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ὑπὲρ τοῦ Φαρναβάζου κ.τ.λ.. Construe οὐκ ἐκοινοῦντο ὑπὲρ τοῦ Φ. τὸν στόλον, i.e. they refused to let Pharn. be represented in the matter. ἐς τὴν Χίον may be taken with the sense of the sentence, but it is more Thucydidean to join it with the verbal noun στόλον (=τὸν ἐς τὴν Χίον). Cf. i. 110, τὰ μὲν κατὰ τὴν μεγάλην στρατείαν Ἀθηναίων ἐς Αἴγυπτον οὕτως ἐτελεύτησε.

ἐκοινοῦντο This is the less supported reading; but ἐκοινωνοῦντο would require the genitive. κοινωνεῖν τινί τινος is the regular construction, though a contained accus. is found with the active in Eur. El. 1048, φόνον ἐκοινώνησέ μοι. The middle does not occui, and though the passage of Euripides may give some dubious warrant for ἐκοινώνουν τι, it gives none for ἐκοινωνοῦντό τι. MSS. vary again in c. 48, § 3, ἐκοινώνησαν and ἐκοίνωσαν. For κοινοῦσθαι with accus. cf. inf. c. 75, § 3, τὰ ἀποβησόμενα ξυνεκοινώσαντο, and Eur. Ion 608, κοινουμἔνη τὰς συμφοράς.

ἐς τὴν ἀποστολὴν sc. τῶν νεῶν, to be joined with ἐδίδοσαν. ἐφ᾽ ἑαυτῶν, καθ᾽ ἑαυτούς Schol. A phrase common in Herodotus. Cf. Xen. Anab. ii. 4, 10, ὑφορῶντες τούτους αὐτοὶ ἐφ᾽ ἑαυτῶν ἐχώρουν. Thuc. i. 17; ii. 63, ἐπὶ σφῶν αὐτῶν αὐτόνομοι; vi. 40, αὐτὴ ἐφ᾽ αὑτῆς σκοποῦσα.


ὡρμημένους, i.e. mentally, used of intention; cf. c. 23, § 1. καὶ Ἀλκαμένη ἄρχοντα sc. πλεῖν (ἔδοξε); a variation from the Ἀλκαμένη ἔχοντας ἄρχοντα which might have been looked for. διενοεῖτο, πλεῖν is grammatically the simplest word to add, though the construction of διανοεῖσθαι leads one to feel a virtual ellipse of πέμπειν.

Κλέαρχος, who afterwards figures in the Anabasis of Xenophon (i. 1, 9, etc.), e.g. ii. 6, 1, εἷς αὐτῶν (sc. τῶν τὰς κεφαλὰς ἀποτμηθέντων) Κλέαρχος ὁμολογουμένως ἐκ πάντων τῶν ἐμπείρως αὐτοῦ ἐχόντων δόξας γενέσθαι ἀνὴρ καὶ πολεμικὸς καὶ φιλοπόλεμος ἐσχάτως. In Xen. Hell. i. 1, 36 (B.C. 410-409) he is sent as ἁρμοστής to Byzantium, and in B.C. 408 (Hell. i. 3, 15 sqq.) he crosses over to Pharnabazus to collect money, etc.


τὰς ἡμισείας, really 21 out of 39 (§ 4).

ὅπως μὴ . . . μᾶλλον . . . We should say, ‘might be led to pay as much attention to the later ones as to these,’ or ‘more attention . . . than . . .’ These words explain τὰς ἡμισείας, i.e the reason of the manœuvre of transporting only half at once. The Athenians would have their attention distracted and might allow the first half to reach Chios without much delay.

ἐπιδιαφερομένας ‘transported in addition.’


καὶ γὰρ gives the reason of the Athenians knowing that only half the ships were yet launched.

ταύτῃ ‘Cenchreis’ (P - S). Rather ‘in this way,’ with epexegesis ἐκ τοῦ προφανοῦς. καταφρονήσαντες . . . ἀδυνασίαν. καταφρονεῖν is here constructed like καταγιγνώσκειν. In vi. 34 καταφρονεῖν τοὺς ἐπιόντας is different, since καταφρονεῖν τινα (‘despise’) is used as well as κ. τινος. But that meaning would necessitate τὴν τῶν Ἀθ. ἀδυνασίαν. Moreover, the impotence of Athens is only an assumption. In <*>. 83 καταφρονοῦντες κἂν προαισθέσθαι= ‘full of the prond notion that they would see it in time.’ The construction here follows the sense (καταγνόντες) rather than the rule of the particular word. The sense is paralleled in in. 16, αἰσθόμενοι δὲ αὐτοὺς διὰ κατάγνωσιν ἀσθενείας σφῶν παρασκευαζομένους.

πολὺ predic. with ἐφαίνετο, ‘was as yet showing itself in any large dimensions.’

ὡς δὲ . . . καὶ . . . Cf. c. 1 (end).

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hide References (14 total)
  • Commentary references from this page (14):
    • Thucydides, Histories, 1.1
    • Thucydides, Histories, 1.110
    • Thucydides, Histories, 1.17
    • Thucydides, Histories, 1.3
    • Thucydides, Histories, 2.6
    • Thucydides, Histories, 2.63
    • Thucydides, Histories, 6.34
    • Thucydides, Histories, 6.40
    • Thucydides, Histories, 8.23.1
    • Thucydides, Histories, 8.48.3
    • Thucydides, Histories, 8.75.3
    • Thucydides, Histories, 8.8.4
    • Xenophon, Anabasis, 2.4.10
    • Xenophon, Hellenica, 1.1.36
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