1.1. THE custom has prevailed and is daily growing commoner of sending boys to the schools of rhetoric much later than is reasonable: this is always the case as regards Latin rhetoric and occasionally applies to Greek as well. The reason for this is twofold: the rhetoricians, more especially our own, have abandoned certain of their duties and the teachers of literature have undertaken tasks which rightly belong to others.
1.1. tenuit consuetudo, quae cotidie magis invalescit, ut praeceptoribus eloquentiae, Latinis quidem semper sed etiam Graecis interim, discipuli serius quam ratio postulat, traderentur. rei duplex causa est, quod et rhetores utique nostri suas partes omiserunt et grammatici alienas occupaverunt.
1.2. For the rhetorician considers that his duty is merely to declaim and give instruction in the theory and practice of declamation and confines his activities to deliberative and judicial themes, regarding all others as beneath the dignity of his profession; while the teacher of literature is not satisfied to take what is left him (and we owe him a debt of gratitude for this), but even presumes to handle declamations in character and deliberative themes, tasks which impose the very heaviest burden on the speaker.
1.2. et illi declamare modo et scientiam declamandi ac facultatem tradere officii sui ducunt, idque intra deliberativas iudicialesque materias (nam cetera ut professione sua minora despiciunt), et hi non satis credunt excepisse, quae relicta erant, (quo nomine gratia quoque iis habenda est), sed ad prosopopoeias usque ac suasorias, in quibus onus dicendi vel maximum est, irrumpunt.
1.3. Consequently subjects which once formed the first stages of rhetoric have come to form the final stages of a literary education, and boys who are ripe for more advanced study are kept back in the inferior school and practise rhetoric under the direction of teachers of literature. Thus we get the absurd result that a boy is not regarded as fit to go on to the schools of declamation till he knows how to declaim. The two professions must each be assigned their proper sphere.
1.3. ergo accidit, ut, quae alterius artis prima erant opera, facta sint alterius novissima, et aetas altioribus iam disciplinis debita in schola minore subsidat ac rhetoricen apud grammaticos exerceat., quod est maxime ridiculum, non ante ad declamandi magistrum mittendus videtur puer quam declamare sciat. suum cuique professioni modum demus.
1.4. Grammatice, which we translate as the science of letters, must learn to know its own limits, especially as it has encroached so far beyond the boundaries to which its unpretentious name should restrict it and to which its earlier professors actually confined themselves. Springing from a tiny fountain-head, it has gathered strength from the historians and critics and has swollen to the dimensions of a brimming river, since, not content with the theory of correct speech, no inconsiderable subject, it has usurped the study of practically all the highest departments of knowledge.
1.4. grammatice (quam in Latinum transferentes litteraturam vocaverunt) fines suos norit, praesertim tantum ab hac appellationis suae paupertate, intra quam primi illi constitere, provecta; nam tenuis a fonte assumptis historicorum criticorumque viribus pleno iam satis alveo fluit, cum praeter rationem recte loquendi non parum alioqui copiosam prope omnium maximarum artium scientiam amplexa sit;
1.5. On the other hand rhetoric, which derives its name from the power of eloquence, must not shirk its peculiar duties nor rejoice to see its own burdens shouldered by others. For the neglect of these is little less than a surrender of its birthright.
1.5. et rhetorice, cui nomen vis eloquendi dedit, officia sua non detrectet nec occupari gaudeat pertinentem ad se laborem, quae, dum opere cedit, iam paene possessione depulsa est.
1.6. I will of course admit that there may be a few professors of literature who have acquired sufficient knowledge to be able to teach rhetoric as well; but when they do so, they are performing the duties of the rhetorician, not their own.
1.6. infitiabor, aliquem ex his, qui grammaticen profiteantur, eo usque scientiae progredi posse, ut ad haec quoque tradenda sufficiat; sed cum id aget, rhetoris officio fungetur non suo.
1.7. A further point into which we must enquire concerns the age at which a boy may be considered sufficiently advanced to profit by the instructions of the rhetorician. In this connexion we must consider not the boy's actual age, but the progress he has made in his studies. To put it briefly, I hold that the best answer to the question “When should a boy be sent to the school of rhetoric?”
1.7. porro quaerimus, quando iis, quae rhetorice praecipit, percipiendis puer maturus esse videatur. quo quidem non id est aestimandum, cuius quisque sit aetatis, sed quantum in studiis iam effecerit.
1.8. is this, “When he is fit.” But this question is really dependent on that previously raised. For if the duties of the teacher of literature are prolonged to include instruction in deliberative declamation, this will postpone the need for the rhetorician. On the other hand if the rhetorician does not refuse to undertake the first duties of his task, his instruction will be required from the moment the boy begins to compose narratives and his first attempts at passages of praise or denunciation.
1.8. ne diutius disseram, quando sit rhetori tradendus, sic optime finiri credo; cum poterit. hoc ipsum ex superiore pendet quaestione. si grammatices munus usque ad suasorias prorogatur, tardius rhetore opus est. si rhetor prima officia operis sui non recusat, a narrationibus statim et laudandi vituperandique opusculis cura eius desideratur.
1.9. We know that the orators of earlier days improved their eloquence by declaiming themes and common-places and other forms of rhetorical exercises not involving particular circumstances or persons such as provide the material for real or imaginary causes. From this we can clearly see what a scandalous dereliction of duty it is for the schools of rhetoric to abandon this department of their work, which was not merely its first, but for a long time its sole task.
1.9. ignoramus antiquis hoc fuisse ad augendam eloquentiam genus exercitationis, ut theses dicerent et communes locos et cetera citra complexum rerum personarumque, quibus verae fictaeque controversiae continentur? quo palam est, quam turpiter deserat eam partem rhetorices institutio, quam et primam habuit et diu solam.
1.10. What is there in those exercises of which I have just spoken that does not involve matters which are the special concern of rhetoric and further are typical of actual legal cases? Have we not to narrate facts in the law-courts? Indeed I am not sure that this is not the most important department of rhetoric in actual practice.
1.10. autem est ex iis, de quibus supra dixi, quod non cum in alia, quae sunt propria rhetorum, tum certe in illud iudiciale causae genus incidat?
1.11. Are not eulogy and denunciation frequently introduced in the course of the contests of the courts? Are not common-places frequently inserted in the very heart of lawsuits, whether, like those which we find in the works of Cicero, they are directed against vice, or, like those published by Quintus Hortensius, deal with questions of general interest such as “whether small points of argument should carry weight,” or are employed to defend or impugn the credibility of witnesses?
