=266. The Father of Alexander the Great.= Macedon was a country just north of Greece. Its great king was Philip, father of Alexander the Great. Philip was a brave king and had good soldiers. He taught them to form in bodies sixteen ranks deep and armed them with lances or spears fourteen feet long. A body of soldiers so formed and armed was called a Macedonian phalanx. "When the Macedonians leveled their long spears and advanced with steady step they bore down" the ranks of the enemy. [Illustration: ALEXANDER AT TWENTY] [Sidenote: =Alexander seeks to imitate the old Greek heroes=] With these soldiers Philip conquered Greece, but he ruled the Greeks kindly. He even employed one of them to give lessons to his young son. Aristotle was the teacher who opened to this young man all the learning of the Greeks. Alexander was a bright boy and learned quickly. Although not born a Greek, he admired their learning. He was fond of the blind poet Homer, and it was said could repeat his poems by heart. Achilles was his favorite among the Greek heroes, and he finally made himself believe that Achilles was one of his forefathers. At any rate he resolved to imitate his hero and to conquer cities more splendid than Troy. HOW THE GREEKS TAUGHT MEN TO BE FREE =267. Self-Government among the Greeks.= The Greeks were not many in number, if we compare them with modern nations. But we admire them because they were free and had the most democratic government in the ancient world. [Sidenote: =Greece a city-state=] They lived in little cities located in the valleys shut in by hills or mountains. Around their cities they built strong walls to shut out dangerous enemies. There were some benefits growing out of living in small cities. The people could know each other. The men could come together quickly and easily to talk of things needed for the good of the city. Only a small part of the men and women in a modern city can get together. These Greeks could know the best men for office, for they were their own neighbors. Now but a few men who want office can be known to all the voters in a city, and still fewer who want to run for governor or for president can be known by all the voters of a state or country. The most famous of the cities in ancient Greece were Athens and Sparta. Their history is well known to us because of the great deeds of their people. Another reason for remembering them is that the two cities were so very different, as we shall see. [Sidenote: =The Greeks their own rulers=]