ATT 
tlie Athenians, that they had but too many enemies on 
their hands already, without going abroad to feek for more; 
and that, though they were hardly beginning to recover 
from the misfortunes occafioned by the late war and plague, 
they were wantonly expofing themfelves to a greater dan¬ 
ger (fill. Nicias, in this harangue, likewife reflected in¬ 
directly on the luxury of Alcibiades, who had now car¬ 
ried his extravagance to an incredible pitch. The expence 
of the furniture of his houfe, and of his retinue, was pro¬ 
digious. His table was as fumptuous as that of any prince; 
and he contended at the Olympic games with (even diffe¬ 
rent fets of horfes". To fiipport fo expenfive a life, it 
was abfolutely necefTary for him to poffefs valf funds; and 
Nicias no doubt meant to infinuate, that Alcibiades ex¬ 
pected to have an opportunity, by this expedition, to re¬ 
pair his private fortune, which muft have been greatly 
diflipated by fuch enormous expences. Alcibiades an- 
fwered the harangue of Nicias, by telling the audience, 
that his magnificence was intended to reflect honour on his 
country. He put them in mind of his fervices to the com¬ 
monwealth. He affured them that the cities of Sicily were 
fo weary of the opprefiion of their petty fovereigns, that 
they would inftantly open their gates to the firlt power 
which (hould appear to deliver them from their prefent 
flavery ; and he concluded with telling them, that to carry 
their arms abroad was the fured way to damp the cou¬ 
rage of their enemies, and that the Athenians muft always' 
continue matters at fea, in fpite of the Lacedemonians. 
T he Athenians, delighted with this flattering fpeech of 
Alcibiades, entirely difregafded that of Nicias, who was 
a man of a foft pnfillanimous difpofition, and of an irre- 
folute temper. They therefore perfifted in their refo- 
lution to undertake this expedition, and began to make 
the necefTary preparations for it with the utmoft difpatch. 
Juft as the Athenian fleet was on the point of letting 
fail, feveral evil prefages fell out that extremely perplex¬ 
ed the minds of the people. Firft, The feaft of Adonis 
happened about this time, which was celebrated by the 
women, uttering piteous groans and lamentations; audit 
was cuflomary for all the inhabitants on that occafion to 
wear mourning. Secondly, The flatues of Mercury, one 
of which flood before the entry of every houfe, were all 
maimed in the fa'ine night, and the author of this piece of 
facrilege could not be difcovered. The wild libertine 
character of Alcibiades expofed him to fufpicions of ha¬ 
ving been concerned in this mi (chief. But the affection 
entertained for him by the foldiers and failors, who de¬ 
clared, that they would not proceed on the expedition if 
the fmallefl violence were offered to his perfon, preferved 
him at prefent from any trouble on that head. 
Alcibiades demanded to be tried, that he might have 
an opportunity of juflifying himfelf before his departure. 
But the people, impatient for the expedition proceeding, 
obliged him to fet fail. The view of the fleet under fail 
attracted the admiration both of the citizens and of ftran- 
gers; for never had a Angle city in the weftern world dif- 
played fo grand and magnificent an armament. It confid¬ 
ed of 136 veffels, carrying 6280 foldiers, of whom the 
greater part were heavy armed. Befides th.efe, there were 
thirty veffels loaded with provifions; and the whole was 
attended by 100 barks, without including merchant-fliips, 
or the after-augmentations of the fleet. Befides the fea- 
forces, there was a body of troops for tiie land-fervice, 
and among thefe a few cavalry. All the forces were equip¬ 
ped in the mod complete manner : and, upon the whole, 
there could hardly be a grander or more beautiful exhibi¬ 
tion. 
When the troops were embarked, the whole fleet, on a 
fignal given by a trumpet, weighed anchor, attended w ith 
a general fliout of the fpeftators, pouring out their mod 
earned vows for the fuccefs of their fellow-citizens. The 
fleet directed its courfe towards Rhegium, whither they 
difpatched fome fliips before the red, to fee that the money 
promifed by the Egidians was ready ; of which, however, 
shey found no more than thirty talents provided. Nicias 
I C A. 515 
availed himfelf of this circumdance, to enforce the rea- 
fons he had inlided on againd the expedition, and advifed 
to terminate the difpute between the Egidians and Seli- 
nontines in an amicable manner; to oblige the former to 
fulfil their engagements; and then to return to Athens. 