1.11. non in foro narrandum est? qua in parte nescio an sit vel plurimum. laus ac vituperatio certaminibus illis frequenter inseritur? communes loci, sive qui sunt in vitia derecti, quales legimus a Cicerone compositos, seu quibus quaestiones generaliter tractantur, quales sunt editi a Quinto quoque Hortensio: ut, parvis argumentis credendum, et pro testibus et in testes, in mediis litium medullis versantur?
1.12. These are weapons which we should always have stored in our armoury ready for immediate use as occasion may demand. The critic who denies that such matters concern an orator is one who will refuse to believe that a statue is being begun when its limbs are actually being cast. Some will think that I am in too great a hurry, but let no one accuse me of thinking that the pupil who has been entrusted to the rhetorician should forthwith be withdrawn from the teacher of literature.
1.12. sunt haec quodammodo praeparanda semper, ut iis, cum res poscet, utare. qui pertinere ad orationem non putabit, is ne statuam quidem inchoari credet, cum eius membra fundentur. hanc (ut aliqui putabunt) festinationem meam sic quisquam calumnietur, tanquam eum, qui sit rhetori traditus, abducendum protinus a grammaticis putem.
1.13. The latter will still have certain hours allotted him, and there is no reason to fear that a boy will be overloaded by receiving instruction from two different masters. It will not mean any increase of work, but merely the division among two masters of the studies which were previously indiscriminately combined under one: and the efficiency of either teacher will be increased. This method is still in vogue among the Greeks, but has been abandoned by us, not perhaps without some excuse, as there were others ready to step into the rhetorician's shoes.
1.13. et illis tum quoque tempora sua, neque erit verendum, ne binis praeceptoribus oneretur puer. enim crescet sed dividetur, qui sub uno miscebatur, labor, et erit sui quisque operis magister utilior; quod adhuc obtinent Graeci, a Latinis omissum est, et fieri videtur excusate, quia sunt qui labori isti successerint.
2.1. II. As soon therefore as a boy has made sufficient progress in his studies to be able to follow what I have styled the first stage of instruction in rhetoric, he should be placed under a rhetorician. Our first task must be to enquire whether the teacher is of good character.
2.1. cum ad eas in studiis vires pervenerit puer, ut, quae prima esse praecepta rhetorum diximus, mente consequi possit, tradendus eius artis magistris erit;
2.2. The reason which leads me to deal with this subject in this portion of my work is not that I regard character as a matter of indifference where other teachers are concerned, (I have already shown how important I think it in the preceding book), but that the age to which the pupil has now attained makes the mention of this point especially necessary.
2.2. quorum in prinis inspici mores oportebit. ego non idcirco potissimum in hac parte tractare sum aggressus, quia non in ceteris quoque doctoribus idem hoc examinandum quam diligentissime putem, sicut testatus sum libro priore; sed quod magis necessariam eius rei mentionem facit aetas ipsa discentium.
2.3. For as a rule boys are on the verge of manhood when transferred to the teacher of rhetoric and continue with him even when they are young men: consequently we must spare no effort to secure that the purity of the teacher's character should preserve those of tenderer years from corruption, while its authority should keep the bolder spirits from breaking out into licence.
2.3. et adulti fere pueri ad hos praeceptores transferuntur et apud eos iuvenes etiam facti perseverant; ideoque maior adhibenda tum cura est, ut et teneriores annos ab iniuria sanctitas docentis custodiat et ferociores a licentia gravitas deterreat.
2.4. Nor is it sufficient that he should merely set an example of the highest personal self-control; he must also be able to govern the behaviour of his pupils by the strictness of his discipline.
2.4. vero sat est summam praestare abstinentiam, nisi disciplinae severitate convenientium quoque ad se mores astrinxerit.
2.5. Let him therefore adopt a parental attitude to his pupils, and regard himself as the representative of those who have committed their children to his charge. Let him be free from vice himself and refuse to tolerate it in others. Let him be strict but not austere, genial but not too familiar: for austerity will make him unpopular, while familiarity breeds contempt. Let his discourse continually turn on what is good and honourable; the more he admonishes, the less he will have to punish. He must control his temper without however shutting his eyes to faults requiring correction: his instruction must be free from affectation, his industry great, his demands on his class continuous, but not extravagant.
2.5. igitur ante omnia parentis erga discipulos suos animum, ac succedere se in eorum locum, a quibus sibi liberi tradantur, existimet. nec habeat vitia nec ferat. austeritas eius tristis, non dissoluta sit comitas, ne inde odium hinc contemptus oriatur. ei de honesto ac bono sermo sit; nam quo saepius monuerit, hoc rarius castigabit. iracundus, nec tamen eorum, quae emendanda erunt, dissimulator, simplex in docendo, patiens laboris, assiduus potius quam immodicus.
2.6. He must be ready to answer questions and to put them unasked to those who sit silent. In praising the recitations of his pupils he must be neither grudging nor over-generous: the former quality will give them a distaste for work, while the latter will produce a complacent self-satisfaction.
2.6. libenter respondeat, non interrogantes percontetur ultro. laudandis discipulorum dictionibus nec malignus nec effusus, quia res altera taedium laboris, altera securitatem parit.
2.7. In correcting faults he must avoid sarcasm and above all abuse: for teachers whose rebukes seem to imply positive dislike discourage industry.
2.7. emendando, quae corrigenda erunt, non acerbus minimeque contumeliosus; nam id quidem multos a proposito studendi fugat, quod quidam sic obiurgant quasi oderint.
2.8. He should declaim daily himself and, what is more, without stint, that his class may take his utterances home with them. For however many models for imitation he may give them from the authors they are reading, it will still be found that fuller nourishment is provided by the living voice, as we call it, more especially when it proceeds from the teacher himself, who, if his pupils are rightly instructed, should be the object of their affection and respect. And it is scarcely possible to say how much more readily we imitate those whom we like.
2.8. aliquid immo multa cotidie dicat, quae secum auditores referant. enim satis exemplorum ad imitandum ex lectione suppeditet, tamen viva illa, ut dicitur, vox alit plenius praecipueque eius praeceptoris, quem discipuli, si modo recte sunt instituti, et amant et verentur. autem dici potent, quanto libentius imitemur eos, quibus favemus.
2.9. I strongly disapprove of the prevailing practice of allowing boys to stand up or leap from the seats in the expression of their applause. Young men, even when they are listening to others, should be temperate in manifesting their approval. If this be insisted upon, the pupil will depend on his instructor's verdict and will take his approval as a guarantee that he has spoken well.
