lessen his glory to avoid the ill-will of mankind. His good fortune
was indeed shown in many remarkable instances: for example, he never
was present at any of the great defeats sustained by the Athenians at
that time, as in Thrace they were defeated by the Greeks of
Chalkidike, but on that occasion Kalliades and Xenophon were acting as
generals, while the defeat in AEtolia took place when Demosthenes was
in command, and at Delium, where a thousand men were slain, they were
led by Hippokrates. For the pestilence Perikles was chiefly blamed,
because he shut up the country people in the city, where the change of
habits and unusual diet produced disease among them. In all these
disasters Nikias alone escaped censure: while he achieved several
military successes, such as the capture of Kythera, an island
conveniently situated off the coast of Laconia, and inhabited by
settlers from that country. He also captured several of the revolted
cities in Thrace, and induced others to return to their allegiance. He
shut up the people of Megara in their city, and thereby at once made
himself master of the island of Minoa, by means of which he shortly
afterwards captured the port of Nisaea, while he also landed his troops
in the Corinthian territory, and beat a Corinthian army which marched
against him, killing many of them, and amongst others Lykophron their
general. On this occasion he accidentally neglected to bury the
corpses of two of his own men who had fallen. As soon as he discovered
this omission, he at once halted his army, and sent a herald to the
enemy to demand the bodies for burial, notwithstanding that by Greek
custom the party which after a battle demand a truce for the burial of
the dead, are understood thereby to admit that they have been
defeated, and it is not thought light for them to erect a trophy in
commemoration of their victory; for the victors remain in possession
of the field of battle, and of the bodies of the dead, and the
vanquished ask for their dead because they are not able to come and
take them. Nevertheless, Nikias thought it right to forego all the
credit of his victory rather than leave two of his countrymen
unburied. He also laid waste the seaboard of Laconia, defeated a
Lacedaemonian force which opposed him,and took Thyrea, which was
garrisoned by AEginetans, whom he brought prisoners to Athens.

VII. Now when Demosthenes threw up a fortification at Pylos, and after
the Peloponnesians had attacke