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ἐν τούτῳ—while the Syr. preparations were making.


παραγίγνονται—Plutarch, in a well-known passage, Nic. 21, describes the entrance of the new force into the harbour θεατρικῶς καὶ πρὸς ἔκπληξιν πολεμίων. It is impossible to say why the Syr. did not fight them at the harbour mouth. Perhaps some facts are omitted here.

τρεῖς καὶ ἑβδομήκοντα μάλιστα—the numbers previously given bring the total to seventy-three exactly; but it is unnecessary to omit μάλιστα with B, since Thuc. allows for any possible error in the previous data. Sixty-five sailed from Athens; fifteen from Corcyra; two from Metapontum; one with Eurymedon; total eighty-three; but ten had been given to Conon

ξὺν ταῖς ξενικαῖςincluding, the regular Attic meaning, except only in the old phrase σὺν (τοῖς) θεοῖς σὺν is very rare with persons and never implies a willing connection, in Attic prose after Thuc.; he has ξὺν fanly often with persons, and in cases implying will, viz c. 57; 2.58; III. 90. The latter use is common in tragedy and Xen. In ordinary Attic σὺν is the word for adding together the items of a sum total. ξὺν (τοῖς) ὅπλοις seems to be an old military phrase.

Ἕλληνας.Ἕλλην can only be used as an adj. with persons.


εἰ πέρας μηδὲν ἔσταιif there is to be no end. Cf. Enr. Med. 931 εἰσῆλθέ μ᾽ οἶκτος εἰ γενήσεται.

τοῦ ἀπαλλαγῆναι—defines πέρας, an end consisting in deliverance, as in Pindar Pyth. IX. τερπνὰν γάμου κραίνειν τελευταν, and in the Homeric τέλος θανάτοιο, γάμοιο.

ὁρῶντες—anacoluthon, as though the preceding clause had been οἱ Σ. κατεπλάγησαν. Cf. II. 53 νόμος οὐδεὶς ἀπεῖργε, τὸ μεν κρίνοντες, for ὑπ᾽ οὐδενὸς νόμου ἀπείργοντο Such a slight irregularity is not uncommon in tragedy, as Eur. Hec. 971 αἰδὡς μ᾽ ἐχει . . . τυγχάνουσα. Plato Phaedo 81A ὑπάρχει αὐτῇ εύδαίμονι εἶναι . . . διάγουσα 14-5.

διὰ τὴν Δ. τειχιζομένην—see on c. 28.4,

ἴσον καὶ παραπλήσιον—cf. c. 78 τοιαῦτά τε καὶ παραπλήσια.

πανταχόσε—i.e. in whatever direction it was exerted, whether in Attica itself or outside it. So πανταχόθεν in II. 53.3 means from whatever source it was obtained.

πολλὴν φαινομένην—the same omission of the partic, as in c. 21.3; 27.1 al. 19

ὡς ἐκ κακῶν ῥώμη—i.e. as compared with their troubles, it was positive ῥώμη; cf. c. 76 ὡς ἐκ τῶν ὑπαρχόντων ἑθάρσυνε. ἐκ here describes the source of the ῥώμη, ὡς is ‘considering that.’


οὐχ οἷόν τε εἶναι—prob. Thuc. meant to say ‘it was impossible for him to delay without experiencing’; this would require either οὐχ οἶόν τε εἶναι διατρίβειν μέν, παθεῖν δὲ μή, or οὐχ οἶόν τε εἶναι διατρίβοντα μὴ οὐ παθεῖν. But the words as they stand mean it is impossible to delay and to suffer, and this, after all, is more mcisive than ‘it is impossible to delay, and then not to suffer.’

φοβερός—with ἀφικόμενος. The act, sense of φοβερός, causing terror, is the commoner. The passive meaning timid occurs in II. 3.4; IV. 128.4; Soph. OT 153 φοβερὰν φρένα δείματι πάλλων.