2.9. vero permittenda pueris, ut fit apud plerosque, adsurgendi exultandique in laudando licentia; quin etiam iuvenum modicum esse, cum audient, testimonium debet. fiet, ut ex iudicio praeceptoris discipulus pendeat, atque id se dixisse recte, quod ab eo probabitur, credat.
2.10. The worst form of politeness, as it has come to be called, is that of mutual and indiscriminate applause, a practice which is unseemly, theatrical and unworthy of a decently disciplined school, in addition to being the worst foe to genuine study. For if every effusion is greeted with a storm of ready-made applause, care and industry come to be regarded as superfluous.
2.10. vero vitiosissima, quae iam humanitas vocatur, invicem qualiacunque laudandi, cum est indecora et theatralis et severe institutis scholis aliena, tum studiorum perniciosissima hostis. enim videntur cura ac labor, parata, quidquid effuderint, laude.
2.11. The audience no less than the speaker should therefore keep their eyes fixed on their teacher's face, since thus they will learn to distinguish between what is praiseworthy and what is not: for just as writing gives facility, so listening begets the critical faculty.
2.11. igitur praeceptoris intueri tam, qui audiunt, debent, quam ipse qui dicit; ita enim probanda atque improbanda discernet, si stilo facultas continget, auditione indicium.
2.12. But in the schools of to-day we see boys stooping forward ready to spring to their feet: at the close of each period they not merely rise, but rush forward with shouts of unseemly enthusiasm. Such compliments are mutual and the success of a declamation consists in this kind of applause. The result is vanity and empty self-sufficiency, carried to such an extent that, intoxicated by the wild enthusiasm of their fellow-pupils, they conceive a spite against their master, if his praise does not come up to their expectation.
2.12. nunc proni atque succincti ad omnem clausulam non exsurgunt modo uerum etiam excurrunt et cum indecora exultatione conclamant. mutuum est et ibi declamationis fortuna. tumor et vana de se persuasio usque adeo, ut illo condiscipulorum tumultu inflati, si parum a praeceptore laudentur, ipsi de illo male sentiant.
2.13. But teachers must also insist on receiving an attentive and quiet hearing from the class when they themselves declaim. For the master should not speak to suit his pupil's standard, but they should speak to suit his. Further he should, if possible, keep his eyes open to note the points which each boy praises and observe the manner in which he expresses his approval, and should rejoice that his words give pleasure not only for his own sake, but for that of those who show sound judgment in their appreciation.
2.13. se quoque praeceptores intente ac modeste audiri velint; non enim iudicio discipulorum dicere debet magister sed discipulus magistri., si fieri potest, intendendus animus in hoc quoque, ut perspiciat, quae quisque et quomodo laudet, et placere, quae bene dicet, non suo magis quam eorum nomine delectetur, qui recte iudicabunt.
2.14. I do not approve of boys sitting mixed with young men. For even if the teacher be such an one as we should desire to see in charge of the morals and studies of the young, and can keep his youthful pupils under proper control, it is none the less desirable to keep the weaker members separate from the more mature, and to avoid not only the actual charge of corruption but the merest suspicion of it.
2.14. adolescentibus permixtos sedere, non placet mihi. etiamsi vir talis, qualem esse oportet studiis moribusque praepositum, modestam habere potest etiam iuventutem, tamen vel infirmitas a robustioribus separanda est, et carendum non solum crimine turpitudinis verum etiam suspicione.
2.15. I have thought it worth while to put my views on this subject quite briefly. For I do not think it necessary even to warn the teacher that both he and his school must be free from the grosser vices. And should there be any father who does not trouble to choose a teacher for his son who is free from the obvious taint of immorality, he may rest assured that all the other precepts, which I am attempting to lay down for the benefit of our youth, will be absolutely useless to him, if he neglects this.
2.15. notanda breviter existimavi; nam ut absit ab ultimis vitiis ipse ac schola, ne praecipiendum quidem credo. si quis est, qui flagitia manifesta in eligendo filii praeceptore non vitet, iam hinc sciat cetera quoque, quae ad utilitatem iuventutis componere conamur, esse sibi hac parte omissa supervacua.
3.1. III. I do not think that I should pass by in silence even the opinion of those who, even when they regard boys as ripe for the rhetorician, still do not think that they should at once be placed under the most eminent teacher available, but prefer to keep them for a while under inferior masters, on the ground that in the elementary stages a mediocre instructor is easier to understand and to imitate, and less reluctant to undertake the tiresome task of teaching the rudiments as being beneath his notice.
3.1. illorum quidem persuasio silentio transeunda est, qui, etiam cum idoneos rhetori pueros putaverunt, non tamen continuo tradendos eminentissimo credunt, sed apud minores aliquamdiu detinent, tanquam instituendis artibus magis sit apta mediocritas praeceptoris, cum ad intellectum atque ad imitationem facilior tum ad suscipiendas elementorum molestias minus superba.
3.2. I do not think that I need waste much time in pointing out how much better it is to absorb the best possible principles, or how hard it is to get rid of faults which have once become engrained; for it places a double burden on the shoulders of the later teacher and the preliminary task of unteaching is harder than that of teaching.
3.2. in re mihi non arbitror diu laborandum, ut ostendam, quanto sit melius optimis imbui, quanta in eluendis quae semel insederint vitiis difficultas consequatur, cum geminatum onus succedentes premat et quidem edocendi gravius ac prius quam docendi.
3.3. It is for this reason that the famous piper Timotheus is said to have demanded from those who had previously been under another master a fee double the amount which he charged for those who came to him untaught. The mistake to which I am referring is, however, twofold. First they regard these inferior teachers as adequate for the time being and are content with their instruction because they have a stomach that will swallow anything:
3.3. quod Timotheum clarum in arte tibiarum ferunt duplices ab iis, quos alius instituisset, solitum exigere mercedes, quam si rudes traderentur. tamen est in re duplex: unus, quod interim sufficere illos minores existimant, et bono sane stomacho contenti sunt;
3.4. this indifference, though blameworthy in itself, would yet be tolerable, if the teaching provided by these persons were merely less in quantity and not inferior in quality as well. Secondly, and this is a still commoner delusion, they think that those who are blest with greater gifts of speaking will not condescend to the more elementary details, and that consequently they sometimes disdain to give attention to such inferior subjects of study and sometimes are incapable of so doing.
3.4. quae quanquam est ipsa reprehensione digna securitas, tamen esset utcunque tolerabilis, si eiusmodi praeceptores minus docerent non peius; alter ille etiam frequentior, quod eos, qui ampliorem dicendi facultatem sint consecuti, non putant ad minora descendere, idque interim fieri, quia fastidiant praestare hanc inferioribus curam, interim quia omnino non possint.
