city, entirely abandoned to slaughter, and repented their having involved the innocent with the guilty. This sudden change of the Athenians gave the Mitylenean ambassadors some little glimmerings of hope; and they prevailed so far with the magistrates, as to have the affair debated a second time. Cleon, who had suggested the first decree, a man of a fiery temper, and who had great influence over the people, maintained his opinion with much vehemence and heat. He represented, that it was unworthy a wise government to change with every wind, and to annul in the morning what they had decreed the night before; and that it was highly important to take an exemplary vengeance on the Mityleneans, in order to awe the rest of their allies who were every where ready to revolt.

Diodorus, who had contradicted Cleon in the first assembly, now opposed his arguments more strongly than before. After describing, in a tender and pathetic manner, the deplorable condition of the Mityleneans, whose minds (he said) must necessarily be on the rack, whilst they were expecting a sentence that was to determine their fate; he represented to the Athenians, that the fame of their mildness and clemency had always reflected the highest honour on them, and distinguished them gloriously from all other nations: he observed, that the citizens of Mitylene had been drawn involuntarily into the rebellion, a proof of which was, their surrendering the city to them, the instant it was in their power to do it: they therefore, by this decree, would murder their benefactors, and consequently be both unjust and ungrateful, as they would punish the innocent with the guilty. He observed farther, that supposing the Mityleneans in general were guilty, it would however be for the interest of the Athenians to dissemble, in order that the rigorous punishment they had decreed might not exasperate the rest of the allies; and that the best way to put a stop to the evil, would be, to leave room for repentance, and not plunge people into despair, by the absolute and irrevocable refusal of a pardon. His opinion therefore was, that they should examine very deliberately the cause of those factious Mityleneans who had been brought to Athens, and pardon all the rest.

The assembly was very much divided, so that Diodorus carried it only by a few votes. A second galley was therefore immediately fitted out. It was furnished with every thing that might accelerate its course; and the ambassadors of Mitylene promised a great reward to the crew, provided they arrived in time. They therefore did not quit their cars, even when they took sustenance, but ate and drank as they rowed, and took their rest alternately; and very happily for them, the wind was favourable. The first galley had got a day and night's sail before them; but as those on board

carried ill news, they did not make great haste. Its arrival before the city had spread the utmost consternation in every part of it but it increased infinitely, when the decree, by which all the citizens were sentenced to die, was read in a full assembly. Nothing now was heard in all places but cries and loud laments. The moment that the sentence was going to be put in execution, advice came that a second galley was arrived. Immediately the cruel massacre was suspended. The assembly was again convened; and the decree which granted a pardon was listened to with such a silence and joy, as is much easier conceived than expressed.

All the factious Mityleneans who had been taken, though upwards of 1,000 were put to death. The city was afterwards dismantled, the ships delivered up; and the whole island, the city of Methymne excepted, was divided into 3,000 parts, 300 of which were consecrated to the service of the gods; and the rest divided by lot, among such Athenians as were sent thither, to whom the natives of the country gave a revenue of two a mine for every portion; on which condition they were permitted to keep possession of the island, but not as proprietors. The cities which belonged to the Mityleneans on the coast of Asia were all subjected by the Athenians.

During the winter of the preceding campaign, the inhabitants of Platææ, having lost all hopes of succour, and being in the utmost want of provisions, formed a resolution to escape through the enemy: but half of them, struck with the greatness of the danger, and the boldness of the enterprise, entirely lost their courage when they came to the execution; but the rest (who were about 220 soldiers) persisted in their resolution, and escaped in the following manner.

Before I begin the description of their escape, it will be proper to inform my readers, in what sense I use certain expressions which I shall employ in it. In strictness of speech, the line of fortification which is made round a city when besieged, to prevent sallies, is called contravallation; and that which is made to prevent any succours from without, is named circumvallation. Both these fortifications were used in this siege; however for brevity sake, I shall use only the former term.

The contravallation consisted of two walls, at 16 feet distance one from the other. The space between the two walls being a kind of platform or terrace, seemed to be but one single building, and composed a range of caserns or barracks, where the soldiers had their lodgings. Lofty towers were built around it at proper distances, extending from one wall to the other, in order that they might be able to defend

a The Attie mine was worth 100 drachms, that is, 50 French livres. b Thucyd, l. iii. 185–188.

themselves at the same time against any attack from within and without. There was no going from one casern to another without crossing those towers; and on the top of the wall was a parapet on both sides, where a guard was commonly kept; but in rainy weather, the soldiers used to shelter themselves in the towers, which served as guard-houses. Such was the contravallation, on both sides of which was a ditch, the earth of which had been employed in making the bricks of the wall.

The besieged first ascertained the height of the wall, by counting the rows of bricks which composed it; and this they did at different times, and employed several men for that purpose, in order that they might not mistake in the calculation. This was the easier, because as the wall stood but at a small distance, every part of it was very visible. They then made ladders of a proper length.

