songs. And in his thirty-fourth book, the same writer speaks of a man whose name was Apollonius, as having been the parasite of Antiochus surnamed Grypus, king of Syria. And Aristodemus relates that Bithys, the parasite of king Lysimachus, once, when Lysimachus threw a wooden figure of a scorpion on his cloak, leaped up in a great fright; but presently, when he perceived the truth, he said, "I, too, will frighten you, O king!—give me a talent." For Lysimachus was very stingy. And Agatharchides the Cnidian, in the twenty-second book of his history of Europe, says that Anthemocritus the pancratiast was the parasite of Aristomachus, the tyrant of the Argives.

50. And Timocles has spoken in general terms of parasites in his Boxer, when he calls them ἐπισίτιοι in these words—

[388] And Pherecrates, in his Old Women, says—

For those men are properly called ἐπισίτιοι who do any service for their keep. Plato says, in the fourth book of his treatise on Politics, "And the ἐπισίτιοι do these things, who do not, as others do, receive any wages in addition to their food." And Aristophanes says, in his Storks—

And Eubulus says, in his Dædalus—

51. And Diphilus, in his Synoris (and Synoris is the name of a courtesan), mentioning Euripides (and Euripides is the name given to a particular throw on the dice), and punning on the name of the poet, says this at the same time about parasites:—

And in the amended edition of the same play, speaking of a parasite in a passion, he says—

And immediately afterwards he adds—

And in the play, which is entitled The Parasite, he says—

52. And Menander, in his Passion, speaking of a friend who had refused an invitation to a marriage feast, says—

And Alexis in his Orestes, Nicostratus in his Plutus, Menander in his Drunkenness, and in his Lawgiver, speak in the same way; and Philonides, in his Buskins, says—

But there are many other kindred nouns to the noun παράσιτος: there is ἐπίσιτος, which has already been mentioned; and οἰκόσιτος, and σιτόκουρος, and αὐτόσιτος; and besides these, there is κακόσιτος and ὀλιγόσιτος: and Anaxandrides uses the word οἰκόσιτος in his Huntsmen—

And a man is called οἰκόσιτος who serves the city, not for hire, but gratis. Antiphanes, in his Scythian, says—

And Menander says, in his Ring—

And in his Harp-player he says—

Crates uses the word ἐπισίτιος in his Deeds of Daring, saying—

And he also uses the word in a peculiar sense in his Women dining together, where he says—

[390] And the word σιτόκουρος is used by Alexis, in his Woman sitting up all Night or the Weavers—

And Menander calls a man who is useless, and who lives to no purpose, σιτόκουρος, in his Thrasyleon, saying—

And in his Venal People he says—

And Crobylus used the word αὐτόσιτος (bringing one's own provisions), in The Man hanged—

And Eubulus has the word κακόσιτος (eating badly, having no appetite), in his Ganymede—

And the word ὀλιγόσιτος (a sparing eater) occurs in Phrynichus, in his The solitary Man—

And Pherecrates, or Strattis, in his Good Men—

53. When Plutarch had said all this about parasites, Democritus, taking up the discourse, said, And I myself, 'like wood well-glued to wood,' as the Theban poet has it, will say a word about flatterers.

as the excellent Menander says. And there is no great difference between calling a man a flatterer and a parasite. Accordingly, Lynceus the Samian, in his Commentaries, gives the name of parasite to Cleisophus, the man who is universally described as the flatterer of Philip, the king of the Macedonians (but he was an Athenian by birth, as Satyrus the Peripatetic affirms, in his Life of Philip). And Lynceus says—"Cleisophus, the parasite of Philip, when Philip rebuked him for being continually asking for something, replied, 'I am very forgetful.' Afterwards, when Philip had given him a wounded horse, he sold him; and when, after a time, the king [391]asked him what had become of him, he answered, 'He was sold by that wound of his.' And when Philip laughed at him, and took it good-humouredly, he said, 'Is it not then worth my while to keep you?'" And Hegesander the Delphian, in his Commentaries, makes this mention of Cleisophus:—"When Philip the king said that writings had been brought to him from Cotys, king of Thrace, Cleisophus, who was present, said, 'It is well, by the gods.' And when Philip said, 'But what do you know of the subjects mentioned in these writings?' he said, 'By the great Jupiter, you have reproved me with admirable judgment.'"

54. But Satyrus, in his Life of Philip, says, "When Philip lost his eye, Cleisophus came forth with him, with bandages on the same eye as the king; and again, when his leg was hurt, he came out limping, along with the king. And if ever Philip ate any harsh or sour food, he would contract his features, as if he, too, had the same taste in his mouth. But in the country of the Arabs they used to do these things, not out of flattery, but in obedience to some law; so that whenever the king had anything the matter with any one of his limbs, the courtiers pretended to be suffering the same inconvenience: for they think it ridiculous to be willing to be buried with him when he dies, but not to pay him the compliment of appearing to be subject to the same sufferings as he is while alive, if he sustains any injury." But Nicolaus of Damascus,—and he was one of the Peripatetic school,—in his very voluminous history (for it consisted of a hundred and forty-four books), in the hundred and eleventh book says, that Adiatomus the king of the Sotiani (and that is a Celtic tribe) had six hundred picked men about him, who were called by the Gauls, in their national language, Siloduri—which word means in Greek, Bound under a vow. "And the king has them as companions, to live with him and to die with him; as that is the vow which they all take. In return for which, they also share his power, and wear the same dress, and eat the same food; and they die when he dies, as a matter of absolute necessity, if the king dies of any disease; or if he dies in war, or in any other manner. And no one can even say that any of them has shown any fear of death, or has in the least sought to evade it when the king is dead."

55. But Theopompus says, in the forty-fourth book of his [392]Histories, that Philip appointed Thrasydæus the Thessalian tyrant over all those of his nation, though a man who had but little intellect, but who was an egregious flatterer. But Arcadion the Achæan was not a flatterer, who is mentioned by the same Theopompus, and also by Duris in the fifth book of his History of Macedonian Affairs. Now this Arcadion hated Philip, and on account of this hatred voluntarily banished himself from his country. And he was a man of the most admirable natural abilities, and numbers of clever sayings of his are related. It happened then once, when Philip was sojourning at Delphi, that Arcadion also was there; and the Macedonian beheld him and called him to him, and said, How much further, O Arcadion, do you mean to go by way of banishment? And he replied—