3.5. For my part I regard the teacher who is unwilling to attend to such details as being unworthy of the name of teacher: and as for the question of capacity, I maintain that it is the most capable man who, given the will, is able to do this with most efficiency. For in the first place it is a reasonable inference that a man blest with abnormal powers of eloquence will have made careful note of the various steps by which eloquence is attained, and in the second place the reasoning faculty, which is specially developed in learned men, is all-important in teaching, while finally no one is eminent in the greater things of his art if he be lacking in the lesser.
3.5. porro eum qui nolit in numero praecipientium non habeo, posse autem maxime, si velit, optimum quemque contendo; primum, quod eum, qui eloquentia ceteris praestet, illa quoque, per quae ad eloquentiam pervenitur, diligentissime percepisse credibile est;
3.6. Unless indeed we are asked to believe that while Phidias modelled his Jupiter to perfection, the decorative details of the statue would have been better executed by another artist, or that an orator does not know how to speak, or a distinguished physician is incapable of treating minor ailments.
3.6. deinde, quia plurimum in praecipiendo valet ratio, quae doctissimo cuique plenissima est; postremo, quia nemo sic in maioribus eminet, ut eum minora deficiant. forte Iovem quidem Phidias optime fecit, illa autem, quae in ornamentum operis eius accedunt, alius melius elaborasset, aut orator loqui nesciet aut leviores morbos curare non poterit praestantissimus medicus.
3.7. “Yes” it may be answered “but surely you do not deny that there is a type of eloquence that is too great to be comprehended by undeveloped boys?” Of course there is. But this eloquent teacher whom they fling in my face must be a sensible man with a good knowledge of teaching and must be prepared to stoop to his pupil's level, just as a rapid walker, if walking with a small child, will give him his hand and lessen his own speed and avoid advancing at a pace beyond the powers of his little companion.
3.7. ergo? non est quaedam eloquentia maior quam ut eam intellectu consequi puerilis infirmitas possit? vero confiteor: sed hunc disertum praeceptorem prudentem quoque et non ignarum docendi esse oportebit summittentem se ad mensuram discentis; ut velocissimus quoque, si forte iter cum parvulo faciat, det manum et gradum suum minuat nec procedat ultra quam comes possit.
3.8. Again it frequently happens that the more learned the teacher, the more lucid and intelligible is his instruction. For clearness is the first virtue of eloquence, and the less talented a man is, the more he will strive to exalt and dilate himself, just as short men tend to walk on tip-toe and weak men to use threats.
3.8. ? si plerumque accidit ut faciliora sint ad intelligendum et lucidiora multo, quae a doctissimo quoque dicuntur? et prima est eloquentiae virtus perspicuitas, et quo quis ingenio minus valet, hoc se magis attollere et dilatare conatur, ut statura breves in digitos eriguntur et plura infirmi minantur.
3.9. As for those whose style is inflated or vicious, and whose language reveals a passion for high-sounding words or labours under any other form of affectation, in my opinion they suffer not from excess of strength but of weakness, like bodies swollen not with the plumpness of health but with disease, or like men who weary of the direct road betake them to bypaths. Consequently the worse a teacher is, the harder he will be to understand.
3.9. tumidos et corruptos et tinnulos et quocunque alio cacozeliae genere peccantes certum habeo non virium sed infirmitatis vitio laborare, ut corpora non robore sed valetudine inflantur et recto itinere lassi plerumque devertunt. ergo etiam obscurior, quo quisque deterior.
3.10. I have not forgotten that I stated in the preceding book, when I urged that school was preferable to home education, that pupils at the commencement of their studies, when progress is as yet but in the bud, are more disposed to imitate their schoolfellows than their masters, since such imitation comes more easily to them. Some of my readers may think that the view which I am now maintaining is inconsistent with my previous statement.
3.10. excidit mihi, scripsisse me in libro priore, cum potiorem in scholis eruditionem esse quam domi dicerem, libentius se prima studia tenerosque profectus ad imitationem condiscipulorum, quae facilior esset, erigere; quod a quibusdam sic accipi potest, tanquam haec, quam nunc tueor, sententia priori diversa sit.
3.11. But I am far from being inconsistent: for my previous assertion affords the strongest reason for selecting the very best teachers for our boys; since pupils of a first rate master, having received a better training, will when they speak say something that may be worthy of imitation, while if they commit some mistake, they will be promptly corrected. But the incompetent teacher on the other hand is quite likely to give his approval to faulty work and by the judgment which he expresses to force approval on the audience.
3.11. a me procul aberit; namque ea causa vel maxima est, cur optimo cuique praeceptori sit tradendus puer, quod apud eum discipuli quoque melius instituti aut dicent, quod inutile non sit imitari, aut si quid erraverint, statim corrigentur;
3.12. The teacher should therefore be as distinguished for his eloquence as for his good character, and like Phoenix in the Iliad be able to teach his pupil both how to behave and how to speak.
3.12. at indoctus ille etiam probabit fortasse vitiosa et placere audientibus iudicio suo coget. ergo tam eloquentia quam moribus praestantissimus, qui ad Phoenicis Homerici exemplum dicere ac facere doceat.
4.1. I shall now proceed to indicate what I think should be the first subjects in which the rhetorician should give instruction, and shall postpone for a time our consideration of the art of rhetoric in the narrow sense in which that term is popularly used. For in my opinion it is most desirable that we should commence with something resembling the subjects already acquired under the teacher of literature.
4.1. iam, quas primas in docendo partes rhetorum putem, tradere incipiam, dilata parumper illa quae sola vulgo vocatur arte rhetorica. mihi opportunus maxime videtur ingressus ab eo, cuius aliquid simile apud grammaticos puer didicerit.
4.2. Now there are three forms of narrative, without counting the type used in actual legal cases. First there is the fictitious narrative as we get it in tragedies and poems, which is not merely not true but has little resemblance to truth. Secondly, there is the realistic narrative as presented by comedies, which, though not true, has yet a certain verisimilitude. Thirdly there is the historical narrative, which is an exposition of actual fact. Poetic narratives are the property of the teacher of literature. The rhetorician therefore should begin with the historical narrative, whose force is in proportion to its truth.
