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 SECOND AND THIRD YEARS OF THE WAR. 197 during the shorter passage near the strait, at the first dawn of moruing. 1 On seeing his approach, the Corinthian admirals 1 Thucyd. ii, 83. 'EireuS?/ pevTOi uvTurapcnrteov-uf TE eupuv avroijf (that is, when the Corinthians saw the Athenian ships) Tvapu yr/v aQuv /co/itfo^e- vuv, Kdl K Harptiv rrjq 'A^ataf Trpof TTJV avrnrepa^ fjireipov 6ia[3a^6vTuv inl 'Anapvaviac Kareltiov Toiif 'A.&7]vai,oiiai, K a I OVK 3,ai?ov WKTOf vopfj,ioapc voi, ovru 6rj uvajKa^ovTai vavpaxelv KUTU fieaov rbv Trop$]u.6v. There is considerable difficulty in clearly understanding what was here done, especially what is meant by the words OVK e'Xa'&ov vvurbf ixpopfti vot, which words the Scholiast construed as if the nominative case to e were ol 'A.di]valoi, whereas the natural structure of the sentence, as well as the probabilities of fact, lead the best commentators to consider ol Hehonov- v^cfioi as the nominative case to that verb. The remark of the Scholiast, however, shows us, that the difficulty of understanding the sentence dates from ancient times. Dr. Arnold whose explanation is adopted by Poppo and Goller says : " The two fleets were moving parallel to one another along the oppo- site shores of the Corinthian gulf. But even when they had sailed out of the strait at Rhium, the opposite shores were still so near, that the Pelo- ponesians hoped to cross over without opposition, if they could so far deceive the Athenians, as to the spot where they brought to for the night, aa to induce them either to stop too soon, or to advance too far, that they might not be exactly opposite to them to intercept the passage. If they could lead the Athenians to think that they meant to advance in the night beyond Patrse, the Athenian fleet was likely to continue its own course along the northern shore, to be ready to intercept them when they should endeavor to run across to Acamania. But the Athenians, aware that they had stopped at Patrse, stopped themselves at Chalkis, instead of proceeding further to the westward ; and thus were so nearly opposite to them, thai the Peloponncsians had not time to get more than half-way across, before they found themselves encountered by their watchful enemy." This explanation seems to me not satisfactory, nor does it take account of all the facts of the case. The first belief of the Peloponnesians was, that Phormio would not dare to attack them at all : accordingly, having arrired at Patraa, they stretched from thence across the gulf to the mouth of the Euenus, the natural way of proceeding according to ancient nav- igation, going in the direction of Akarnania (r< 'A/capvaw'af). As they were thus stretching across, they perceived Phormio bearing down upon them from the Euenus : this was a surprise to th !m, and as they wished to avoid a battle in the mid-channel, they desisted from proceeding farther that day, in hopes to be able to deceive Phormio in respect of their night-station. They made a feint of taking night-station on the shore between Patrse and Rhium. near the narrow part of the strait ; but, in