Page:History of Greece Vol II.djvu/461

 MEGALOPOLIS 44$ by the ascendency of Epameinondas. Forty petty Arcadian townships, among those situated to the west of Mount Mzenalus, were aggregated into the new city: the jealousies of Tegea, Mantineia, and Kleitor, were for a while suspended; and ockists came from all of them, as well as from the districts of the Mse- nalii and Parrhasii, in order to impart to the new establishment a genuine Pan- Arcadian character. 1 It was thus there arose for the first time a powerful city on the borders of Laconia and Mes- senia, rescuing the Arcadian townships from their dependence on Sparta, and imparting to them political interests of their own, which rendered them, both a check upon their former chief and a support to the reestablished Messenians. It has been necessary thus to bring the attention of the reader for one moment to events long posterior in the order of time (Megalopolis was founded in 370 B. c.), in order that he may understand, by contrast, the general course of those incidents of the earlier time, where direct accounts are wanting. The north- ern boundary of the Spartan territory was formed by some of the many small Arcadian townships or districts, several of which were successively conquered by the Spartans and incorporated with their dominion, though at what precise time we are unable to say. We are told that Charilaus, the reputed nephew and ward of Lykurgus, took J>gys, and that he also invaded the territory of Tegea, but with singular ill-success, for he was de- feated and taken prisoner : 2 we also hear that the Spartans took Phigaleia by surprise in the 30th Olympiad, but were driven out again by the neighboring Arcadian Oresthasians. 3 During the second Messenian war, the Arcadians are represented as cor- dially seconding the Messenians : and it may seem perhaps pinr.lar that, while neither Mantineia nor Tegea are mentioned 1 Pnnsan. via. 27, 5. No cekist is mentioned from Orchomenus, though three of the petty townships contributing (avvre^ovvra) to Orchomenus were embodied in the new city. The feud between the neighboring cities of Orchomenus and Mantineia was bitter (Xen. Hellen. vi. 5, 11-22). Orcho- menus and Herrca both opposed the political confederation of Arcadia. The oration of Demosthenes, iixep Mcya/loTro/UriJv, strongly attests tin Importance of this city, especially c. 10, kuv piv avaipe dual nal dioiKi ftv, hxvpoif Aaitetaiftovioic evdiif eartv tivai, etc. Tnusan iii. 2, 6 : iii. 7. 3 ; viii. 48, 3 3 Pausan. viii. 3r, 2