Phocion II
43 lines✦
educed to a narrow girth. He released all the Greeks whomhe took, out of fear of the public speakers at Athens, thinkingthey might very likely persuade the people in their anger intocommitting some act of cruelty. This affair thus despatched and settled, Phocion set sail home-wards, and the allies had soon as good reason to regret the lossof his just and humane dealing as the Athenians that of hisexperience and courage. Molossus, the commander who tookZ place, had no better success than to fall alive into the enemy’s ands. Philip, full of great thoughts and designs, now advanced withall his forces into the Hellespont, to seize the Chersonesus andPerinthus, and after them Byzantium. The Athenians raised aforce to relieve them, but the popular leaders made it theirbusiness to prefer Chares to be general, who, sailing thither,effected nothing worthy of the means placed in his hands. Thecities were afraid, and would not receive his ships into theirharbours, so that he did nothing but wander about, raising moneyfrom their friends, and despised by their enemies. When thepeople, chafed by the orators, were extremely indignant, andrepented having ever sent any help to the Byzantines, Phocionrose and told them they ought not to be angry with the alliesfor distrusting, but with their generals for being distrusted.“They make you suspected,” he said, “‘ even by those who can-not possibly subsist without your succour.” The assembly beingmoved with this speech of his, changed their minds on the sudden,and commanded him immediately to raise another force, and gohimself to assist their confederates in the Hellespont; an ap-pointment which, in effect, contributed more than anything tothe relief of Byzantium. For Phocion’s name was already honourably known; and an - old acquaintance of his, who had been his fellow-student in the Academy, Leon, a man of high renown for virtue among theByzantines, having vouched for Phocion to the city, they openedtheir gates to receive him, not permitting him, though he desiredit, to encamp without the walls, but entertained him and all theAthenians with perfect reliance, while they, to requite theirconfidence, behaved among their new hosts soberly and in-offensively, and exerted themselves on all occasions with thegreatest zeal and resolution for their defence. Thus King Philipwas driven out of the Hellespont, and was despised to boot,whom, till now, it had been thought impossible to match, oreven to oppose. Phocion also took some of his ships, and re-
✦