Page:History of Greece Vol XI.djvu/270

 L'44 HISTORY OF C.REECk were charged with an aggressive invasion of Bceotia ; while, ac- cording to a third, the war was caused by their having carried off Theano, a married Theban woman. Pausanias confesses that h cannot distinctly make out what was the allegation against them. 1 Assisted by the antipathy of the Thessalians and Lokrians, not less vehement than her own/ Thebes had no difficulty in obtaining sentence of condemnation against the Phokians. A fine was im- posed upon them ; of what amount we are not told, but so heavy as to be far beyond their means of payment. It was thus that the Thebans, who had never been able to at- tach to themselves a powerful confederacy such as that which for- merly held its meetings at Sparta, supplied the deficiency by abusing their ascendency in the Amphiktyonic assembly to procure vengeance upon political enemies. A certain time was allowed for liquidating the fine, which the Phokians had neither means nor inclination to do. Complaint of the fact was then made at the, next meeting of the Amphiktyons, when a decisive resolution was adopted, and engraven along with the rest on a column in the Del- phian temple, to expropriate the recusant Phokians, and consecrate all their territory to Apollo as Kirrha with its fertile plain had been treated two centuries before. It became necessary, at the same time, for the maintenance of consistency and equal dealing, to revive the mention of the previous fine still remaining unpaid by the Lacedaemonians ; against whom it was proposed to pass a vote of something like excommunication. Such impending dangers, likely to be soon realized under the instigation of Thebes, excited a resolute spirit of resistance among the Phokians. A wealthy and leading citizen of the Phokian town Ledon, named Philomelus son of Theotimus, stood forward as the head of this sentiment, setting himself energetically to organize means for the preservation of Phokian liberty as well as property. 1 Diodor. xvi. 23 ; Justin, viii. 1 ; Pausanias, x. 2. 1 ; Duris ap. Athe- naeum, xiii. p. 560. Justin says, " Causa et origo hujus mali, Thcbani fuere; qui cum rerum potirentur, sccundam fortunam imbecillo animo ferentes, victos armis Lacedaemonios et Phocenscs, quasi parva supplicia ca:dibus ct rapinis luissent, apud commune Graecia concilium superbe ace usave runt Lacedaeinoniis crimini datum, quod arcem Thebanam induciarnm tempore occupassent; Phocensibus, quod Boeotiam depopulnti csscnt; prorsus quasi post arma ct bcllum locum legibus rcliquissent."