a's fleet, composed
of Phoenician and Cilician galleys, recovered all the cities thereabout,
and threatened Egypt; designing no less than the entire ruin of the
Persian empire. And the more because he was informed that Themistocles
was in great repute among the barbarians, having promised the king
to lead his army, whenever he should make war upon Greece. But
Themistocles, it is said, abandoning all hopes of compassing his
designs, very much out of the despair of overcoming the valor and
good-fortune of Cimon, died a voluntary death. Cimon, intent on great
designs, which he was now to enter upon, keeping his navy about the isle
of Cyprus, sent messengers to consult the oracle of Jupiter Ammon upon
some secret matter. For it is not known about what they were sent, and
the god would give them no answer, but commanded them to return again,
for Cimon was already with him. Hearing this, they returned to sea, and
as soon as they came to the Grecian army, which was then about Egypt,
they understood that Cimon was dead; and computing the time of the
oracle, they found that his death had been signified, he being then
already with the gods.

He died, some say, of sickness, while besieging Citium, in Cyprus;
according to others, of a wound he received in a skirmish with the
barbarians. When he perceived that he was going to die, he commanded
those under his charge to return, and by no means to let the news of his
death be known by the way; this they did with such secrecy that they all
came home safe, and neither their enemies nor the allies knew what had
happened. Thus, as Phanodemus relates, the Grecian army was, as it were,
conducted by Cimon thirty days after he was dead. But after his
death there was not one commander among the Greeks that did any thing
considerable against the barbarians, and instead of uniting against
their common enemies, the popular leaders and partisans of war animated
them against one another to such a degree, that none could interpose
their good offices to reconcile them. And while, by their mutual
discord, they ruined the power of Greece, they gave the Persians time
to recover breath, and repair all their losses. It is true, indeed,
Agesilaus carried the arms of Greece into Asia, but it was a long time
afterwards; there were some brief appearances of a war against the
king's lieutenants in the maritime provinces, but they all quickly
vanished; before he could perform any thing of moment, he was recalle