.ESCHINES, a distinguished Grecian orator, the contemporary and rival of Demosthenes, was born at Athens about the year '390, B. C. Though his parentage seems to have been but humble, his talents soon attract ed the notice and admiration of his countrymen. From exercising in the p;ymnasium, and acting as a tragedian, he betook himself to the study of rhetoric, under the tuition of I socrates and Plato, or, according to others, of Alcidamas, the preceptor of Gorgias, and at length be came the competitor of Demosthenes the prince of ora tors. Their jealousy of each other was increased by the opposite parts v hich they took in the affairs of the repub lic, w ith respect to Philip of Macedon. During an em bassy for negotiating with that prince, fEschines is said to have accepted a bribe, in consequence of which he persuaded the Athenians, contrary to the remonstrances of Demosthenes, to confide in the perfidious promises of this aspiring monarch. Through the same influence Philip was chosen generalissimo of the Greeks by the council of the Amphietvons, and invested with unlimited power to act as their leader. Demosthenes, aware of the danger w ids whirls his country was thus threatened, immediately roused the the eloquence, and pr 'ailed with them to Join the Theban% in resisting the 'lacedonian king ; but haying fled at the battle of Cheromea, in which Philip was victorious, his countrymen ascribed this disaster to his misconduct, and iEschines came forward as his public accuser. It was on this occasion, that they composed their two cele brated orations, intitled, flees c-rE,pczYe, or Concerning the Crown, because JEschines's accusation of Demosthenes was directly preferred against his friend Ctesiphon, for having moved a decree, as he alleged, contrary to the laws, to confer a golden crown on Demosthenes, as a mark of public approbation. These orations have al ways been regarded as the noblest specimens of ancient eloquence ; and in estimating their comparative merits, it may be justly said, that /Eschines was only inferior to his rival. So powerful and convincing was the im pression which Demosthenes made, that ,Eschines not only lost his cause, but was sentenced to banishment for his rash accusation. Demosthenes felt deeply for his
rival ; and, forgetting their mutual jealousy, nobly press ed upon him the acceptance of a suns of money to soften the hardships of his exile ; on which E.schines exclaim ed, "How is it possible for me not to regret a country, in which 1 leave an enemy more generous than I can ex pect even a friend to be any where else !" During his exile, he opened a school of eloquence at Rhodes ; and is said to have commenced his lectures with reading his oration against Demosthenes, which was received with unbounded applause. But the next clay, having read the. counter-oration of his illustrious rival, the applauses of his audience were redoubled ; on which, with the most generous liberality of senthuent, he said, "How much more would you have admired it, if you had heard it from the lips of Demosthenes himself!" From Rhodes he re moved to Samos, where he died at the age of 75. Ile is thought, by some, to have been the first who delivered extemporaneous orations ; but, by others, this is ascribed to Gorgias. His style is perspicuous, dignified, and for cible; and his reasonings are subtile and persuasive: but they by no means possess the animation, and energy, by which the orations of Demosthenes are distinguished. Only three of the orations said to be his are acknowledged to be genuine by the ancients; viz. 1. .4dversus Timar chum. 2. De Falsa Legations. 3. die/versus Cte•iphon tem, sive De Corona. These Photius, and after hint Fa bricius, denominate the three Graces. Photius also at tributes to him nine epistles, which he called the Muses, though Wolfius and Taylor, in their editions of his works, have published twelve, said to have been written to the Athenians when he was an exile at Rhodes. See Plat. de Vit. x. Orat.apud otter. torn. ii. p. 840. Cicero, Lib. de oPt. gen. Oratoruin. Cicero, De Orat. lib. iii. Phil ostrat. De Vit. Sophist. p. 506. Quinct. Inst. Orat. lib. x. c. 1. Fabric. Bibl. Gr,ec. (d)