“The world trembles from fear, not from the thrill of Roman intellectual power,” earnestly asserted Alcmaeon. “Rome rules the body; Greece, the mind. Rome creates worldly dominions; Greece, heavenly kingdoms. Rome stands for war; Greece stands for peace.” “The Greeks were brave, O my father. Are they not still brave?” interjected Gannon. Without replying directly to the eager question of his son, Alcmaeon resumed: “Prometheus brought fire to mortals and was punished; Greece brought reasoning and was punished. But Prometheus is now free; Greece still feeds from her vitals the hunger of the Roman eagle, greedy for gold. Where is the Hercules that will set her free?” “Is Greek heroism, then, dead?” asked Gannon. “Will no Leonidas, no Themistocles, no Alexander, ever arise again?” “Nations, like homes, buildings, armies, cities, and individuals, have their genii, my son,” replied Alcmaeon. “Who, therefore, knows the caprices of Fate?” Alcmaeon spoke the last words slowly, with a slight tremor in his voice. “But why should my companions in the camp taunt me by saying that the Greeks are weak, effeminate, and cowardly?” asked Gannon. “The Romans are a vulgar, brutal, and licentious people,” answered Alcmaeon. “Few of them understand the higher life, according to our philosophy. We have done nothing to cause the blush of shame, O my son. The Romans believe us weak because we have ceased to fight. Physical strength wanes with age, but the mind often retains its vigor. The Romans call us effeminate. Because our stomachs cannot hold as much wine as theirs do, are we soft? Because we, in our Pentathlons, run, jump, wrestle, throw the discus and javelin; and because the Romans in their games kill one another and drink one another’s blood, are we effeminate? Be proud to be called effeminate under such conditions, O my son!” Alcmaeon became more earnest as he proceeded. Gannon turned so as to see his father’s face. Hera and Psyche leaned forward, with breathless attention. “They call us cowards! Those who do so lie!” he continued. “Nations are not cowards if they are conquered while fighting to the death. We are Corinthians, O my children, and on the awful day when we were defeated by the Romans under the inhuman Mummius, the hopes of Greece fell. Our ancestors were sold as slaves. Our city was razed and burnt. By the gods of Olympus!” he exclaimed, “we were not cowards, and we _are_ not cowards!” This Alcmaeon said with such fervor that Gannon, filled with emotion, cried out, “O my father, I thank thee for those words!”