In memory of this, the day of the victory, the 15th
of July, is kept sacred to the Dioscuri.
IV. To win distinction early in life is said to quench and satisfy the
eagerness of some men whose desire for glory is not keen; but for those
with whom it is the ruling passion of their lives, the gaining of
honours only urges them on, as a ship is urged by a gale, to fresh
achievements. They do not regard themselves as having received a reward,
but as having given a pledge for the future, and they feel it their duty
not to disgrace the reputation which they have acquired, but to eclipse
their former fame by some new deed of prowess. Marcius, feeling this,
was ever trying to surpass himself in valour, and gained such prizes and
trophies that the later generals under whom he served were always
striving to outdo the former ones in their expressions of esteem for
him, and their testimony to his merits. Many as were the wars in which
Rome was then engaged, Marcius never returned from any without a prize
for valour or some especial mark of distinction. Other men were brave in
order to win glory, but Marcius won glory in order to please his mother.
That she should hear him praised, see him crowned, and embrace him
weeping for joy, was the greatest honour and happiness of his life.
Epameinondas is said to have had the same feelings, and to have
considered it to be his greatest good-fortune that his father and mother
were both alive to witness his triumphant success at the battle of
Leuktra.
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