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The difficulty of maintaining order in the darkness and uncertainty turns the retreat into a wild flight, in which many perish, part in the pursuit, still more in leaping down from the cliff. Vivid description of the different events. 1. ἐν...ἀπορίᾳ ἐγίγνοντο : comprehensive expression for the fearful situation described in § 2 ff. Cf. iv.26.8. ἥν: placed first by prolepsis. Arn. explains that we should have expected ὅτῳ τρόπῳ ξυνηνέχθη, sc. ἡ ταραχή, but that ἕκαστα having been inserted, the sent. is now ungrammatical. As it stands, ἕκαστα seems to bear a sort of partitive relation to the subj. implied in ἥν. οὐδὲ...ῥᾴδιον ἦν : this expression undoubtedly refers to Thucydides' own experience. See Introd. to Book I. p. 15. οὐδ᾽ ἀφ̓ ἑτέρων: i.e. neither from Athenians nor from Syracusans. Cf. v.26.26, where Thuc. speaks of his care in making accurate investigations: γενομένῳ παρ᾽ ἀμφοτέροις τοῖς πράγμασι. For position of the prep., see on c. 43. 4. σαφέστερα μέν: not to be const. with οἶδεν, but with something like τὰ γιγνόμενά ἐστι to be supplied from ξυνηνέχθη. ὅμως...οἶδεν : “but still even of these things those who are engaged do not (know) everything, except (so far as) each knows with difficulty what happens just about himself.” πάντα follows οὐδὲ ταῦτα in explanatory appos. οἶδεν agrees with the nearer ἕκαστος. Kr. Spr. 63, 1, 3. Cf. c. 27. 8, where ἕκαστος takes a pl. verb. δή: belongs with μόνη as in ii.77.7 with πᾶσαν, i.33.13 with ὀλίγοις. ἔν γε τῷδε τῷ πολέμῳ : γε (from Vat.) as in iv.48.24, ὅσα γε κατὰ τὸν πόλεμον τόνδε. ἄν τις...ᾔδει : the transition to the particular case was made at ἥ, hence only ᾔδει, not εἰδείη, which some Mss. give, is possible. 9. ὡς...εἰκός : sc. ὁρᾶν, to which the following infs. are added in explanation. τὴν δὲ γνῶσιν τοῦ οἰκείου ἀπιστεῖσθαι: “to distrust their recognition of persons.” τοῦ οἰκείου signifies what was especial or peculiar, in direct contrast to τοῦ σώματος. ἀπιστεῖσθαι as v.68.6, τὰ πλήθη ἠπιστεῖτο. ἀνεστρέφοντο : versabantur, as in iv.35.2; viii.94.9. 12. τῶν Ἀθηναίων: i.e. those who, acc. to c. 43. § 3, 4, had first ascended the heights and immediately pressed on (c. 43. § 5). With these is contrasted in 13 τὸ ἄλλο στράτευμα. οἱ δὲ ἔτι...ἐχώρουν : i.e. were advancing unchecked with their first impulse. Cf. c. 43. 33. αὐτοῖς: see on c. 34. 7. πρὸς ὅ τι χρὴ χωρῆσαι: which way to turn. τὰ πρόσθεν: the troops that had first pressed forward. χαλεπὰ...διαγνῶναι : with τὰ πρόσθεν, as in i.1.10, τὰ ἔτι παλαιότερα σαφῶς εὑρεῖν ἀδύνατα. 18. ὡς κρατοῦντες: in the feeling of victory. The ὡς of Vat. is preferable to the simple partic. κραυγῇ οὐκ ὀλίγῃ χρώμενοι: “with loud cries,” to be taken with παρεκελεύοντο (sc. ἀλλήλους) and καὶ ἅμα τοὺς προσφερομένους (the Athenians coming up) ἐδέχοντο as shown by τε, καὶ ἅμα. ἀδύνατον ὄν : for the acc. abs. of impers. phrase, see G. 278, 2; H. 973; Kühn. 487, 3. σημῆναι: common term in military language. Cf. c. 50. 26; v.71.17. οἵ τε Ἀθηναῖοι: i.e. οἳ νεωστὶ ἀνεβεβήκεσαν. τε is correlative to τε in 17. Observe the repeated correlation with τε, καί throughout the sent.