Charles F. Smith, Commentary on Thucydides Book 7

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Nicias, on the contrary, although secretly recognizing the gravity of the situation, still considers that of the Syracusans not more favourable, because they lack money and are not equal to the Athenians at sea. Besides, the secret information which he receives from the pro-Athenian party in Syracuse, leads him to hope for a revolution. But especially does he fear that their withdrawal without having accomplished anything will bring upon them the bitterest accusations at Athens, and even lead to their destruction. And since the Syracusans cannot possibly long keep up their great exertions, he insists on waiting for the probable ruin of their power.

3. πόνηρα: Schol. ἀσθενῆ, ἐπισφαλῆ, ἐπικίνδυνα. For the accent in this sense, see App.—τῷ δὲ λόγῳ: in open speech, i.e. in the council of war.

καταγγέλτους γίγνεσθαι: Schol. δήλους διὰ μηνύματος; “he did not wish that it should be revealed to the enemy that they (Nicias and the other leaders) in a full council (μετὰ πολλῶν) openly voted for the retreat.” With this personal const. of the verbal adj. with γίγνεσθαι cf. viii.14.2, ἐξάγγελτοι γενέσθαι; Hdt. ii.119.10, ἐπάϊστος ἐγένετο. See on iii.30.3.—λαθεῖν γὰρ ἂν κτἑ.: sc. εἰ κατάγγελτοι γίγνοιντο κτἑ., i.e. they could not so easily retreat unobserved, whenever they might wish to do so, if, etc.

ποιοῦντες: nom. referring to ἔφη to be supplied from ἐβούλετο (4), and pl. since Nicias represents the Athenians. Kühn. 476, note 1, explains that it is attracted into the case of the subj. of the subord. clause δπότε βούλοιντο.

τὸ δέ τι καί: accedit quod, as in i.107.19; 118. 12.

ἀφ̓ ὧν...αὐτῶν : “according to what he more than the rest knew of them.” Cf. vi.17.23; 20. 4. αὐτῶν depends on ἅ contained in ἀφ᾽ ὧν, and refers to τὰ τῶν πολεμίων. Kr. Spr. 47, 10, 2. Cf. v.26.25, ξυνέβη μοι . . . καθ̓ ἡσυχίαν τι αὐτῶν μᾶλλον αἴσθεσθαι.

ἐλπίδος τι : also in ii.51.29. Cf. c. 69. 11, λαμπρότητός τι; iii.44.6, τι ξυγγνώμης.

χρημάτων...ἐκτρυχώσειν : for they would wear them out by want of supplies. αὐτούς refers to the

Syracusans; the subj. of ἐκτρυχώσειν is the Athenians. The remainder of the sent., ἄλλως τε καὶ . . . θαλασσοκρατούντων, seems to indicate that χρήματα here means supplies, not money.

θαλασσοκρατούντων: sc. σφῶν, the gen. abs., although the subj. implied in ἐκτρυχώσειν is nom. Cf. iii.13.30, βοηθησάντων δὲ ὑμῶν προθύμῳς, πόλιν τε προσλήψεσθε κτἑ., where the subj. of the gen. abs. is the same as that of the leading verb. Kr. Spr. 47, 4, 2. Cf. ii.83.15, 16; v.31.7.—καί (ἦν γὰρ...ἐνδοῦναι ) ἐπεκηρυκεύετο: the causal sent. in parataxis before the main one, not uncommon in Thuc. See on i.31.7. The subj. of ἐπεκηρυκεύετο is to be supplied from the parenthesis τὸ ἐν ταῖς Συρακούσαις βουλόμενον κτἑ. The word is used here and in c. 49. 4 of secret messages, the bearers of which are called διάγγελοι in c. 73. 27.

οὐκ εἴα: advised against. Cf. vi.72.7; viii.46.31.

16. ἐπ᾽ ἀμφότερα ἔχων: an unusual expression, inclining to both sides, wavering between two decisions, explained by διασκοπῶν.

ἀνεῖχε : kept, with ἔχων and διασκοπῶν to complete the meaning. Schol. οὐδεμιᾶ προσετίθετο γνώμῃ. Cf. Dio C. lviii. 12, ἔτι διασκοπῶν ὅ τι πράξῃ ἀνεῖχε. It is intr. Kr. Spr. 52, 2, 3. Cf. ii.18.22; viii.94.11.—τῷ δ᾽ ἐμφανεῖ τότε λόγῳ: in open speech at that time (as he was obliged to express his opinion in the council of war); opp. to τῷ μὲν ἔργῳ.

οὐκ ἀποδέξονται : “as in iii.57.5, would not approve=μέμψονται, and so, like it, const. with ace. of thing and gen. of person. Cf. i.84.1, ὃ μέμφονται μάλιστα ἡμῶν.” Cl. But there ἡμῶν is possessive gen. with ὅ, here σφῶν depends on ταῦτα.— 19. ὥστε...ἀπελθεῖν: explanatory of ταῦτα namely, that they should withdraw without their order. ὥστε as in c. 14. 11; 49. 5; vi.88.47. GMT. 98, 2, N. 2.—οὐ τοὺς αὐτοὺς ψηφιεῖσθαί τε περὶ σφῶν αὐτῶν καὶ τὰ πράγματα...γνώσεσθαι : the paratactic const., though logically the second clause is subord., “not the same persons would pass judgment on them and form their opinions.” etc., i.e. a class of persons would pass judgment on them very different from those who would form their opinions from seeing the state of affairs, as they do themselves, rather than from hearsay on the fault-finding of others. Bk. was right in striking out αὐτῶν after σφῶν, since σφῶν refers not to τοὺς αὐτούς but to the speaker (Nicias) and his comrades.

