The attitude of the runners we learn from vases. Those who were contending in the short race or dash swung their arms backward and forward alternately. This is beautifully shown by a painting on a Panathenæan vase in the possession of Koller. It represents four athletes running, hardly touching the ground with one foot, while the other is raised and moved forward in order to cover the greatest possible distance with one step. The hands are wide open; the arms are moved about freely and appear to act as the wings of the body, and their motion is in harmony with that of the lower limbs. Another vase, discovered in the ancient tombs of Volci, also shows a similar method of running. The athletes are moving rapidly, and using their arms as wings. On the other hand, those who were running a long distance clenched their fists and held their arms close to their sides, as do our modern runners. A peculiar custom prevailed during the games. It is said the contestants kept up a loud shouting in order to retain their courage, while at the same time the admiring spectators cheered wildly as some favorite or friend neared the goal. As the Greeks did not possess the modern mechanical means of communication, they had to rely mostly upon messengers; hence the great necessity for expert runners. To this fact is due to a considerable degree the development of agonistic and running contests in Greece. It is said that after the battle of Platæa all the sacred fires which had been profaned by the Persians were extinguished, and that Ἐνχίδας, a Platæan, covered in one day the distance of a thousand stadia from Platæa to Delphi and back again, and brought his fellow-citizens the pure fire from the altar of Apollo. As a result of this terrible strain he sank to the ground and died. The Cretans were especially noted in the δόλιχος. Sotades and Ergoteles were among the most famous. The Arcadian Dromeos was another celebrated runner, having been like the former twelve times victorious in the δόλιχος. Ladas, the famous Spartan runner, was also victorious in the δόλιχος, but according to Pausanias died at the goal on completing a race. Comparison of the speed of Hellenic athletes with that of modern runners is exceedingly difficult, because the Hellenes had no means of measuring minutes of time; they did not say of an athlete that he ran the δίαυλος in such a time, but that he won (_i. e._, surpassed his competitors) in a certain Olympic celebration.