_Diogenes. Mausolus_
_Diog_. Why so proud, Carian? How are you better than the rest of us?
_Mau_. Sinopean, to begin with, I was a king; king of all Caria, ruler
of many Lydians, subduer of islands, conqueror of well-nigh the whole
of Ionia, even to the borders of Miletus. Further, I was comely, and of
noble stature, and a mighty warrior. Finally, a vast tomb lies over me
in Halicarnassus, of such dimensions, of such exquisite beauty as no
other shade can boast. Thereon are the perfect semblances of man and
horse, carved in the fairest marble; scarcely may a temple be found to
match it. These are the grounds of my pride: are they inadequate?
_Diog_. Kingship—beauty—heavy tomb; is that it?
_Mau_. It is as you say.
_Diog_. But, my handsome Mausolus, the power and the beauty are no
longer there. If we were to appoint an umpire now on the question of
comeliness, I see no reason why he should prefer your skull to mine.
Both are bald, and bare of flesh; our teeth are equally in evidence;
each of us has lost his eyes, and each is snub-nosed. Then as to the
tomb and the costly marbles, I dare say such a fine erection gives the
Halicarnassians something to brag about and show off to strangers: but
I don't see, friend, that you are the better for it, unless it is that
you claim to carry more weight than the rest of us, with all that
marble on the top of you.
_Mau_. Then all is to go for nothing? Mausolus and Diogenes are to rank
as equals?
_Diog_. Equals! My dear sir, no; I don't say that. While Mausolus is
groaning over the memories of earth, and the felicity which he supposed
to be his, Diogenes will be chuckling. While Mausolus boasts of the
tomb raised to him by Artemisia, his wife and sister, Diogenes knows
not whether he has a tomb or no—the question never having occurred to
him; he knows only that his name is on the tongues of the wise, as one
who lived the life of a man; a higher monument than yours, vile Carian
slave, and set on firmer foundations.