difficult. The city had a clear
administrative area surrounding the Assembly and it was only a
matter of finding the right office. This was where the illustrious
figures of the Athenian society went about their business. The man
she needed to deal with was in his forties, a sober thin man with a
sharp nose. He sat at a desk at the back of the office, but his
clerks restricted access to him.
“ Are you lodging a petition?”
“ I seek to establish in Attica,” she said trying to clear the
nervousness out of her voice.
The younger
man looked her up and down. She could tell that he had serious
reservations about her and her claim.
“ I represent my family. We are farmers.”—technically they were
slaves, but effectively they were farmers—“My family has been
working land for generations and we have the skills to grow crops.”
The man gave her more seriously consideration. “My brother is young
and strong and my father has considerable experience.” Chara held
her breath; her entire future depended on convincing this man that
she had something substantial to offer. The man didn’t say
anything, but he nodded his head slightly toward the
administrator’s desk.
She approached
the man sitting at the desk writing hurriedly on parchment. He had
an air of importance around him—an assurance that he belonged in
office.
“ Yes?” he said without looking up.
“ I seek to settle in Attica with my family,” she said feeling
more confident as she had managed to convince this man’s underling.
The man looked up, his serious gray eyes looking her over without
really settling on her.
“ And from where to you come?”
“ We are Helots,” she said and straightened her back.
“ You’ve come a long way for a Helot.”
“ We are motivated to seek a better life and I understand you
required skilled farmers. I and my family have produced strong
harvests consistently all our lives.”
“ So you say,” he said and finally looked her in the eye. Chara
was worried that she had lost him, said the wrong thing.
“ You need farmers and we are farmers.”
He sighed and
leaned back into his chair looking her over.
“ Barley, olives, grapes, whatever you need, we can grow it.”
Chara held herself tensely as he assessed her. She couldn’t think
of anything else to say. “We even have an ox.”
“ Why is your father sending a girl to petition in his
stead?”
“ The Spartans are making things difficult,” she said carefully
without elaborating. She had no other real reason to give and she
hoped he would accept her answer.
The man
narrowed his eyes and picked up his quill. He scribbled quickly on
a bit of parchment and handed it to her. “Show this to Klenias in
Archernae,” he said with a dismissive wave of his hand. Chara had
to reach across the desk for the note as man had returned his
attention to his writing.
She clutched
the note to her chest as she left the administrator’s office,
nothing would make her let go of this note; she knew it was the
ticket to her future. This introduction would get her seen by the
person who could achieve her official settlement in Attica.
Archernae she said to herself—that was the place where her future
lay. She’d never heard of the place and knew nothing of it, but it
was shining hope as far as she was concerned.
Chapter
14
Chara and her
mother departed for Archernae a couple of days later. They both
thanked Panos’ cousin profusely for the assistance they’d been
given and the woman was good enough to send them off with some
bread and cheese. Chara tied Elphia around her chest in a sling
where she slept quite happily there throughout the journey.
Farmers’ generosity meant that they didn’t have to walk for long
stretches.
When they
arrived, Chara settled Elphia and her mother under a tree near the
village square while she searched out the man recommended to
her—Klenias—who appeared to be the Administration’s man in the
town. He wasn’t hard to
administrative area surrounding the Assembly and it was only a
matter of finding the right office. This was where the illustrious
figures of the Athenian society went about their business. The man
she needed to deal with was in his forties, a sober thin man with a
sharp nose. He sat at a desk at the back of the office, but his
clerks restricted access to him.
“ Are you lodging a petition?”
“ I seek to establish in Attica,” she said trying to clear the
nervousness out of her voice.
The younger
man looked her up and down. She could tell that he had serious
reservations about her and her claim.
“ I represent my family. We are farmers.”—technically they were
slaves, but effectively they were farmers—“My family has been
working land for generations and we have the skills to grow crops.”
The man gave her more seriously consideration. “My brother is young
and strong and my father has considerable experience.” Chara held
her breath; her entire future depended on convincing this man that
she had something substantial to offer. The man didn’t say
anything, but he nodded his head slightly toward the
administrator’s desk.
She approached
the man sitting at the desk writing hurriedly on parchment. He had
an air of importance around him—an assurance that he belonged in
office.
“ Yes?” he said without looking up.
“ I seek to settle in Attica with my family,” she said feeling
more confident as she had managed to convince this man’s underling.
The man looked up, his serious gray eyes looking her over without
really settling on her.
“ And from where to you come?”
“ We are Helots,” she said and straightened her back.
“ You’ve come a long way for a Helot.”
“ We are motivated to seek a better life and I understand you
required skilled farmers. I and my family have produced strong
harvests consistently all our lives.”
“ So you say,” he said and finally looked her in the eye. Chara
was worried that she had lost him, said the wrong thing.
“ You need farmers and we are farmers.”
He sighed and
leaned back into his chair looking her over.
“ Barley, olives, grapes, whatever you need, we can grow it.”
Chara held herself tensely as he assessed her. She couldn’t think
of anything else to say. “We even have an ox.”
“ Why is your father sending a girl to petition in his
stead?”
“ The Spartans are making things difficult,” she said carefully
without elaborating. She had no other real reason to give and she
hoped he would accept her answer.
The man
narrowed his eyes and picked up his quill. He scribbled quickly on
a bit of parchment and handed it to her. “Show this to Klenias in
Archernae,” he said with a dismissive wave of his hand. Chara had
to reach across the desk for the note as man had returned his
attention to his writing.
She clutched
the note to her chest as she left the administrator’s office,
nothing would make her let go of this note; she knew it was the
ticket to her future. This introduction would get her seen by the
person who could achieve her official settlement in Attica.
Archernae she said to herself—that was the place where her future
lay. She’d never heard of the place and knew nothing of it, but it
was shining hope as far as she was concerned.
Chapter
14
Chara and her
mother departed for Archernae a couple of days later. They both
thanked Panos’ cousin profusely for the assistance they’d been
given and the woman was good enough to send them off with some
bread and cheese. Chara tied Elphia around her chest in a sling
where she slept quite happily there throughout the journey.
Farmers’ generosity meant that they didn’t have to walk for long
stretches.
When they
arrived, Chara settled Elphia and her mother under a tree near the
village square while she searched out the man recommended to
her—Klenias—who appeared to be the Administration’s man in the
town. He wasn’t hard to
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