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ἁθρόαις ταῖς ναυσὶν either (1) the ships of the Athenians, the dative depending on ἀξιόμαχοι or ἀντανήγοντο, and the thought being ἅτε ἤδη ἁθρόαις οὔσαις, or (2) the ships of the Peloponnesians, the dat. being instrumental and the thought καίπερ ἁθρόαις οὔσαις. For the former it may be argued that καίπερ is the more difficult to supply, and that there is a reference to the previous willingness of the Peloponnesians to fight ὅτε αἱ νῆες τῶν Ἀθηναίων οὐδέπω ἐν τῷ αὐτῷ εἰσίν (c. 78). For the latter, the instrumental sense would answer to c. 79, § 2, οὐ νομίσαντες τῷ πλήθει διακινδυνεῦσαι ἱκανοὶ εἶναι, and ἐκείνων would seem to be required with ναυσὶν unless the ships were those of the Peloponnesians. ὥσπερ . . . προσετάχθη sec c. 8, § 2; c. 39, § 2.
τὸ Βυζάντιον a colony of Megara. It had previously revolted from Athens (B.C. 440) along with Samos and had been induced (i. 117).
καὶ αἱ μὲν τῶν Π. κ.τ.λ. To the general sentence belonging to αἱ μὲν . . . νῆες there should correspond a sentence of the shape οἱ δὲ ἐν τῇ Σάμῳ Ἀθηναῖοι κ.τ λ, which is differently expressed in § 4. For the rest, the present sentence might have been expected to run (1) αἱ μὲν . . . νῆες αὗται ἐχειμάσθησαν, καὶ αἱ μὲν Δήλου λαβόμεναι . . . πάλιν ἦλθον ἐς Μίλητον, αἱ δὲ . . . διασωθεῖσαι Βυζάντιον ἀφιστᾶσι, or (2) αἱ μὲν . . . νῆες χειμασθεῖσαι, αἱ μὲν . . . λαβόμεναι . . . ἦλθον, αἱ δὲ . . . ἀφιστᾶσι, by the scheme of partitive apposition. To write ἐχειμάσθησαν would bring us nearer to the former, and to omit καὶ before αἱ μὲν Δήλου would bring us nearer the latter. The former correction is in no way likely, the latter is not out of the question in the combination —ΘΕΙΞΑΙΑΙ—. Nevertheless neither of these changes removes the difficulty that the only finite verb after αἱ μὲν Δήλου κ.τ.λ. is ἀφιστᾶσι, and that the ships which returned to Miletus are grammatically said to ‘bring about the revolt of Byzantium.’ It is best to treat the text as an anacoluthon by confusion of the two constructions given above, with the further fault that the disarranging parenthesis Κλέαρχος . . . ἦρχεν causes αἱ μὲν . . . ἐλθοῦσαι to be left without a verb. χειμασθεῖσαι, like ἐλθοῦσαι, is nomin. pendens. Δήλου λαβόμεναι gen. of the means of safety grasped. Cf. iii. 24, λαβόμεναι τῶν ὀρῶν διαφεύγουσι. So ἀντιλαβέσθαι. Delos is about 120 miles W. of Miletus. αὖθις either ‘subsequently’ or ‘(he started) again.’ ἦρχεν as ἁρμοστής (Xen. Hell. i. 3, 15). In Xen. loc. cit. Helixus is met with as general of the Megarians under Clearchus.
ὀκτὼ there are eight in c. 107, § 1. The number διασωθεῖσαι is ten. It would be futile to inquire into the doings of individual ships.
Commentary on Thucydides Book 8. T.G. Tucker. London. MacMillan & Company. 1892.
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