4.2. quia narrationum, excepta qua in causis utimur, tres accepimus species, fabulam, quae versatur in tragoediis atque carminibus, non a veritate modo sed etiam a forma veritatis remota; argumentum, quod falsum sed vero simile comoediae fingunt; historiam, in qua est gestae rei expositio; grammaticis autem poeticas dedimus:
4.3. I will, however, postpone my demonstration of what I regard as the best method of narration till I come to deal with narration as required in the courts. In the meantime, it will be sufficient to urge that it should be neither dry nor jejune (for why spend so much labour over our studies if a bald and naked statement of fact is regarded as sufficiently expressive?); nor on the other hand must it be tortuous or revel in elaborate descriptions, such as those in which so many are led to indulge by a misguided imitation of poetic licence.
4.3. apud rhetorem initium sit historica, tanto robustior quanto verior. narrandi quidem quae nobis optima ratio videatur, tum demonstrabimus, cum de iudiciali parte dicemus. admonere illud satis est, ut sit ea neque arida prorsus atque ieiuna, (nam quid opus erat tantum studiis laboris impendere, si res nudas atque inornatas indicare satis videretur?) neque rursus sinuosa et arcessitis descriptionibus, in quas plerique imitatione poeticae licentiae ducuntur, lasciviat.
4.4. Both these extremes are faults; but that which springs from poverty of wit is worse than that which is due to imaginative excess. For we cannot demand or expect a perfect style from boys. But there is greater promise in a certain luxuriance of mind, in ambitious effort and an ardour that leads at times to ideas bordering on the extravagant.
4.4. utrumque, peius tamen illud, quod ex inopia quam quod ex copia venit. in pueris oratio perfecta nec exigi nec sperari potest; melior autem indoles laeta generosique conatus et vel plura iusto concipiens interim spiritus.
4.5. I have no objection to a little exuberance in the young learner. Nay, I would urge teachers too like nurses to be careful to provide softer food for still undeveloped minds and to suffer them to take their fill of the milk of the more attractive studies. For the time being the body may be somewhat plump, but maturer years will reduce it to a sparer habit.
4.5. unquam me in his discentis annis offendat, si quid superfuerit. ipsis quoque doctoribus hoc esse curae velim, ut teneras adhuc mentes more nutricum mollius alant et satiari velut quodam iucundioris disciplinae lacte patiantur.
4.6. Such plumpness gives hope of strength; a child fully formed in every limb is likely to grow up a puny weakling. The young should be more daring and inventive and should rejoice in their inventions, even though correctness and severity are still to be acquired. Exuberance is easily remedied, but barrenness is incurable, be your efforts what they may.
4.6. illud plenius interim corpus, quod mox adulta aetas astringat. spes roboris. namque et infirmitatem in posterum minari solet protinus omnibus membris expressus infans. haec aetas plura et inveniat et inventis gaudeat, sint licet illa non satis sicca interim ac severa. remedium est ubertati;
4.7. To my mind the boy who gives least promise is one in whom the critical faculty develops in advance of the imagination. I like to see the first fruits of the mind copious to excess and almost extravagant in their profusion. The years as they pass will skim off much of the froth, reason will file away many excrescences, and something too will be removed by what I may perhaps call the wear and tear of life, so long as there is sufficient material to admit of cutting and chiselling away. And there will be sufficient, if only we do not draw the plate too thin to begin with, so that it runs the risk of being broken if the graver cut too deep.
4.7. sterilia nullo labore vincuntur. mihi in pueris natura minimum spei dederit, in qua ingenium iudicio praesumitur. esse primum volo vel abundantiorem atque ultra quam oporteat fusam. inde decoquent anni, multum ratio limabit, aliquid velut usu ipso deteretur, sit modo unde excidi possit et quod exsculpi; erit autem, si non ab initio tenuem nimium laminam duxerimus et quam caelatura altior rumpat.
4.8. Those of my readers who know their Cicero will not be surprised that I take this view: for does he not say “I would have the youthful mind run riot in the luxuriance of its growth”? We must, therefore, take especial care, above all where boys are concerned, to avoid a dry teacher, even as we avoid a dry and arid soil for plants that are still young and tender.
4.8. me de his aetatibus sentire minus mirabitur, qui apud Ciceronem legerit: enim se efferat in adolescente fecunditas. in primis evitandus et in pueris praecipue magister aridus, non minus quam teneris adhuc plantis siccum et sine humore ullo solum.
4.9. For with such a teacher their growth is stunted and their eyes are turned earthwards, and they are afraid to rise above the level of daily speech. Their leanness is regarded as a sign of health and their weakness as a sign of sound judgment, and while they are content that their work should be devoid of faults they fall into the fault of being devoid of merit. So let not the ripeness of vintage come too soon nor the must turn harsh while yet in the vat; thus it will last for years and mellow with age.
4.9. fiunt humiles statim et velut terram spectantes, qui nihil supra cotidianum sermonem attollere audeant. illis pro sanitate et iudicii loco infirmitas est, et dum satis putant vitio carere, in id ipsum incidunt vitium, quod virtutibus carent. mihi ne maturitas quidem ipsa festinet, nec musta in lacu statim austera sint; sic et annos ferent et vetustate proficient.
4.10. It is worth while too to warn the teacher that undue severity in correcting faults is liable at times to discourage a boy's mind from effort. He loses hope and gives way to vexation, then last of all comes to hate his work and fearing everything attempts nothing.
4.10. illud quidem quod admoneamus indignum est, ingenia puerorum nimia interim emendationis severitate deficere; nam et desperant et dolent et novissime oderunt et, quod maxime nocet, dum omnia timent, nihil conantur.
4.11. This phenomenon is familiar to farmers, who hold that the pruning-hook should not be applied while the leaves are yet young, for they seem to “shrink from the steel” and to be unable as yet to endure a scar.
4.11. etiam rusticis notum est, qui frondibus teneris non putant adhibendam esse falcem, quia reformidare ferrum videntur et nondum cicatricem pati posse.
4.12. The instructor therefore should be as kindly as possible at this stage; remedies, which are harsh by nature, must be applied with a gentle hand: some portions of the work must be praised, others tolerated and others altered: the reason for the alterations should however be given, and in some cases the master will illumine an obscure passage by inserting something of his own. Occasionally again the teacher will find it useful to dictate whole themes himself that the boy may imitate them and for the time being love them as if they were his own.
4.12. ergo tum maxime debet esse praeceptor, ut remedia, quae alioqui natura sunt aspera, molli manu leniantur; laudare aliqua, ferre quaedam, mutare etiam, reddita cur id fiat ratione, illuminare interponendo aliquid sui. hoc quoque erit utile, ipsum totas dictare materias, quas et imitetur puer et interim tanquam suas amet.
