Page:History of Greece Vol VII.djvu/139

121 DEMOCRACY AT SYRACUSE. 12^ by the non-Hellenic cities ot Egeota and Eryx, and by the Car- thaginian seaports, of which Panormus (Palermo) was the prin- cipal. Of these various Grecian cities, all independent, Syracuse was the first in power, Agrigentum the second. The causes above noticed, disturbing the first commencement of popular govern- ments in all of them, were most powerfully operative at Syra- cuse. We do not know the particulars of the democi-atical con stitution which was there established, but its stability was threat- ened by more than one ambitious pretender, eager to seize the sceptre of Gelo and Hiero. The most prominent among these pretenders was Tyndarion, who employed a considerable fortune in distributing largesses and procuring partisans among the poor. His political designs were at length so openly manifested, that he was brought to trial, condemned, and put to death ; yet not without an abortive insurrection of his partisans to rescue him. After several leading citizens had tried, and failed in a similar manner, the people thought it expedient to pass a law similar to the Athenian ostracism, authorizing the infliction of temporary preventive banishment. 1 Under this law several powerful citi- zens were actually and speedily banished ; and such was the abuse of the new engine, by the political parties in the city, that men of conspicuous position are said to have become afraid of meddling with public affairs. Thus put in practice, the institu- tion is said to have given rise to new political contentions not less violent than those which it checked, insomuch that the Syracu sans found themselves obliged to repeal the law not long after its introduction. We should have been glad to learn some partic- ulars concerning this political experiment, beyond the meagre abstract given by Diodorus, and especially to know the precau- tionary securities by which the application of the ostracizing sentence was restrained at Syracuse. Perhaps no care was taken to copy the checks and formalities provided by Kleisthenes t Athens. Yet under all circumstances, the institution, though tutelary, if reserved for its proper emergencies, was eminently 1 DioJor. xi. 86, 87. The institution at Syracuse was called the -petalism; because, in taking the votes, the name of the citizen intended to be banished v,;is written upon a leaf of ol'vc, instead of a shell or potsherd. YOL.VII. 6