Calendar: 1879-1880 Page 584

584 GENERAL LITERATURE AND SCIENCE VII tfox m& $108 For the Athenians when they first embraced that Heroic- all resolution of leaving their grounds and houses to fire and ruine if necessitie should enforce them so farre for the pre- servation of their liberty did employ the most of their private wealth and all the common treasure in building great Navie By these means they hoped which accordingly fell out that no such calamity should befall them by Land as might not well be counterpoised by great advantages at Sea Knowing well that strong fleet would either procure victory at home or secure passage to any other Country The other States of Greece held it sufficient if building few new ships they did somewhat amend their Navie Whereby it came to pass that had they bin vanquished they could not have expected any other fortune than either present death or perpetuall slavery neither could they hope to be victorious without the assistance of the Athenians whose forces by sea did equall all theirs together the whole consisting of more than three hundred and fourscore bottomes Wherefore these Peloponnesians beginning to suspect their own condition which would have stood upon desperate points if the Fleet of Athens had for- saken them were soon persuaded by the greater fear of such bad event to forget the lesser which they had conceived of the Persians and laying aside their insolent braverie they yeelded to that most profitable counsell of abiding at Salamis Adrastus had shrine at Sicyon which yet stands in the market-place of the town Clisthenes therefore went to Delphi and asked the oracle if he might expel Adrastus To this the priestess is reported to have answered Adrastus is the King but thou art only robber '1 So when the god would not grant his request he went home and began to think how he might contrive to make Adrastus withdraw of his own accord After while he hit upon plan which he thought would succeed He sent envoys to Thebes in Boeotia and informed the Thebans that he wished to bring Melanippus the son of Astacus to Sicyon The Thebans consenting Clisthenes