4.13. But if a boy's composition is so careless as not to admit of correction, I have found it useful to give a fresh exposition of the theme and to tell him to write it again, pointing out that he was capable of doing better: for there is nothing like hope for making study a pleasure.
4.13. si tam negligens ei stilus fuerit, ut emendationem non recipiat; expertus sum prodesse, quotiens eandem materiam rursus a me tractatam scribere de integro iuberem; posse enim adhuc eum melius, quatenus nullo magis studia quam spe gaudent.
4.14. Different ages however demand different methods: the task set and the standard of correction must be proportioned to the pupil's strength. When boys ventured on something that was too daring or exuberant, I used to say to them that I approved of it for the moment, but that the time would come when I should no longer tolerate such a style. The result was that the consciousness of ability filled them with pleasure, without blinding their judgment.
4.14. autem alia aetas emendanda est, et pro modo virium et exigendum et corrigendum opus. ego dicere pueris aliquid ausis licentius aut laetius, laudare illud me adhuc, venturum tempus, quo idem non permitterem; ita et ingenio gaudebant et iudicio non fallebantur.
4.15. However, to return to the point from which I had digressed. Written narratives should be composed with the utmost care. It is useful at first, when a child has just begun to speak, to make him repeat what he has heard with a view to improving his powers of speech; and for the same purpose, and with good reason, I would make him tell his story from the end back to the beginning or start in the middle and go backwards or forwards, but only so long as he is at his teacher's knee and while he is incapable of greater effort and is beginning to connect words and things, thereby strengthening the memory. Even so when he is beginning to understand the nature of correct and accurate speech, extempore effusions, improvised without waiting for thought to supply the matter or a moment's hesitation before rising to the feet, must not be permitted: they proceed from a passion for display that would do credit to a common mountebank.
4.15. ut eo revertar, unde sum digressus: narrationes stilo componi quanta maxima possit adhibita diligentia volo. ut primo, cum sermo instituitur, dicere quae audierint utile est pueris ad loquendi facultatem, ideoque et retro agere expositionem et a media in utramque partem discurrere sane merito cogantur, sed ad gremium praeceptoris, et dum aliud non possunt et dum res ac verba connectere incipiunt, ut protinus memoriam firment: ita cum iam formam rectae atque emendatae orationis accipient, extemporalis garrulitas nec exspectata cogitatio et vix surgendi mora circulatoriae vere iactationis est.
4.16. Such proceedings fill ignorant parents with senseless pride, while the boys themselves lose all respect for their work, adopt a conceited bearing, and acquire the habit of speaking in the worst style and actually practising their faults, while they develop an arrogant conviction of their own talents which often proves fatal even to the most genuine proficiency.
4.16. parentium imperitorum inane gaudium, ipsis vero contemptus operis et inverecunda frons et consuetudo pessime dicendi et malorum exercitatio et, quae magnos quoque profectus frequenter perdidit, arrogans de se persuasio innascitur.
4.17. There will be a special time for acquiring fluency of speech and I shall not pass the subject by unnoticed. For the meantime it will suffice if a boy, by dint of taking pains and working as hard as his age will permit, manages to produce something worthy of approval. Let him get used to this until it becomes a second nature. It is only he who learns to speak correctly before he can speak with rapidity who will reach the heights that are our goal or the levels immediately below them.
4.17. suum parandae facilitati tempus, nec a nobis negligenter locus iste transibitur. satis est, si puer omni cura et summo, quantum illa aetas capit, labore aliquid probabile scripserit; in hoc assuescat, huius sibi rei naturam faciat. demum in id, quod quaerimus, aut ei proximum poterit evadere, qui ante discet recte dicere quam cito.
4.18. To narratives is annexed the task of refuting and confirming them, styled anaskeue and kataskeue, from which no little advantage may be derived. This may be done not merely in connexion with fiction and stories transmitted by the poets, but with the actual records of history as well. For instance we may discuss the credibility of the story that a raven settled on the head of Valerius in the midst of a combat and with its wings and beak struck the eyes of the Gaul who was his adversary, and a quantity of arguments may be produced on either side:
4.18. non inutiliter subiungitur opus destruendi confirmandique eas, quod ἀνασκευή et κατασκευή vocatur. porro non tantum in fabulosis et carmine traditis fieri potest, verum etiam in ipsis annalium monumentis; ut, si quaeratur, an sit credibile super caput Valeri pugnantis sedisse corvum, qui os oculosque hostis Galli rostro atque alis everberaret, sit in utramque partem ingens ad dicendum materia;
4.19. or we may discuss the tradition that Scipio was begotten by a serpent, or that Romulus was suckled by the she-wolf, or the story of Numa and Egeria. As regards Greek history, it allows itself something very like poetic licence. Again the time and place of some particular occurrence and sometimes even the persons concerned often provide matter for discussion: Livy for instance is frequently in doubt as to what actually occurred and historians often disagree.
4.19. aut de serpente, quo Scipio traditur genitus, et lupa Romuli et Egeria Numae. Graecis historiis plerumque poeticae similis licentia est. Saepe etiam quaeri solet de tempore, de loco quo gesta res dicitur, nonnunquam de persona quoque; sicut Livius frequentissime dubitat, et alii ab aliis historici dissentiunt.
4.20. From this our pupil will begin to proceed to more important themes, such as the praise of famous men and the denunciation of the wicked. Such tasks are profitable in more than one respect. The mind is exercised by the variety and multiplicity of the subject matter, while the character is moulded by the contemplation of virtue and vice. Further wide knowledge of facts is thus acquired, from which examples may be drawn if circumstances so demand, such illustrations being of the utmost value in every kind of case.
4.20. paulatim ad maiora tendere incipiet, laudare claros viros et vituperare improbos, quod non simplicis utilitatis opus est. et ingenium exercetur multiplici variaque materia, et animus contemplatione recti pravique formatur, et multa inde cognitio rerum venit exemplisque, quae sunt in omni genere causarum potentissima, iam tum instruit, cum res poscet, usurum.
4.21. It is but a step from this to practice in the comparison of the respective merits of two characters. This is of course a very similar theme to the preceding, but involves a duplication of the subject matter and deals not merely with the nature of virtues and vices, but with their degree as well. But the method to be followed in panegyric and invective will be dealt with in its proper place, as it forms the third department of rhetoric.
4.21. illa quoque exercitatio subit comparationis, uter melior uterve deterior; quae quanquam versatur in ratione simili, tamen et duplicat materiam et virtutum vitiorumque non tantum naturam, sed etiam modum tractat. de ordine laudis contraque, quoniam tertia haec rhetorices pars est, praecipiemus suo tempore.
