Speechless Spartans

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 79, Issue 143, 18 June 1936, Page 10

Speechless Spartans

The Spartans were famous for lheir laconic style. They loathed nothing •more than talkativeness. Once a neighbouring island in the Aegian Sea was struck by a famine and the population sent an envoy to Sparta to ask for help. He made a long speech describing the distress of the islanders but the Spartans sent him back emptyhanded and told him: '‘Wo have forgotten the beginning of your speech and we understood nothing at the finish. ’’ The famine-stricken population sent I another envoy to Sparta urging him

to be as concise as possible in his request. He took a lot of empty flout bags with him and opening one for the Assembly of Sparta, he said: “It if emtpy. Please fill it,” which the Spartans immediately did and they filled the other bags as well, but bebore he left the chairman of the ae ■ scmbly told him: “You need not have • pointed out to us that you bags were i emtpy We should have seen it any ) way. It was not necessary to <sk us to fill them. We would have done so t anyway. If you come another time do i not talk so much.”