Greece -- Biography -- Early works to 1800; Rome -- Biography -- Early works to 1800
The Athenians at this time had no public funds, yet Aristotle tells us
that the Senate of the Areopagus, by supplying each fighting man with
eight drachmas, did good service in manning the fleet; and Kleidemus
tells us that this money was obtained by an artifice of Themistokles.
When the Athenians were going down to the Peiraeus, he gave out that the
Gorgon's head had been lost from the statue of the goddess.
Themistokles, under pretext of seeking for it, searched every man, and
found great stores of money hidden in their luggage, which he
confiscated, and thus was able to supply the crews of the ships with
abundance of necessaries. When the whole city put to sea, the sight
affected some to pity, while others admired their courage in sending
their families out of the way that they might not be disturbed by
weeping and wailing as they went over to Salamis. Yet many of the aged
citizens who were left behind at Athens afforded a piteous sight; and
even the domestic animals, as they ran howling to the sea-shore,
accompanying their masters, touched men's hearts. It is said that the
dog of Xanthippus, the father of Perikles, could not endure to be
separated from him, and jumping into the sea swam alongside of his
trireme, reached Salamis, and then at once died. His tomb is even now to
be seen at the place called Kynossema.
XI. Besides these great achievements, Themistokles, perceiving that his
countrymen longed to have Aristeides back again, and fearing that he
might ally himself with the Persian, and work ruin to Greece out of
anger against his own country (for Aristeides had been banished from
Athens before the war when Themistokles came into power), proposed a
decree, that any citizen who had been banished for a term of years,
might return and do his best by word and deed to serve his country
together with the other citizens.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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