Page:History of Greece Vol VI.djvu/24

2 dence and courage, acquired by this laborious training an increased skill, which placed the Athenian navy every year more and more above the rest of Greece : and the perfection of this force became the more indispensable as the Athenian empire was now again confined to the sea and seaport towns ; the reverses immediately preceding the thirty years truce having broken up all Athenian land ascendency over Megara, Bccotia, and the other continental territories adjoining to Attica. The maritime confederacy, originally commenced at Delos, under the headship of Athens, but with a common synod and deliberative voice on the part of each member, had now become transformed into a confirmed empire on the part of Athens, over the remaining states as foreign dependencies ; all of them rendering tribute except Chios, Samos, and Lesbos. These three still remained on their original footing of autonomous allies, retaining their armed force, ships, and fortifications, with the obligation of furnishing military and naval aid when required, but not of paying tribute : the discontinuance of the deliberative synod, however, had deprived them of their original security against the encroachments of Athens. I have already stated generally the steps, we do not know them in detail, whereby this important change was brought about, gradually and without any violent revolution, for even the transfer of the common treasure from Delos to Athens, which was the most palpable symbol and evidence of the change, was not an act of Athenian violence, since it was adopted on the proposition of the Samians The change resulted in fact almost inevitably from the circumstances of the case, and from the eager activity of the Athenians contrasted with the backwardness and aversion to personal service on the part of the allies. We must recollect that the confederacy, even in its original structure, was contracted for permanent objects, and was permanently binding by the vote of its majority, like the Spartan confederacy, upon every individual member : it was destined to keep out the Persian fleet, and to maintain the police of the Ægean. Consistently with these objects, no individual member could be allowed to secede from 1