332 HISTORY OF GREECE. in consequence of prejudice or opposition, to disg uise a far-sighted political philosophy under the veil of satire ; as good judges of the most debatable questions, such as the prudence of making war or peace, and excellent authority to guide us in appreciating the merits or demerits of their contemporaries, insomuch that the victims of their lampoons are habitually set down as worthless nun. 1 There cannot be a greater misconception of the old comedy 1 The view which I am here combating, is very general among the Ger- man writers ; in proof of which, I may point to three of the ablest recent critics on the old comedy, Bergk, Meineke, and Ranke ; all most useful writers for the understanding of Aristophanes. Respecting Kratinus, Bergk observes : " Erat enim Cratinus. pariter atque teteri principes antiques comcedice, vir egregie moratus, idemque antiqui moris tenax Cum Cratinus quasi divinilus videret ex hac libertate mox tan- quam ex stirpc aliqua nimiam licentiam existerc et nasci, statim his Snitiis graviter adversatus est, videturque Cimoncm tanquam exemplum boni ct honesti civis proposuisse," etc. " Nam Cratinus cum esset magno ingenio et eximid morum gravitate, aeger- rime tulit rem publicam praeceps in perniciem ruere : omnem igitur operam atquc omne studium eo contulit, ut imagine ipsius vitce ante oculos positd om nes et res divines et humance emendarentur, Iiominumque animi ad honestatem co- lendam incenderentur. Hoc sibi primus et proposuit Cratinns, et propositum strenue persecutus est. Sed si ipsam Veritatem, cujus imago oculis obversabatur, oculis subjecisset, verendum erat ne tcedio obrueret eos qui spectarent, nihilque prorsus eorum, quae summo studio persequebatur, obtineret. Quare eximiii quadam arte pulchram eflBgiem hilaremque formam finxit, ita tamen ut ad veritatcm sublimemque ejus speciem referret omnia : sic cum ludicris mis- cet seria, ut et vulgus haberet quf delectaretur ; et qui plus ingenio valerent, ipsam veritatem, quae ex omnibus fabnlarum paitibus pcrluceret, mente et cogitatione comprehendcrent." " Jam vcro Cratinum in fabulis com- ponendis id unice spectavisse quod esset verum, ne veteres quidem latuit Aristophanes autem idem et secutus semper est et saepe professus." (Bergk, De Reliquiis Comoed. Antiq. pp. 1, 10, 20, 233, etc.) The criticism of Ranke (Commentatio de Vita Aristophanis, pp. ccxli, cccxiv, cccxlii, ccclxix, ccclxxiii, cdxxxiv, etc.) adopts the same strain of eulogy as to the lofty and virtuous purposes of Aristophanes. Compare also the eulogy bestowed by Meineke on the monitorial value of the old comedy (' Historia Comic. Grc. pp. 39, 50, 165, etc.), and similar praises by Wester- mann ; Geschichte der Bcredsamkeit in Griechcnland und Rom. sect. 36. In one of the arguments prefixed to the " Pax" of Aristophanes, the author is so full of the conception of these poets as public instructors or advisers, that he tells us, absurdly enough, they were for that reason called ft idda *aoi: ovdev vao avu3ov?iuv 6id>epov o&ev av r oi)c Kal (5 1 6 a *