αὐτοὺς—object of ὠφελεῖν, the subject of which is τὸ μεταπέμψαι.

ταῦτα—there is a similar parenthesis followed by ταῦτα δὲ πάντα σκοπῶν in Andoc. I. 58 fol.

οὖν—resumes after the long parenthesis, just as igitur, sed, autem are commonly used, e.g. Cic. pro Mur. 50 meministis enim, cum illius nefarii gladiatoris voces percrebruissent . . . tum igitur, his rebus auditis meministis.

τῇ πρώτῃ ἡμέρᾳ μάλιστα δεινότατος—this is labelled as an instance of the double superl., as in Eur. Med. μέγιστον ἐχθίστη γύναι, but Classen rightly takes μάλιστα closely with τῇ πρώτη̣ ἡμέρᾳ, for ‘especially on the first day’; but, if he understood the passage, he did not make it clear. Why are there three superlatives, πρώτη̣, μάλιστα, δεινότατος? Thuc. surely means that D. saw after his arrival that the nearer the day of his arrival was the greater was the awe he inspired. Hence trans. ‘realising that at present, while his arrival was quite recent, he filled the enemy with awe.’

μάλιστα—serves to bring the two superlatives, πρώτῃ and δεινότατος, into relation. The whole is an example of his love of elaborate, composite, and co-ordinate expressions instead of subordinate clauses. For the use of superlatives in such expressions, cf. II. 11.1 ἐπὶ πόλιν δυνατωτάτην νῦν ἐρχόμεθα, καὶ αὐτοὶ πλεῖστοι καὶ ἄριστοι στρατεύοντες, and perhaps the constant use of μάλἰστα in ‘proportions,’ as in II. 47.4 μάλιστα ἔθνη̣σκον ὅσῳ καὶ μἀλιστα προσῇσαν.

ὅτι τάχος—found also in Herod. 9.33, and equivalent to ὡς τάχος=ὡς τάχιστα.


αὖθιςthen.

ὑπομεῖναι—often contrasted with φεύγειν, either of soldiers or litigants who stand a trial; sometimes it is joined with καρτερεῖν. It generally implies danger.

ἐπιθέσθαι τῇ πείρᾳ—a graphic expression for setting to work with a will.

οἱ—the only case of the sing. of this pron. at all frequent in prose. Even this is usually avoided by the Orators.

ξυντομωτάτην κ.τ.λ.he thought that (therein) lay the means of finishing the war most quickly. (Classen rightly objects to inserting ταύτην after ξυντομωτάτην with Madvig. It is perfeetly natural to supply τὸ ἐπιθέσθαι τῆ̣ πείρᾳ with ἡγεῖτο.)


l 46

ἀπάξειν—the suppression of the alternative to κατορθώσας is a fine effeet.

τρίψεσθαι—passive.


ἐπεκράτουν— “had the upper hand.” Freeman .

οὐδὲ γὰρ καθ᾽ ἕτερα=κατ᾽ οὐδέτερα.

ὅτι μὴexcept.

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hide References (19 total)
  • Commentary references from this page (19):
    • Andocides, On the Mysteries, 58
    • Euripides, Hecuba, 971
    • Herodotus, Histories, 9.33
    • Plato, Phaedo, 81a
    • Sophocles, Oedipus Tyrannus, 153
    • Thucydides, Histories, 2.11.1
    • Thucydides, Histories, 2.3.4
    • Thucydides, Histories, 2.47.4
    • Thucydides, Histories, 2.53
    • Thucydides, Histories, 2.53.3
    • Thucydides, Histories, 2.58
    • Thucydides, Histories, 3.90
    • Thucydides, Histories, 4.128.4
    • Thucydides, Histories, 7.21.3
    • Thucydides, Histories, 7.27.1
    • Thucydides, Histories, 7.28.4
    • Thucydides, Histories, 7.57
    • Thucydides, Histories, 7.76
    • Thucydides, Histories, 7.78
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