SOURCES OF ANCIENT AND PRIMITIVE LAW PART I GENERAL LITERATURE CONTAINING REFERENCE TO ANCIENT AND PRIMITIVE LAW CHAPTER I THE ILIAD TRANSLATED BY ANDREW LANG AND OTHERS CHAPTER II THE ODYSSEY TRANSLATED BY S. H. BUTCHER AND ANDREW LANG CHAPTER III PLUTARCH'S LIVES TRANSLATED BY JOHN DRYDEN AND OTHERS CHAPTER IV CÆSAR'S COMMENTARIES CHAPTER V TACITUS' GERMANIA Translated by Arthur MurpHY CHAPTER VI THE NJÁLS SAGA TRANSLATED BY GEORGE WEBBE DASENT EVOLUTION OF LAW VOLUME I SOURCES OF ANCIENT AND PRIMITIVE LAW PART ONE GENERAL LITERATURE CHAPTER I THE ILIAD OF HOMER1 BOOK I How Agamemnon and Achilles fell out at the siege of Troy; and Achilles withdrew himself from battle, and won from Zeus a pledge that his wrong should be avenged on Agamemnon and the Achaians. But he sat by his swift-faring ships, still wroth, even the heavensprung son of Peleus, Achilles, fleet of foot; he betook him neither to the assembly that is the hero's glory, neither to war, but consumed his heart in tarrying in his place, and yearned for the warcry and for battle. . . BOOK II How Zeus beguiled Agamemnon by a dream; and of the assembly of the Achaians and their marching forth to battle. And of the names and numbers of the hosts of the Achaians and the Trojans. [From the (revised) prose translation of ANDREW LANG, WALTER LEAF, and ERNEST MYERS (London, 1911), with the consent of Macmillan and Co., Limited, publisher. Books I-IX are the translation of Mr. LEAF; Books X-XVI, of Mr. LANG; and Books XVII-XXIV, of Mr. MYERS. Herodotus fixes the time of Homer at a period not more than 400 years before his own, or about 850 B.C. Modern authorities carry Homer back to a period from 900 to 1100 B.C.] Now went the goddess Dawn to high Olympus, foretelling daylight to Zeus and all the immortals; and the king bade the clearvoiced heralds summon to the assembly the flowing-haired Achaians. So did those summon, and these gathered with speed. But first the council of the great-hearted elders met beside the ship of king Nestor the Pylos-born. . . And then spake among them knightly Nestor of Gerenia: "Out on it; in very truth ye hold assembly like silly boys that have no care for deeds of war. What shall come of our covenants and our oaths? . . . But do thou, my king, take good counsel thyself, and hearken to another that shall give it; the word that I speak, whate'er it be, shall not be cast away. Separate thy warriors by tribes and by clans, Agamemnon, that clan may give aid to clan and tribe to tribe. If thou do thus and the Achaians hearken to thee, then wilt thou know who among thy captains and who of the common sort is a coward, and who too is brave; for they will fight each after their sort. . . And lord Agamemnon answered and said to him: "Verily hast thou again outdone the sons of the Achaians in speech, old man. Ah, father Zeus and Athene and Apollo, would that among the Achaians I had ten such councillors; then would the city of king Priam soon bow beneath our hands, captive and wasted. But ægis-bearing Zeus, the son of Kronos, hath brought sorrows upon me, in that he casteth my lot amid fruitless wranglings and strifes. For in truth I and Achilles fought about a damsel with violent words, and I was first to be angry; but if we can only be at one in council, then will there no more be any putting off the day of evil for the Trojans, no not for an instant. But now go ye to your meal that we may join battle. Let each man sharpen well his spear and bestow well his shield, and let him well give his fleet-footed steeds their meal, and look well to his chariot on every side and take thought for battle, that all day long we may contend in hateful war. For of respite shall there intervene no, not a whit, only that the coming of night shall part the fury of warriors. On each man's breast shall the baldrick of his covering shield be wet with sweat, and his hand shall grow faint about the spear, and each man's horse shall sweat as he draweth the polished chariot. And whomsoever I perceive minded to tarry far from the fight beside the beaked ships, for him shall there be no hope hereafter to escape the dogs and birds of prey." And they stood up and scattered in haste throughout the ships, and made fires in the huts and took their meal. And they did sacrifice each man to one of the everlasting gods, praying for escape from death and the tumult of battle. And Agamemnon king of men slew a fat bull of five years to most mighty Kronion, and called the elders, the princes of the Achaian host, Nestor first and king Idomeneus, and then the two Aiantes and Tydeus' son, and sixthly Odysseus peer of Zeus in counsel. And Menelaos of the loud war-cry came to him unbidden, for he knew in his heart how his brother toiled. Then stood they around the bull and took the barley-meal. And Agamemnon made his prayer in their midst and said: "Zeus, most glorious, most great, god of the storm-cloud, that dwellest in the heaven, vouchsafe that the sun set not upon us nor the darkness come near, till I have laid low upon the earth Priam's palace smirched with smoke, and burnt the door-ways thereof with consuming fire, and rent on Hector's breast his doublet cleft with the blade; and about him may full many of his comrades prone in the dust bite the earth." So spake he, but not as yet would Kronion grant him fulfilment ; he accepted the sacrifice, but made toil to wax unceasingly. Now when they had prayed and sprinkled the barley-meal they first drew back the bull's head and cut his throat and flayed him, and cut slices from the thighs and wrapped them in fat, making a double fold, and laid raw collops thereon. And these they burnt on cleft wood stript of leaves, and spitted the vitals and held them over Hephaistos' flame. Now when the thighs were burnt and they had tasted the vitals, then sliced they all the rest and pierced it through with spits, and roasted it carefully and drew all off again. So when they had rest from the task and had made ready the banquet, they feasted, nor was their heart aught stinted of the fair banquet. But when they had put away from them the desire of meat and drink, then did knightly Nestor of Gerenia open his saying to them: "Most noble son of Atreus, Agamemnon king of men, let us not any more hold long converse here, nor for long delay the work that god putteth in our hands; but come, let the heralds of the mail-clad Achaians make proclamation to the folk and gather them throughout the ships; and let us go thus in concert through the wide host of the Achaians, that the speedier we may arouse keen war.” So spake he and Agamemnon king of men disregarded not. Straightway he bade the clear-voiced heralds summon to battle the flowing-haired Achaians. So those summoned and these |