Page:History of Greece Vol XII.djvu/50

 18 HISTORY OF GREECE. carried them into Tenedos, where they were detained, under vari- ous fraudulent pretences, in spite of remonstrances from the proprietors and cities whose supply of corn was thus intercepted. Among these sufferers, Athens stood conspicuous ; since consum- ers of imported corn, ship-owners, and merchants, were more numerous there than elsewhere. The Athenians, addressing complaints and remonptrances without effect, became at length so Jncensed, and perhaps uneasy about their provisions, that they passed a decree to equip and despatch 100 triremes, appointing Menestheus (son of Iphikrates) admiral. By this strenuous manifestation, the Macedonians were induced to release the detained vessels. Had the detention been prolonged, the Athe- nian fleet would have sailed to extort redress by force ; so that, as Athens was more than a match for Macedon on sea, the mari- time empire of the latter would have been overthrown, while even on land much encouragement would have been given to malcontents against it.* Another incident had occurred, less grave than this, yet still dwelt upon by the orator as an infringe- ment of the convention, and as an insult to Athenians. Though an express article of the convention prohibited armed ships of one city from entering the harbor of another, still a Macedonian trireme had been sent into Piero2us to ask permission that smaller vessels might be built there for Macedonian account. This was offensive to a large proportion of Athenians, not only as violating the convention, but as a manifest step towards ' Demostli. (or Pseudo-Deniosth.) Oiat. Dc Feed ere Alex. p. 217. f/'c TovTo yap vnepoipiag ij'k'dov, uare ei( Tivedov unavTa tu tK tov llovrov n?.oia Karf/jayov, Kai cKEVupovjiEvoi izepl avru ov irporepov u^eiaav, izpi-" vueig Eiljr}(plaaads rpi7)peic eKarov n'kijpovv kol na'dD.Keiv ev&ix 'ore — c Trap' i?MXtGTov iTTocTiaev ai'Tovg {Kpaipedijvai diKaiuc ri/v kotu -da/Maaav i/yifjnvtai' p. 218. 'Ecjf yup uv e^i) tC)v kotu ■duAnaaav unl ftuvotg iiva/i(t>io3j]Triru^ elvuL KvpioiQ (the Athenians), roZf ye icaru yijv irpb^ rrj vivnpxovori dvvujxei tart 7rpoj3o2,uc irepa^ laxvporepag evpia-dat, etc. We know that Alexander caused a squadron of ships to sail round to anil up tiie Danube from Byzantium (Arrian, i. .3, 3), to meet him after his march by land from the southern coast of Thrace. It is not improbable tiiat the Athenian vessels detained may have come loaded with a supply of corn, ana that the detention of the corn-ships may have been intended to facilitate this operation.