Where life is held so cheap, opinion is not likely to be very strict
in matters of property. And we find accordingly a general acquiescence
in "the good old rule, the ancient plan, that they may take who have
the power, and they may keep who can." Cattle-lifting is as common as
it formerly was on the Scottish border. The bold buccaneer is a
character as familiar as in the good old days when Drake and Raleigh
singed the Spanish king's beard, with this important difference, that
the buccaneer of ancient Greece plundered Greek and barbarian with
fine impartiality. A common question addressed to persons newly
arrived from the sea is, "Are you a merchant, a traveller, or a
pirate?" And this curious query implies no reproach, and calls for no
resentment. Still more startling are the terms in which Autolycus, the
maternal grandfather of Odysseus, is spoken of. This worthy, we are
informed, "surpassed all mankind in thieving and lying"; and the
information is given in a manner which shows that the poet intended it
as a grave compliment. In another passage the same hero is celebrated
as an accomplished burglar. So low was the standard of Homeric ethics
in this respect; and even in the historical age of Greece, want of
honesty and want of truthfulness were too often conspicuous failings
in some of her most famous men.
Even more shocking to the moral sense is the wild ferocity which
sometimes breaks out in the language and conduct of both men and
women.
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