Page:History of Greece Vol VIII.djvu/258

 ^36 HISTORY OF GREECE. before the senate, and accused the generals of being concerned iu a conspiracy to break up the peace ; preter.ding to be himself their accomplice. Upon his information, given both before the senate and before an assembly at Munychia, the generals, the taxiarchs, and several other citizens, men of high worth and courageous patriots, were put into prison, as well as Agoratus himself, to stand their trial afterwards before a dikastery consist- ing of two thousand members. One of the parties thus accused, Menestratus, being admitted by the public assembly, on the prop- osition of Hagnodorus, the brother-in-law of Kritias, to become accusing witness, named several additional accomplices, who were also forthwith placed in custody.' Though the most determined defenders of the democratical constitution were thus eliminated, Kritias and Theramenes still farther insured the success of their propositions by invoking the presence of Lysander from Samos. The demolition of the walls had been completed, the main blockading army had disbanded, and the immediate pressure of famine had been removed, when an assembly was held to determine on future modifications of the constitution. A citizen named Drakontides, 2 moved that a Board of Thirty should be named, to draw up laws for the future government of the city, and to manage provisionally the public affairs, until that task should be completed. Among the thirty persons proposed, prearranged by Theramenes and the oligarch- ical five ephors, the most prominent names were those of Kritias and Theramenes : there were, besides, Drakontides himself, Onomakles, one of the Four Hundred who had escaped, Aris- toteles and Charikles, both exiles newly returned, Eratosthenes, misdates them, and represents them as having occurred before the surrender, whereas they really occurred after it. "We know from Xenophon, that when Theramenes came back the second time with the real peace, the people were in such a state of famine, that farther waiting was impossible : the peace was accepted immediately that it was proposed ; cruel as it was, the people were glad to get it (Xenoph. Hellen. ii, 2, 22). Besides, how could Agoratus be conveyed with two vessels out of Munychia, when the haibor was closely blocked up ? and what is the meaning of Iwf T& irpayfiara Karaaraij], referred to a moment just before the surrender 1 1 Lysias cont. Agorat. Or. xiii, sects. 38, 60, 68. Aristcphan. Vesp. 157,
 * Lysias cont. Eratosth. Or. yi, s. 74: compare Aristofle ap. Sthol. ad