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72.
With this intention they sailed off to Naxos
and Catana for the winter.
Meanwhile the Syracusans burned their dead, and then held an assembly,
[2]
in which Hermocrates, son of Hermon, a man who with a general ability of
the first order had given proofs of military capacity and brilliant courage
in the war, came forward and encouraged them, and told them not to let what
had occurred make them give way,
[3]
since their spirit had not been conquered, but their want of discipline had
done the mischief.
Still they had not been beaten by so much as might have been expected,
especially as they were, one might say, novices in the art of war, an army
of artisans opposed to the most practised soldiers in Hellas.
[4]
What had also done great mischief was the number of the generals
(there were fifteen of them) and the quantity of orders given, combined with the disorder and
insubordination of the troops.
But if they were to have a few skilful generals, and used this winter in
preparing their heavy infantry, finding arms for such as had not got any, so
as to make them as numerous as possible, and forcing them to attend to their
training generally, they would have every chance of beating their
adversaries, courage being already theirs and discipline in the field having
thus been added to it.
Indeed, both these qualities would improve, since danger would exercise
them in discipline, while their courage would be led to surpass itself by
the confidence which skill inspires.
[5]
The generals should be few and elected with full powers, and an oath should
be taken to leave them entire discretion in their command: if they adopted
this plan, their secrets would be better kept, all preparations would be
properly made, and there would be no room for excuses.
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References (27 total)
- Commentary references to this page (3):
- Cross-references to this page
(2):
- A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities (1890), STRATE´GUS
- Smith's Bio, Hermo'crates
- Cross-references in notes to this page
(1):
- Thucydides, History of the Peloponnesian War, Thuc. 6.11
- Cross-references in general dictionaries to this page
(21):
- LSJ, ἀναρχ-ία
- LSJ, ἀντα^γων-ίζομαι
- LSJ, ἀπρο-φάσιστος
- LSJ, ἀσύν-τακτος
- LSJ, αὐτο-κράτωρ
- LSJ, ἐκπορ-ίζω
- LSJ, ἐπιδίδωμι
- LSJ, ἐπιφαν-ής
- LSJ, ἐπιστήμη
- LSJ, εὐταξία
- LSJ, ἡσσ-άομαι
- LSJ, ἰδι^ώτ-ης
- LSJ, κρύπ-τω
- LSJ, λείπω
- LSJ, μελετ-άω
- LSJ, ὅρκ-ιον
- LSJ, πιστός
- LSJ, πολυ^-αρχία
- LSJ, προσα^ναγκ-άζω
- LSJ, στέγω
- LSJ, χειροτέχν-ης
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