text for the present war. All these actions
of the Hellenes against each other and the barbarian occurred in the
fifty years' interval between the retreat of Xerxes and the beginning of
the present war. During this interval the Athenians succeeded in placing
their empire on a firmer basis, and advanced their own home power to a
very great height. The Lacedaemonians, though fully aware of it, opposed
it only for a little while, but remained inactive during most of the
period, being of old slow to go to war except under the pressure of
necessity, and in the present instance being hampered by wars at home;
until the growth of the Athenian power could be no longer ignored, and
their own confederacy became the object of its encroachments. They then
felt that they could endure it no longer, but that the time had come
for them to throw themselves heart and soul upon the hostile power, and
break it, if they could, by commencing the present war. And though the
Lacedaemonians had made up their own minds on the fact of the breach of
the treaty and the guilt of the Athenians, yet they sent to Delphi and
inquired of the God whether it would be well with them if they went to
war; and, as it is reported, received from him the answer that if they
put their whole strength into the war, victory would be theirs, and
the promise that he himself would be with them, whether invoked or
uninvoked. Still they wished to summon their allies again, and to take
their vote on the propriety of making war. After the ambassadors from
the confederates had arrived and a congress had been convened, they all
spoke their minds, most of them denouncing the Athenians and demanding
that the war should begin. In particular the Corinthians. They had
before on their own account canvassed the cities in detail to induce
them to vote for the war, in the fear that it might come too late to
save Potidaea; they were present also on this occasion, and came forward
the last, and made the following speech:

"Fellow allies, we can no longer accuse the Lacedaemonians of having
failed in their duty: they have not only voted for war themselves,
but have assembled us here for that purpose. We say their duty, for
supremacy has its duties. Besides equitably administering private
interests, leaders are required to show a special care for the common
welfare in return for the special honours accorded to them by all in
other ways. For ourselves, all who have already had dealings with