Page:History of Greece Vol VII.djvu/229

211 RECALL OF ALKIUIADES. 211 was despatched to Sicily to fetch him. Great care Low-ever was taken, in sending this summons, to avoid all appearance of pre- judgraent, or harshness, or menace. The trierarch was forbidden to seize his person, and had instructions to invite him simply to accompany the Salaminian home in his own trireme : so as to avoid the hazard of offending the Argeian and Mantineian allies serving in Sicily, or the army itself. 1 It was on the return of the Athenian army from their unsuc- cessful attempt at Kamarina, to their previous quarters at Katana, that they found the Salaminian trireme newly arrived from Athens with this grave requisition against the general. We may be sure that Alkibiades received private intimation from his friends at Athens, by the same trireme, communicating to him the temper of the people, so that his resolution was speedily taken. Professing to obey, he departed in his own trireme on the voyage homeward, along with the other persons accused, the Salaminian trireme being in company; but as soon as they arrived at Thurii, in coasting along Italy, he and his companions quitted the vessel and dioappeared. After a fruitless search on the part of the Salaminian trierarch, the two triremes were obliged to return to Athens without him. Both Alkibiades and the rest of the accused one of whom 2 was his own cousin and namesake were tried, condemned to death on non-appearance, and their property con- fiscated ; while the Eumolpidaa and the other Eleusinian sacred families pronounced him to be accursed by the gods, for his dese- cration of the mysteries, 3 and recorded the condemnation on a plate of lead. Probably his disappearance and exile were acceptable to his enemies at Athens : at any rate, they thus made sure of getting rid of him ; while had he come back, his condemnation to death, 1 Thuryd.vi, 61. 2 Xenoph. Hcllen. i. 2, 13. 3 Thucyd. vi, 61 ; Plutarch, Alkib. c, 22-33 ; Lysias, Orat. vi, cent- Andokid. sect. 42. Plutarch says that it would have been easy for Alkibiades to raise a mutiny in the army at Katana, had he chosen to resist the order for coming home. But this is highly improbable. Considering what his conduct became immediately afterwards, we shall see good reason to belies that ho ave taken this step, had it been practicable.