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Whoever has a supremacy to maintain must look solely to selfinterest, and it is to our advantage to have our Sicilian friends so powerful that our enemies can undertake nothing against us. Mistrust of us is unwarranted; for, as at home relations with our allies have been so shaped as in each case was most advantageous for us, so in Sicily we have been influenced solely by self-interest, that is, by fear of the designs of the Syracusans.— 1. ἀνδρὶ δὲ κτἑ.: frank admission of the same kind of policy as guided the Athenians against the Melians 5. 85113. Cf. esp. 5. 89.—ἀνδρὶ τυράννῳ: for generic and specific term united, as often, see on 1. 115. 9.—πόλει ἀρχὴν ἐχούσῃ: as 2. 65. 45. For the connection with ἀνδρὶ τυράννῳ, cf. τυραννίδα ἔχετε τὴν ἀρχήν 3. 37. 9 (and 2. 63. 8). —ἄλογον: inconsistent, i.e. contrary to a well-considered line of action, selfinterest being recognized as the test (λόγος) in political life. ξυμφέρον: without ἐστί, as in 3. 44. 5. So often ἄξιον, δεινόν, δίκαιον. οἰκεῖον : of family or tribal relationship. In politics even kinship is of value only as it contributes to self-interest.—πρὸς ἕκαστα: in every case. μετὰ καιροῦ: as 8. 27. 12, more significant than ἐν καιρῷ: “in accord with opportunity,” i.e. according to circumstances.—τοῦτο: looks forward, as in 55. 3. See on 4. 114. 19. τοὺς ἐκεῖ ξυμμάχους: this reading of C is adopted by Steup (with Bk., Kr., Hude, Oxford text, etc.), on account of the following appositives (Χίους μὲν κτἑ.). Pp., St., Cl., Bm., and M. keep the reading of all the other Mss. τοῖς ξυμμάχοις. Thuc. has ἐξηγεῖσθαι with accus. 1. 71. 27, ἐξηγεῖσθαι with dat. 3. 55. 14.—ὡς ἕκαστοι χρήσιμοι: as they were severally useful to us. ἐξηγούμεθα: the manner of the leadership is defined more exactly in what follows, (1) by adj. (αὐτονόμους), (2) by adv. (βιαιότερον), (3) by ptc. (ἐλευθέρως ξυμμαχοῦντας).—Μηθυμναίους: who alone of the Lesbians retained their autonomy after 427 B.C. Cf. 3. 50. § 1, 2.—νεῶν παροκωχῇ: as χρημάτων φορᾷ (8), dat. of attendant circumstance. See on 12. 6. παροκωχῇ for παροχῇ of the Mss., acc. to analogy of ἀνοκωχή and διοκωχή (3. 87. 3) and the express testimony of Photius (s.v.). See St., Qu. Gr.^{2} p. 44. Cf. 7.57. § 4. Χίοι φόρου οὐχ ὑποτελεῖς ὄντες, ναῦς δὲ παρέχοντες αὐτόνομοι...Μηθυμναῖοι ναυσὶ καὶ οὐ φόρῳ ὑπήκοοι. χρημάτων βιαιότερον φορᾷ : referring to the φόρου ὑποτελεῖς ξύμμαχοι of 1. 19. 1, 80. 14; 7. 57. 17. νησιώτας...Πελοπόννησον : the reference is to the Coreyraeans, Cephallenians, and Zacynthians. Cf. 7. 57. § 7. The Argives are disregarded. πρός: secundum. Seeon 63. 3. ὃ λέγομεν: cf. 83. § 4.—ἐς Συρακοσίους: with a view to fear of the Syracusans (πρὸς τό belonging to δέος as well as to λυσιτελοῦν). Cf. 3. 14. 1 τὰς τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἐς ὑμᾶς ἐλπίδας, and 3. 37. 3 διὰ τὸ καθ̓ ἡμέραν ἀδεὲς καὶ ἀνεπιβούλευτον πρὸς ἀλλήλους καὶ ἐς τοὺς ξυμμάχους τὸ αὐτὸ ἔχετε. καθίστασθαι : sc. ἡμᾶς. ἀρχῆς γὰρ...πρὸς ὑμᾶς εἶεν : proof that Athenian fear of the Syracusans is well grounded.—ὑμῶν: including all the Siceliotes except the Syracusans, as ὑμᾶς in 14 and 18; so also ξυστῆτε in 16.—ἐπὶ τῷ ἡμετέρῳ ὑπόπτῳ: on the ground of suspicion of us. For poss. pron. as obj. gen., cf. 1. 33. 18, and see G. 999; H. 694; Kühn. 454, N. 11. ξυστήσαντες ὑμᾶς: having united you. Cf. the intr. ξυστῆναι below (16).—βίᾳ ἢ καὶ κατ᾽ ἐρημίαν: (sc. τῶν κωλυσόντων) by force or in absence (of those who will hinder), referring to the Syracusans and to be taken with αὐτοὶ ἄρξαι τῆς Σικελίας. For κατ᾽ ἐρημίαν, “because they have a free field,” cf. Dem. 3. 27. The above is Cl.'s explanation, approved by St. Some editors refer the clause to the Camarinaeans, with the Schol. καὶ βούλονται . . . ὑφ᾽ αὑτοῖς ποιήσασθαι τὴν Σικελίαν, ἤτοι βίᾳ κρατήσαντες ὑμῶν, ἢ μόνους ἀπολαβόντες, ἡμῶν ἀπράκτων ἀπελθόντων. Steup refers it, with Haacke, to ἀπράκτων ἡμῶν ἀπελθόντων (removing the comma after ἐρημίαν), suggesting that in case of a union of all Siceliotes the withdrawal of the Athenians might have been due to defeat or merely to lack of allies (cf. 86. 22 ἢ ἄπρακτον ἀπελθεῖν ἢ καὶ σφαλεῖσαν). ἀνάγκη δέ: τὸ ἄρξαι Συρακοσίους τῆς ὅλης Σικελίας Schol. ξυστῆτε πρὸς αὐτούς: as 1. 1. 6, 15. 10.— 17. ἐς ἓν ξυστᾶσα: i.e. by the union of the Syracusans with all of the Siceliotes.—εὐμεταχείριστος: easy to handle. Cf. Xen. Anab. 2. 6. 20, and the apparent imitation of our passage in Xen. Hell. 5. 2. 15 εἰ τοσαύτη δύναμις προσγενήσεται τῇ τε Ἀθηναίων καὶ Θηβαίων ἰσχύι, ὁρᾶτε ὅπως μὴ οὐκέτι εὐμεταχείριστα ἔσται ἐκεῖνα ὑμῖν. Cf. δυσμεταχείριστος Hdt. 7. 236. 12.—οὔθ̓ οἵδ̓ ἀσθενεῖς ἂν...πρὸς ὑμᾶς εἶεν : litotes. οἵδε refers to the Syracusans.
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