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Hippias, informed of what had occurred, promptly takes precautions for his own safety and for the punishment of the guilty. ἀγγελθέντος: one of the rare instances of the abs. impers. ptc. in gen. for acc. See on 1. 74. 1. GMT. 849.—ἐς τὸν Κεραμεικόν: see App. on 57. 2.—οὐκ ἐπὶ τὸ γενόμενον: indicating his great self-control, as does also ἀδήλως τῇ ὄψει πλασάμενος πρὸς τὴν ξυμφοράν (4). τοὺς πομπέας: only here in the sense of τοὺς τὴν πομπὴν πέμψοντας (56. 9). The words τοὺς ὁπλίτας (which v. H. brackets), added in explanation, give the essential motive for his subsequent action.— πρότερον ἤ: with aor. inf., as 1. 69. 21; 2. 40. 11; 8. 45. 29; ὕστερον ἤ 4. 11. ἄπωθεν : with εἶναι as 4. 67. 8.— ἀδήλως...πρὸς τὴν ξυμφοράν : dissembling in look in the presence of the calamity so that no one observed (ἀδήλως). For πρὸς τὴν ξυμφοράν, see on 40. 12.— 5. δείξας τι χωρίον: as 1. 87. 8. ἀπεχώρησαν: Pp.'s correction of ἀνεχώρησαν, in accordance with ἐκέλευσεν αὐτοὺς . . . ἀπελθεῖν. οἰόμενοί τι ἐρεῖν αὐτόν : they suspected nothing, for it was customary for soldiers to hear unarmed the address of the leader. Cf. Polyaen. l. 21. 2. 7. φράσας: = κελεύσας, as 3. 15. 5.—ὑπολαβεῖν: to carry away sceretly. See on 1. 68. 18. ἐξελέγετο: picked out, i.e. for execution. Cf. 4. 74. 12.—οὓς ἐπῃτιᾶτο: whom he held guilty, knowing their disaffection. καὶ εἴ τις...ἔχων : and besides any one who was found with a dagger; for shield and spear belonged to the procession. Hence the words μετὰ γὰρ ἀσπίδος . . . πομπὰς ποιεῖν, omitted by v. H., St., and others, are well motived. ποιεῖν (for ποιεῖσθαι) is not ground for suspicion, since Thuc. uses the act. esp. of festal arrangements (see on 2. 15. 17). Here, too, ποιεῖν is used of ordering and preparing, not of the execution of the procession. Doubtless in view of Thuc.'s representation of Hippias' bearing immediately after the murder of Hipparchus, Aristotle says (18. § 4) οὐ γὰρ ἐδύναντο παραχρῆμα λαβεῖν οὐδὲν ἴχνος τῆς πράξεως, ἀλλ᾽ ὁ λεγόμενος λόγος, ὡς ὁ Ἱππίας ἀποστήσας ἀπὸ τῶν ὅπλων τοὺς πομπεύοντας ἐφώρασε τοὺς τὰ ἐγχειρίδια ἔχοντας, οὐκ ἀληθής ἐστιν: οὐ γὰρ ἔπεμπον τότε μεθ̓ ὅπλων, ἀλλ̓ ὕστερον τοῦτο κατεσκεύασενὁ δῆμος. But in spite of the definiteness of this statement, it is prob. that Thuc. and not Aristotle is right. See Busolt, Gr. Gesch.^{2} H, 53 and 382 ff., and E. Meyer, Gesch. d. Alt. H, 775, 795.
Commentary on Thucydides Book 6. Charles F. Smith. 1913. Boston. Ginn and Company.
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