The free citizen. (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1874-1876, 1875-07-17
Athenian and Roman Courts.

Armenian and Roman Courts.
The Athenian and Roman courts pre.
sented fine fields for the exercise of
legal talent, and not few practices
were in vogue which would be CON
nidered remarkable at the present day.
at Athens it was not customary for n
man to speak in any cause unless
he had personal interest in the suit ut
issue. At first every one was forced to
speak Ill his own behalf, but this rule
was afterwards SO far relaxed rs to per-
nit relative or intimate friend to in
tercede for him. After this, persons
who were themselves incompetent to
frame an oration, employed others to
write for them, and some of the most
legal orations OF antiquity were thus
written for pay and delivered by otkef5.
There was famous in Athens, as we'll
as Rome, large class of mcn who OBJ
tanned livelihood solely in this way,
Another species of orations were those
which were written but never delivered
in public. An instance of this is the
famous speech of Demosthenes against
Midius, and in view of this fact, it is
amusing to read in it the complacent
account he gives of the attempts which
have besn made 10 bribe him to bo
silent, and of his contemptuous rejec-
tion of all others. OF the fifteen extant
orations of Antiphon, twelve were never
delivered and of Gicero's six speeches
against Yerres, only ono was uttered,
because Verres prudently went into
voluntary exile.
Pericles is said TO have been the fir
who wrote his speeches beforehand and
committed them to msmory, but if this
be so, his example was soon widely fol-
lowed because not long after, We hear
at the court of Philip, and forgetting
what he had written, was forced to
stop. Akin to this is the case of Cicero.
whose splendid Grafton for Milo is the
delight OF al scholars, but it's delivery
was grand failure. He was embar.
rassed by the presence of the yelling
populace and the armed guardc ut that
celebrated trial, and forgetting his
speech lost his cause.
The juries of the anoents we're
strange bodies. often forming, in fact,
popular assemblies, numbering hun
dreds, and sometimes even thousands.
| Any notable cause among the Athenians
was tried by an assembly of the people
who crowded together and in person
judged the case. At other times they
delegated certain deputies to hear the
argument and give Judgment. These
judges as they we're called, or Jurors,
as we would gay, we're in such num-
bers as to form kind of popular
assembly. Every year, n body
of six thousand citizens was set aside
to hear causes, and from this BODY the
jurors were chosen, five hundred at
time, sometimes several juries sitting
together. Tho votes of the jury we're
taken by each man casting bean or
pebble into an urn passed around for the
purpose.
Among the Romaus the juries were
not 80 large, except on special occasions.
The king, afterwards the consul, and in
later times the praetor, presided at the
trial, but seemed to have little influence
III modifying the decision, acting merely
as presiding officer.
In Athens there were large nn,hhers
of professional jurors, who gained
livelihood by sitting as judges and
hearing causes, but in Rome no such
classes of persons existed. One of the
finest comedies of Aristophanes, "The
| Wasps," was founded on the abuse of
Justice among the Greeks. In his timo
the Jurors were we'll paid by the state
Tor their servicee, and besides had
good chance of receiving bribes from
the contending parties, as we'll as having
their ears daily tiokled by the most
lavish fattery that the silver-tongued
Greek orator could bestow. SO that the
office of "Dicast," MS it was called,
was coveted. In Rome, although there
was bribery enough, few persons had the
opportunity of becoming judges, and, of
courso, fewer sought tho opportunity.