ians, to be courted, and to receive presents, but of the
Lacedaemonians; for as he admired, so he wished to imitate, the
plainness of their habits, their temperance, and simplicity of living,
which he preferred to any sort of riches; but that he always had
been, and still was proud to enrich his country with the spoils of her
enemies. Pericles proved the mildest of his prosecutors, and rose up but
once all the while, almost as a matter of form, to plead against him.
Cimon was acquitted.

In his public life after this, he continued, while at home, to control
the common people, who would have trampled upon the nobility, and drawn
all the power and sovereignty to themselves. But when he afterwards was
sent out to war, the multitude broke loose, as it were, and overthrew
all the ancient laws and customs they had hitherto observed, and,
chiefly at the instigation of Ephialtes, withdrew the cognizance of
almost all causes from the Areopagus; so that all jurisdiction now being
transferred to them, the government was reduced to a perfect democracy,
and this by the help of Pericles, who was already powerful, and had
pronounced in favor of the common people.

He was indeed a favorer of the Lacedaemonians even from his youth, and
gave the names of Lacedaemonius and Eleus to his two sons, twins.

Cimon was countenanced by the Lacedaemonians in opposition to
Themistocles, whom they disliked; and while he was yet very young,
they endeavored to raise and increase his credit in Athens. This
the Athenians perceived at first with pleasure, and the favor the
Lacedaemonians showed him was in various ways advantageous to them and
their affairs; as at that time they were just rising to power, and were
occupied in winning the allies to their side. So they seemed not at all
offended with the honor and kindness showed to Cimon, who then had the
chief management of all the affairs of Greece, and was acceptable to
the Lacedaemonians, and courteous to the allies. But afterwards the
Athenians, grown more powerful, when they saw Cimon so entirely devoted
to the Lacedaemonians, began to be angry, for he would always in
speeches prefer them to the Athenians, and upon every occasion, when he
would reprimand them for a fault, or incite them to emulation, he
would exclaim, "The Lacedaemonians would not do thus." This raised the
discontent, and got him in some degree the hatred of the citizens; but
that which ministered chiefly to the accusation against