4.22. As to commonplaces (I refer to those in which we denounce vices themselves such as adultery, gambling or profligacy without attacking particular persons), they come straight from the courts and, if we add the name of the defendant, amount to actual accusations. As a rule, however, the general character of a commonplace is usually given a special turn: for instance we make our adulterer blind, our gambler poor and our profligate far advanced in years. Sometimes too they entail defence:
4.22. loci (de iis loquor, quibus citra personas in ipsa vitia moris est perorare, ut in adulterum, aleatorem, petulantem) ex mediis sunt iudiciis et, si reum adiicias, accusationes; quanquam hi quoque ab illo generali tractatu ad quasdam deduci species solent, ut si ponatur adulter caecus, aleator pauper, petulans senex. autem nonnunquam etiam defensionem.
4.23. for we may speak on behalf of luxury or love, while a pimp or a parasite may be defended in such a way that we appeal as counsel not for the character itself, but to rebut some specific charge that is brought against him.
4.23. et pro luxuria et pro amore dicimus, et leno interim parasitusque defenditur sic, ut non homini patrocinemur, sed crimini.
4.24. Theses on the other hand are concerned with the comparison of things and involve questions such as “Which is preferable, town or country life?” or “Which deserves the greatest praise, the lawyer or the soldier?” These provide the most attractive and copious practice in the art of speaking, and are most useful whether we have an eye to the duties of deliberative oratory or the arguments of the courts. For instance Cicero in his pro Murena deals very fully with the second of the two problems mentioned above.
4.24. autem, quae sumuntur ex rerum comparatione, ut rusticane vita an urbana potior, iurisperiti an militaris viri laus maior, mire sunt ad exercitationem dicendi speciosae atque uberes, quae vel ad suadendi officium vel etiam ad iudiciorum disceptationem iuvant plurimum. posterior ex praedictis locus in causa Murenae copiosissime a Cicerone tractatur.
4.25. Other theses too belong entirely to the deliberative class of oratory, as for instance the questions as to “Whether marriage is desirable” or “Whether a public career is a proper object of ambition.” Put such discussions into the mouths of specific persons and they become deliberative declamations at once.
4.25. et illae paene totae ad deliberativum pertinentes genus, ducendane uxor, petendine sint magistratus. et hae personis modo adiectis suasoriae erunt.
4.26. My own teachers used to prepare us for conjectural cases by a form of exercise which was at once useful and attractive: they made us discuss and develop questions such as “Why in Sparta is Venus represented as wearing armour?” or “Why is Cupid believed to be a winged boy armed with arrows and a torch?” and the like. In these exercises our aim was to discover the intention implied, a question which frequently occurs in controversial declamations. Such themes may perhaps be regarded as a kind of chria or moral essay.
4.26. praeceptores mei neque inutili et nobis etiam iucundo genere exercitationis praeparare nos coniecturalibus causis, cum quaerere atque exsequi iuberent, armata apud Lacedaemonios Venus, et ita crederetur Cupido puer atque volucer et sagittis ac face armatus, et similia, in quibus scrutabamur voluntatem, cuius in controversiis frequens quaestio est, quod genus chriae videri potest.
4.27. That certain topics such as the question as to whether we should always believe a witness or whether we should rely on circumstantial evidence, are part and parcel of actual forensic pleading is so obvious that certain speakers, men too who have held civil office with no small distinction, have written out passages dealing with such themes, committed them to memory and kept them ready for immediate use, with a view to employing them when occasion arose as a species of ornament to be inserted into their extempore speeches.
4.27. locos quidem, quales sunt de testibus, semperne his credendum, et de argumentis, an habenda etiam parvis fides, adeo manifestum est ad forenses actiones pertinere, ut quidam neque ignobiles in officiis civilibus scriptos eos memoriaeque diligentissime mandatos in promptu habuerint, ut quotiens esset occasio, extemporales eorum dictiones his velut emblematis exornarentur.
4.28. This practice— for I am not going to postpone expressing my judgment on it—I used to regard a confession of extreme weakness. For how can such men find appropriate arguments in the course of actual cases which continually present new and different features? How can they answer the points that their opponents may bring up? how deal a rapid counterstroke in debate or cross-examine a witness? if, even in those matters which are of common occurrence and crop up in the majority of cases, they cannot give expression to the most familiar thoughts except in words prepared so far in advance.
4.28. quidem (neque enim eius rei iudicium differre sustineo) summam videbantur mihi infirmitatem de se confiteri. quid ii possint in causis, quarum varia et nova semper est facies, proprium invenire? quomodo propositis ex parte adversa respondere, altercationibus velociter occurrere, testem rogare? qui etiam in iis, quae sunt communia et in plurimis causis tractantur, vulgatissimos sensus verbis nisi tanto ante praeparatis prosequi nequeant.
4.29. And when they produce the same passage in a number of different cases, they must come to loathe it like food that has grown cold or stale, and they can hardly avoid a feeling of shame at displaying this miserable piece of furniture to an audience whose memory must have detected it so many times already: like the furniture of the ostentatious poor, it is sure to shew signs of wear through being used for such a variety of different purposes.
4.29. vero iis, cum eadem iudiciis pluribus dicunt, aut fastidium moveant velut frigidi et repositi cibi, aut pudorem deprehensa totiens audientium memoria infelix supellex, quae sicut apud pauperes ambitiosos pluribus et diversis officiis conteratur:
4.30. Also it must be remembered that there is hardly a single commonplace of such universal application that it will fit any actual case, unless some special link is provided to connect it with the subject: otherwise it will seem to have been tacked on to the speech, not interwoven in its texture, either because it is out of keeping with the circumstances or like most of its kind is inappropriately employed not because it is wanted, but because it is ready for use. Some speakers, for example, introduce the most long-winded commonplaces just for the sake of the sentiments they contain, whereas rightly the sentiments should spring from the context.
4.30. cum eo quidem quod vix ullus est tam communis locus, qui possit cohaerere cum causa nisi aliquo propriae quaestionis vinculo copulatus; appareat alioqui non tam insertum quam adplicitum, vel quod dissimilis est ceteris vel quod plerumque adsumi etiam parum apte solet, non quia desideratur sed quia paratus est: ut quidam sententiarum gratia verbosissimos locos arcessunt, cum ex locis debeat nasci sententia.
4.32. Such disquisitions are at once ornamental and useful, only if they arise from the nature of the case. But the most finished eloquence, unless it tend to the winning of the case, is to say the least superfluous and may even defeat its own purpose. However I must bring this digression to a close.
