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Leonides. Leonidas the Lacedaemonian, having few soldiers, was marching out to the battle against the Persians. When someone said that he was marching out with very few, he said: But with willing men. A Laconian, being weak in body, was leading the way to battle; and when some said to him, Where are you going, being such as you are? he said: To die for the fatherland. Musonius. Seize the opportunity to die well when it is possible, lest after a little while the dying be present for you, but you no longer have the opportunity to die well. From the Chreiae of Dion. A Lacaenian woman, when her son was limping in the battle line and was distressed at this, said, Do not be grieved, child; for with every step you will be reminded of your own valor. From the collection of Nicolaus. The Celts who live near the Ocean consider it shameful to flee a falling wall or house; and when a flood tide from the outer sea approaches, meeting it with their weapons they stand their ground until they are overwhelmed, so that they might not seem to fear death by fleeing it. Coriscus. Coriscus, being a very old man, when he recovered from some severe illness, said, Away! How unpleasantly have I returned, having already advanced so far on the road which everyone must travel. Pyrrhus. When Pyrrhus was making war against the Lacedaemonians and threatening many things, Cercyllidas, one of the elders, standing up in the Assembly, said: If it is a God who threatens, let us not be afraid, for we do no wrong; but if it is a man, let him know he threatens men. From the Histories of Plutarch. Darius, the king of the Persians, with three hundred thousand men, encamped at (749) Marathon. But the Athenians sent a thousand against them, giving them as generals Polyzelus, Callimachus, Cynaegirus, and Miltiades. And when the battle was joined, Polyzelus, seeing a superhuman apparition, lost his sight, and being blind, killed forty-eight. And Callimachus, pierced by many spears, stood dead; and Cynaegirus, holding on to a Persian ship that was being launched, had his hand cut off; wherefore it is said that the following was written about them by Panteleius: O empty labor and fruitless war! What shall we say to our king when we meet him? O king, why did you send me against immortal warriors? We shoot, they do not fall; we wound, they are not afraid. A single man despoiled the whole army; and in the midst, Asmatoeis [Asthmat.] stands on iron roots, Nor does he wish to fall; and soon he comes within the ships. Speak, helmsman, let us flee the threats of a corpse.

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Λαονίδης . Λεονίδας ὁ Λακεδαιμόνιος, ὀλίγους ἔχων στρατιώτας, εἰς τήν πρός τούς Πέρσας μάχην ἐξεπορεύετο. Εἰπόντος δέ τινος, ὅτι μετ᾿ ὀλίγων παντελῶς ἐκπορεύεται, εἶπεν· Ἀλλά μετά βουλομένων. Λάκων ἀσθενεως τό σῶμα διακείμενος ἐπί παράταξιν προῆγε· λεγόντων δέ τινων αὐτῷ, Ποῦ τοιοῦτος ὤν πορεύῃ; ἔφη· Ὑπέρ τῆς πατρίδους ἀποθανεῖν. Μουσωνίου. Ἅρπαξε τό καλῶς ἀποθνήσκειν ὅτε ἔξεστι. μή μετά μικρόν τό μέν ἀποθνήσκειν σοι παρῇ, τό δέ καλῶς μηκέτι ἕξῃς. Ἐκ τῶν ∆ίωνος Χρειῶν. Λάκεινα γυνή, τοῦ υἱοῦ αὐτῆς ἐν παρατάξει χωλεύοντος, καί δυσφοροῦντος ἐπί τούτῳ, Μή λυποῦ τέκνον, εἶπε· καθ᾿ ἕκαστον γάρ βῆμα τῆς ἰδίας ἀρετῆς ὑπομνησθήσῃ. Ἐκ τῆς Νικολάου συναγωγῆς. Κέλτοι οἱ τῷ Ὠκεανῷ γειτνιῶντες, αἰσχρόν ἡγοῦνται τοῖχον καταπίπτοντα ἤ οἰκίαν φεύγειν· πλημμυρίδος δέ ἐκ τῆς ἔξω θαλάττης ἐπερχομένης, μεθ᾿ ὅπλων ἀπαντῶντες ὑπομένουσιν, ἕως κατακλύζωνται, ἵνα μή δοκῶσι φεύγοντες τόν θάνατον φοβεῖσθαι. Κορίσκου. Κορίσκος εὖ μάλα γέρων ὤν, ὡς ἀπό τινος χαλεπῆς ἀῤῥωστίας ἀνέῤῥωσεν, Ἄπαγε, ἔφη, ὡς ἀηδῶς ἀνέστροφα, ἤδη τῆς ὁδοῦ προκεκοφώς, ἥν δεῖ πάντως πορευθῆναι. Πύῤῥου. Πύῤῥου ἐπιστρατεύσαντος τοῖς Λακεδομονίοις, καί πολλά ἀπειλοῦντος, Κερκυλλίδας εἷς τῶν γερόντων ἀναστάς ἐν τῇ Ἐκκλησίᾳ, εἶπεν· Εἰ μέν Θεός ἐστιν ὁ ἀπειλῶν, μή φοβώμεθα· οὐδέν γάρ ἀδικοῦμεν· εἰ δ᾿ ἄνθρωπος, γνώτω ἀνδράσιν ἀπειλῶν. Ἐκ τοῦ Πλουτάρχου Ἱστοριῶν. ∆αρεῖος ὁ τῶν Περσῶν βασιλεύς, μετά τριάκοντα μυριάδων ἐν (749) Μαραθῶνι ἐστρατοπευδεύσατο. Ἀθηναῖοι δέ χιλίους ἔπεμψαν ἐπ᾿ αὐτούς, στρατηγούς αὐτοῖς δόντες, Πολύζηλον, Καλλίμαχον, Κυναίγειρον καί Μιλτιάδην. Συμβληθείσης δέ τῆς παρατάξεως, Πολύζηλος μέν ὑπέρ ἄνθρωπον φαντασίαν θεασάμενος, τήν ὅρασιν ἀπέβαλεν, καί τυφλός ὤν, ἀνεῖλε τεσσαράκοντα καί ὀκτώ. Καλλίμαχος δέ πολλοῖς πεπαρμένος δόρασι, καί νεκρός ἐστάθη· Κυναίγειρος δέ Περσικάς ἀγομένην ναῦν, κατέχων, ἐχειροκοπήθη· ὅθεν καί εἰς αὐτούς ὑπό Παντελείου τοιάδε γεγράφθαι λέγεται· Ὤ κενεοῦ καμάτου καί ἀπρήκτου πολέμοιο! Ἡμετέρῳ βασιλεῖ τί λέξομεν ἀντιάσαντες; Ὦ βασιλεῦ, τί μ᾿ ἔπεμπες ἐπ᾿ ἀθανάτους πολεμιστάς; Βαλοῦμεν, οὐ πίπτουσι· τιτρώσκομεν, οὐ φοβέονται. Μοῦνος ἀνήρ σύλησεν ὅλον στρατόν· ἐν δ᾿ ἅρα μέσῳ Ἀσματόεις [Ἀσθματ.] ἕστηκε σιδηρείαις ὑπό ῥίζαις, Οὐδέ θέλει πεσέειν· τάχα δ᾿ ἔρχεται ἔνδοθι νηῶν. Λέγε, κυβερνῆτα, νέκυος προφύγωμεν ἀπειλάς.