ὥσπερ καὶ αὐτοί: the nom. as in i.32.3; v.29.9; 44. 9.—ἄλλων ἐπιτιμήσει ἀκούοντας: so with Vat. rather than the vulgate ἀκούσαντας, since it is co-ord. with ὁρῶντας.

ἐξ ὦν ἄν τις...διαβάλλοι : ἄν belongs to the opt. and not to the rel. “by slanders such as any one might bring forward (διαβάλλοι ἄν) in fine speeches, they would allow themselves to be persuaded.” Cf. c. 50. 33; viii.54.6, ὅπῃ ἂν αὐτοῖς δοκοίη. GMT. 63, 2. εὖ λέγων, by fine speeches, is ironical. Cf. iii.38.20, ἀπὸ τῶν λόγῳ καλῶς ἐπιτιμησάντων.

ἐκ τούτων : epanalepsis, as in iii.64.5. G. 152, N. 3; II. 996 b.—αὐτούς: sc. τοὺς Ἀθηναίους.

24. καὶ τοὺς πλείους: and even most. Cf. c. 68. 7; 80. 18.

βοῶσιν: cry out, esp. of indignant complaints. Cf. vi.28.9; viii.86.8.

ὑπὸ χρημάτων καταπροδόντες: becoming traitors for money. Cf. Lys. VII 21, ὑπὸ τῆς ἐμῆς δυνάμεως καὶ τῶν ἐμῶν χρημάτων οὐδεὶς ἐθέλει σοι μαρτυρεῖν. καταπροδόντες is used intr. Kr. Spr. 52, 1, 2.

ἐπιστάμενος τὰς Ἀθηναίων φύσεις: cf. c. 14, § 2, 4.— 28. ἐπ᾽ αἰσχρᾷ αἰτίᾳ: on a disgraceful charge. Cf. i.102.16, ἐπὶ τῷ βελτίονι λόγῳ; i.141.3, ἐπὶ μεγάλῃ καὶ ἐπὶ βραχείᾳ ὁμοίως προφάσει.

μᾶλλον ἢ...ἰδίᾳ : rather than incurring danger of his own accord to suffer this, if need be, at the hands of the enemy. κινδυνεύσας has the principal emphasis. This idea is emphasized still further by the significant position of ἰδίᾳ. For other advs. thus emphatically placed last, cf. i.28.12; 77. 19; iii.55.13.—ἰδίᾳ: on his own responsibility, as opp. to ἐπ᾽ αἰσχρᾷ αἰτίᾳ; Arn. and St., for his part, i.e. he would rather lose his individual life, etc.

31. ὅμως: i.e. however bad their own condition might be, still—. Cf. v.61.3.

ἐν περιπολίοις: Schol. ἐν τοῖς περὶ τὴν πόλιν τειχίσμασι καὶ οἰκοδομαῖς. Cf. vi.45.6, ἐς τὰ περιπόλια τὰ ἐν τῇ χώρᾳ φρουρὰς ἐσεκόμιζον.

ἀναλίσκοντας : sc. χρήματα.

καὶ . . . ἔτι: et praeterea. Cf. vi.31.13, καὶ ξύμμαχοι ἔτι.

βόσκοντας : maintaining, as in Hdt. vi.39.14, πεντακοσίους βόσκων ἐπικούρους. It is not elsewhere used of men in Att. prose, but often in a contemptuous sense in the poets.

τὰ μέν, τὰ δέ: the first is explained by δισχίλια γάρ . . . προσοφείλειν; the second by ἤν τε . . . πράγματα.

ἔτι : Cl. and Kr. render hereafter (cf. vi.86.24, ἔτι βουλήσεσθε): Arn. translates the passage: “Were in some respects ill provided, and in others, moreover, they would be utterly at a loss how to proceed.”

ἀνηλωκέναι: on the aug., see App.—προσοφείλειν: they owed besides, i.e. were in arrears with many payments.

ἤν τε καὶ ὁτιοῦν ἐκλίπωσι τῆς νῦν παρασκευῆς: cf. c. 13. 3, εἰ ἀφαιρήσομέν τι καὶ βραχὺ τῆς πηρήσεως.

τροφήν : pecuniam alimentariam, the common meaning in military usage. Cf. vi.93.20. In Dem. IV. 28, σιτηρέσιον (= τροφή). —φθερεῖσθαι: fut. mid. used pass. Kühn. 376, note 1; Kr. Spr. 40 s.v.— ἐπικουρικὰ μᾶλλον ἢ δἰ ἀνάγκης: Schol. μισθοφόρων τοῖς Συρακοσίοις ὄντων, καὶ οὐχὶ δἰ ἀνάγκην στρατευομένων πολιτῶν, ὥσπερ Ἀθηναίων.

39. καὶ μὴ χρήμασιν: it seems better not to bracket χρήμασι as Cl. does. The concluding argument of Demosthenes in c. 47. 17 was, “nor again was it proper to continue the siege, expending much money to no purpose,” i.e. the money consideration was his final objection to staying longer. Nicias's final argument was an answer to this, “they ought to continue the siege (τρίβειν προσκαθημένους) and not to go away conquered by money (by the money consideration), as they were much su perior (in this respect).” With this comparison the sent. becomes clear. If any change in the text is to be made, the emendation of Korais, οἷς for ὡς, most commends itself. See App.