All things being now ready for executing the design, the besieged left the city one night when there was no moon in the midst of a storm of wind and rain. After crossing the first ditch, they drew near to the wall undiscovered, through the darkness of the night; not to mention that the noise made by the rain and wind prevented their being heard. They marched at some distance from one another, to prevent the clashing of their arms, which were light, in order that those who carried them might be the more active; and one of their legs was naked, to keep them from sliding so easily in the mire. Those who carried the ladders laid them in the space between the towers, where they knew no guard was posted, because it rained. That instant twelve men mounted the ladders, armed with only a coat of mail and a dagger, and marched directly to the towers, six on each side. They were followed by soldiers armed only with javelins, that they might mount the easier: and their shields were carried after them to be used in the conflict.

When most of them were got to the top of the wall, they were discovered by the falling of a tile, which one of their comrades, in taking hold of the parapet to keep himself steady, had thrown down. The alarm was immediately given from the towers, and the whole camp approached the wall without discovering the occasion of the outcry, from the gloom of the night, and the violence of the storm. Besides which, those who had staid behind in the city, beat an alarm at the same time in another quarter, to make a diversion; so that the enemy did not know which way to turn themselves, and were afraid to quit their posts. But a body of reserve, of 300 men, who were kept for any unforeseen accident that might happen, quitted the contravallation, and ran to that part where they heard the noise; and torches were held up towards Thebes, to show that they must run that way. But

those in the city, to render that signal of no use, made others at the same time in different quarters, having prepared them on the wall for that purpose.

In the meantime, those who had mounted first having possessed themselves of the two towers which flanked the interterval where the ladders were set; and having killed those who guarded them, posted themselves there to defend the passage, and keep off the besiegers. Then setting ladders from the top of the wall against the two towers, they caused a good number of their comrades to mount, in order to keep off, by the discharge of their arrows, as well those who were advancing to the foot of the wall, as the others who were hastening from the neighbouring towers. Whilst this was doing, they had time to set up several ladders, and to throw down the parapet, that the rest might come up with greater ease. As fast as they came up, they went down on the other side, and drew up near the ditch on the outside, to shoot at those who appeared. After they were passed over, the men who were in the towers came down last, and made to the ditch to follow after the rest.

That instant the guard of 300, with torches came up. However, as the Platxans saw their enemies by this light better than they were seen by them, they took a surer aim, by which means the last crossed the ditch, without being attacked in their passage: however, this was not done without difficulty, because the ditch was frozen over, and the ice would not bear, on account of the thaw and heavy rains. The violence of the storm was of great advantage to them. After all were passed, they took the road towards Thebes, the better to conceal their retreat; because it was not likely that they would flee towards a city of the enemy's. Immediately they perceived the besiegers, with torches in their hands, pursuing them in the road that led to Athens. After keeping that of Thebes about six or seven a stadia, they turned short towards the mountain, and resumed the road towards Athens, whither 212 arrived, out of 220 who had quitted the place; the rest having returned back through fear, one archer excepted, who was taken on the side of the fossé of contravallation. The besiegers, after having pursued them to no purpose, returned to their camp.

In the mean time, the Plateans who remained in the city, supposing that all their companions had been killed, (because those who were returned, to justify themselves, affirmed they were) sent a herald to demand the dead bodies; but being told the true state of the affair, he withdrew.

¿ About the end of the following campaign, which is that a Upwards of a quarter of a league.

Thucyd, l. iii. p. 208-220. Died. 1. xii. p. 109.

wherein Mitylene was taken, the Plateans being in absolute want of provisions, and unable to make the least defence, surrendered upon condition that they should not be punished till they had been tried by the due forms of justice. Five commissioners came for this purpose from Lacedæmon, and these, without charging them with any crime, barely asked them whether they had done any service to the Lacedæmonians and the allies in this war? The Platæans were much surprised, as well as embarrassed by this question; and were sensible, that it had been suggested by the Thebans, their professed enemies, who had vowed their destruction. They therefore put the Lacedæmonians in mind of the services they had done to Greece in general, both at the battle of Artemisium, and that of Platææ; and particularly in Lacedæmonia, at the time of the earthquake, which was followed by the revolt of their slaves. The only reason (they declared) of their having joined the Athenians afterwards, was, to defend themselves from the hostilities of the Thebans, against whom they had implored the assistance of the Lacedæmonians to no purpose: that if that was imputed to them for a crime, which was only their misfortune, it ought not however entirely to obliterate the remembrance of their former services. "Cast your eyes," said they, "the monuments of your ancestors which you see here, to "whom we annually pay all the honours which can be ren"dered to the manes of the dead. You thought fit to in"trust their bodies with us, as we were eye-witnesses of “their bravery: and yet you will now give up their ashes to "their murderers, in abandoning us to the Thebans, who "fought against them at the battle of Platææ. Will you "enslave a province where Greece recovered its liberty? "Will you destroy the temples of those gods, to whom you

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are indebted for victory? Will you abolish the memory of "their founders, who contributed so greatly to your safety? "On this occasion, we may venture to say, our interest is "inseparable from your glory; and you cannot deliver up "your ancient friends and benefactors to the unjust hatred "of the Thebans, without overwhelming yourselves with "eternal infamy."

One would conclude, that these just remonstrances should have made some impression on the Lacedæmonians; but they were biassed more by the answer the Thebans made, and which was expressed in the most haughty and bitter terms against the Platæans; and besides, they had brought their instructions from Lacedæmon. They adhered therefore to their first question, "Whether the Plateans had done "them any service since the war ?" and making them pass one after another, as they severally answered No, they were