—σφᾶς αὐτούς: = ἀλλήλους, as in viii.92.52. Kr. Spr. 51, 2, 16. The meaning is: those who were just coming up looked about for those who had gone before, but took all who came toward them, i.e. even their own people who were fleeing back, for enemies. τὸ ἐξ ἐναντίας: the correct reading from Vat. instead of the vulgate τὸ ἐναντίον. Cf. Schol. γράφεται καὶ πᾶν τὸ ἐξ ἐναντίας. For ἐξ ἐναντίας, from the opposite direction, cf. iv.33.5; 35. 11. For the neut. sing. in collective sense, see Kühn. 347, 3.—πάλιν: see on c. 40. 3. τοῦ ξυνθήματος: λόγος ἐν πολέμῳ τῶν οἰκείων διδόμενος, Etymol. Mag. Cf. 31 below. Cf. Tac. Hist. iii. 22, crebris interrogationibus notum pugnae signum. εἶναι: = παρεῖναι. See on c. 11. 15.—γνωρίσαι: sc. ἀλλήλους. σφίσι τε αὐτοῖς...ἐρωτῶντες : i.e. they caused confusion among themselves, because all were asking at the same time, and therefore no one got an intelligible answer. σαφὲς αὐτὸ κατέστησαν: cf. i.32.6; 140. 30. αὐτό, sc. τὸ ξύνθημα. 27. τὸ δ̓ ἐκείνων...ἠπίσταντο : but their (the Syracusans') watchword the Athenians did not know to the same extent (οὐχ ὁμοίως).—διὰ τὸ...ἧσσον ἀγνοεῖσθαι : sc. ἐν ἀλλήλοις. The Syracusans had no need to ask for their own watchword, because they kept together (μὴ διεσπασμένους) and knew one another. ἐντύχοιέν τισι: sc. οἱ Ἀθηναῖοι. τισι governs τῶν πολεμίων. αὐτοί : the Athenians again, who throughout the whole description are those first in mind.—ὑποκρίνοιντο: = ἀποκρίνοιντο. Cf. Hdt. i.78.14; 91. 29; 164. 8. Understand here something like ἐντυχόντες κρείσσοσι τῶν πολεμίων. 32. μέγιστον καὶ οὐχ ἥκιστα: see on c. 24. 12.—καὶ ὁ παιανισμός: cf. Schol. on i.50.20, δύο παιᾶνας ᾖδον οἱ Ἕλληνες, πρὸ μὲν τοῦ πολέμου τῷ Ἄρει, μετὰ δὲ τὸν πόλεμον τῷ Ἀπόλλωνι. Cl. and St. adopt everywhere, though against most of the Mss., παιανισμός, παιανίζειν for the forms with ω（παιων-). See on i.50.20; vi.32.10. Herodian recognizes only παιαν—. φόβον παρεῖχε : sc. τὸ παιανίσαι. The Athenians thought the pacan of their Dorian allies was hostile, just as that of the enemy themselves.— 36. οἵ τε πολέμιοι ὁμοίως: sc. ὁπότε παιανίσειαν. 39. καθίστασαν: understand αὑτούς or ἀλλήλους. Cf. ἐς φόβον καταστῆναι, ii.81.27; iv.96.23. See on c. 43. 47. On the impf. for the aor., see App. μόλις ἀπελύοντο: were separated with difficulty, of bitter contest, as in c. 63. 3; i.49.7. 41. πολλοί: so all the later editt. for οἱ πολλοί of the Mss., because acc. to the whole account, and esp. c. 45. § 2, the majority did not perish in this way. Besides, Plut. and Valla seem not to have read the art.—ῥιπτοῦντες: on the form, see App.—ἑαυτούς: for σφᾶς αὐτούς. Cf. ii.4.18; 49. 22. πάλιν: with καταβάσεως as in c. 38. 16 with ἔκπλους, c. 62. 13 with ἀνάκρουσις. Cf. iv.10.14; v.5.1. Kr. Spr. 50, 8, 4. ἐπειδὴ...καταβαῖεν : opt. with reference to the different divisions. τῶν προτέρων στρατιωτῶν: i.e. τῆς προτέρας στρατιᾶς (c. 43. 21), who, as they had ascended Epipolae in the summer of 414 B.C., were better acquainted with the country. διεφύγγανον: for this fuller form, cf. φυγγάνω, Aesch. Prom. 513; Soph. El. 132; ἀποφυγγάνω, Dem. XXIII. 74; διαφυγγάνω, Aeschin. 111. 10; Arr. An. iv.4.6; ἐκφυγγάνω, Aesch. Prom. 525; καταφυγγάνω, Aeschin. III. 208; Hdt. vi.16.4. εἰσὶν οἵ: part. appos. to οἱ δέ, as i.119.4, οἱ ἄλλοι, οἱ πλείους. Cf. iv.52.4; vi.88.21.— διαμαρτόντες τῶν ὁδῶν: also in i.106.3. ἐπλανήθησαν, διέφθειραν: the fate of individuals (εἰσὶν οἵ) stated in the aor.
Commentary on Thucydides Book 7. Charles F. Smith. 1886. Boston. Ginn and Company.
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