4.32. sunt autem speciosa haec et utilia, si oriuntur ex causa; ceterum quamlibet pulchra elocutio, nisi ad victoriam tendit, utique supervacua, sed interim etiam contraria est. hactenus evagari satis fuerit.
4.33. The praise or denunciation of laws requires greater powers; indeed they should almost be equal to the most serious tasks of rhetoric. The answer to the question as to whether this exercise is more nearly related to deliberative or controversial oratory depends on custom and law and consequently varies in different states. Among the Greeks the proposer of a law was called upon to set forth his case before a judge, while in Rome it was the custom to urge the acceptance or rejection of a law before the public assembly. But in any case the arguments advanced in such cases are few in number and of a definite type. For there are only three kinds of law, sacred, public and private.
4.33. laus ac vituperatio iam maiores ac prope summis operibus suffecturas vires desiderant; quae quidem suasoriis an controversiis magis accommodata sit exercitatio, consuetudine et iure civitatium differt. Graecos enim lator earum ad iudicem vocabatur, Romanis pro contione suadere ac dissuadere moris fuit. autem modo pauca de his et fere certa dicuntur. et genera sunt tria, sacri, publici, privati iuris.
4.34. This division is of rhetorical value chiefly when a law is to be praised. For example the orator may advance from praise to praise by a series of gradations, praising an enactment first because it is law, secondly because it is public, and, finally, designed for the support of religion. As regards the questions which generally arise, they are common to all cases.
4.34. divisio ad laudem magis spectat, si quis eam per gradus augeat, quod lex, quod publica, quod ad religionem deum comparata sit. quidem, de quibus quaeri solet, communia omnibus.
4.35. Doubts may be raised as to whether the mover is legally in a position to propose a law, as happened in the case of Publius Clodius, whose appointment as tribune of the plebs was alleged to be unconstitutional. Or the legality of the proposal itself may be impugned in various ways; it may for instance be urged that the law was not promulgated within seventeen days, or was proposed, or is being proposed on an improper day, or in defiance of the tribunicial veto or the auspices or any other legal obstacle, or again that it is contrary to some existing law.
4.35. enim de iure dubitari potest eius, qui rogat, ut de P. Clodi, qui non rite creatus tribunus arguebatur; aut de ipsius rogationis, quod est varium, sive non trino forte nundino promulgata sive non idoneo die, sive contra intercessionem vel auspicia aliudve quid, quod legitimis obstet, dicitur lata esse vel ferri, sive alicui manentium legum repugnare.
4.36. But such points are not suitable to elementary rhetorical exercises, which are not concerned with persons, times or particular cases. Other subjects, whether the dispute be real or fictitious, are generally treated on the following lines.
4.36. haec ad illas primas exercitationes non pertinent; nam sunt hae citra complexum personarum, temporum, causarum. eadem fere vero fictoque huiusmodi certamine tractantur.
4.37. The fault must lie either in the words or the matter. As regards the words, the question will be whether they are sufficiently clear or contain some ambiguity, and as regards the matter whether the law is consistent with itself or should be retrospective or apply to special individuals. The point however which is most commonly raised is the question whether the law is right or expedient.
4.37. vitium aut in verbis aut in rebus est. verbis quaeritur, an satis significent, an sit in iis aliquid ambiguum; in rebus, an lex sibi ipsa consentiat, an in praeteritum ferri debeat, an in singulos homines. vero commune est quaerere, an sit honesta, an utilis.
4.38. I am well aware that many rhetoricians introduce a number of sub-divisions in connexion with this latter enquiry. I however include under the term right all such qualities as justice, piety and religion. Justice is however usually discussed under various aspects. A question may be raised about the acts with which the law is concerned, as to whether they deserve punishment or reward or as to the degree of punishment or reward that should be assigned, since excess in either direction is open to criticism.
4.38. ignore, plures fieri a plerisque partes; sed nos iustum, pium, religiosum, ceteraque his similia honesto complectimur. tamen species non simpliciter excuti solent. enim de re ipsa quaeritur, ut dignane poena vel praemio sit, aut de modo praemii poenaeve, qui tam maior quam minor culpari potest.
4.39. Again expediency is sometimes determined by the nature of things, sometimes by the circumstances of the time. Another common subject of controversy is whether a law can be enforced, while one must not shut one's eyes to the fact that exception is sometimes taken to laws in their entirety, but sometimes only in part, examples of both forms of criticism being found in famous speeches.
4.39. quoque interim natura discernitur, interim tempore. an obtineri possint, ambigi solet. illud quidem ignorare oportet, leges aliquando totas, aliquando ex parte reprehendi solere, cum exemplum rei utriusque nobis claris orationibus praebeatur.
4.40. I am well aware, too, that there are laws which are not proposed with a view to perpetuity, but are concerned with temporary honours or commands, such as the lex Manilia which is the subject of one of Cicero's speeches. This however is not the place for instructions on this topic, since they depend on the special circumstances of the matters under discussion, not on their general characteristics.
4.40. me fallit, eas quoque leges esse, quae non in perpetuum rogentur, sed de honoribus aut imperiis, qualis Manilia fuit, de qua Ciceronis oratio est. de his nihil hoc loco praecipi potest; constant enim propria rerum, de quibus agitur, non communi qualitate.
4.41. Such were the subjects on which the ancients as a rule exercised their powers of speaking, though they called in the assistance of the logicians as well to teach them the theory of argument. For it is generally agreed that the declamation of fictitious themes in imitation of the questions that arise in the law courts or deliberative assemblies came into vogue among the Greeks about the time of Demetrius of Phalerum.
4.41. fere veteres facultatem dicendi exercuerunt assumpta tamen a dialecticis argumentandi ratione. fictas ad imitationem fori consiliorumque materias apud Graecos dicere circa Demetrium Phalerea institutum fere constat.
4.42. Whether this type of exercise was actually invented by him I have failed to discover, as I have acknowledged in another work. But not even those who most strongly assert his claim to be the inventor, can produce any adequate authority in support of their opinion. As regards Latin teachers of rhetoric, of whom Plotius was the most famous, Cicero informs us that they came into existence towards the end of the age of Crassus.
4.42. ab ipso id genus exercitationis sit inventum, ut alio quoque libro sum confessus, parum comperi; sed ne ii quidem, qui hoc fortissime adfirmant, ullo satis idoneo auctore nituntur. Latinos vero dicendi praeceptores extremis L. Crassi temporibus coepisse Cicero auctor est; quorum insignis maxime Plotius fuit.