Alcibiades, on the contrary, faid it would be difgraceful 
to return without performing fome fignal exploit with fo 
powerful an armament; that they ought to endeavour to 
detach the Greeks in Sicily from their connection with Sy- 
raeufe, to bring them over to their own party, and, after 
obtaining from them reinforcements both of troops- and 
provifions, to attack Syracufe. Lamachus advifed to 
march immediately againd Syracufe. But the opinion of 
Alcibiades prevailed. They therefore continued their 
courfe for Sicily, where Alcibiades reduced Catana. 
Let us now look back to Athens. The enemies of Al¬ 
cibiades, intent alone on gratifying their refentment, with¬ 
out-regarding the public intered, took advantage of his 
abfence to renew againd him an accufation of having in a 
debauch profaned the myderies of Proferpine and Ceres; 
and they profccuted the accufation with the mod invete¬ 
rate malice and animofity. Many perfons were accufed, 
and thrown into prifon, without being even permitted to 
be heard ; and a velfe! was difpatched to bring Alcibiades 
to dand trial before the people. <#To this he apparently 
confented, and went 011-board the galley ; but on arriving 
at Tliuriinn he difappeared. Not having therefore obey¬ 
ed the fummons, within the limited time, he was condemn¬ 
ed to death for contumacy, and his efteCts confifcated. Ni¬ 
cias finding himfelf, by the abfence of Alcibiades, inveded 
with the foie command, managed matters in that flow irre- 
folute manner that was natural to him, wading the ardour 
of the army in fatiguing infignificant marches along the 
coads; and at lad he retired to Catana, without perform¬ 
ing any greater exploit than ruining a fmall village. 
Alcibiades, arriving at Argos, applied to the Spartans 
for permiflion to live in their city, and under their pro¬ 
tection; making them in return an offer of his bed fervi¬ 
ces. The Spartans, overjoyed to have in their power fo 
able a general of their enemy, received him with the high- 
eft marks of good-will and edeem. Here, by the Angular 
faculty he poflefled of accommodating himfelf tb the way 
of life of every country in which he had occafion to live, 
lie imitated, with the greateft eafe, the Spartan tempe¬ 
rance and aufterity, and'by that means quickly gained their 
affeftion. The Syractifans, in the mean time, made vigo¬ 
rous preparations for an obdinate defence, and began to 
upbraid the Athenians for remaining fhut up in Catana- 
Nicias, dung with thefe reproaches, refolved at lad to at¬ 
tack Syracufe by fea and land. 
As this liege of Syracufe is one of the mod remarkable 
recorded in liidory, it is proper, in a very few words, to 
give fome idea of the fituation of that city. It was ori¬ 
ginally founded by Archias the Corinthian, ontheeadern 
coad of Sicily. It had a greater and leder harbour; the 
circumference of the greater being about fix miles. The 
town itfelf was one of the mod beautiful and powerful 
poflefled by the Greeks; and confided of three principal 
divifions: id, Theifland, called Ortygia, which was fepa- 
rated from the main land by a narrow arm of the fea. 
This quarter was every where drongly fortified in the fa- 
fhion of thofe times, and might therefore be regarded as 
the citadel of Syracufe. The fecond divifion, Acradina t 
dood on the main land neared to the little drait that bound¬ 
ed Ortygia, with which it communicated by abridge over 
that drait. This formed the body of the city. Tyche, the 
third great divifion, adjoined to Acradina on the land fide ; 
and a mafs of building or fortification, named Hexapilus, 
commanded the accefs to Tyche. Beyond and contiguous 
to Hexapilus was the large fuburb of Epipolis , fituated for 
the mod part on a deep eminence. The whole united 
formed perhaps one of the mod extenfive cities at that 
time in the world. See Syracuse. 
The fird news of the arrival of the Athenian fleet in 
Sicily, which happened in 414 B. C. produced the greateft 
confiernation 
