But
listen now to the sequel.
Many competitors took part in the funeral games
of the deceased, but two of them in particular were
the most favoured to win, the aged Diocles (you
know the man I mean, the dialectician) and Bagoas,
the one who is reputed to be a eunuch. The matter
of doctrines had been thrashed out between them
already, and each had displayed his familiarity with
their tenets and his adherence to Aristotle and his
placita; and by Zeus neither of them had the better
of it.