kelihood their ruin: should they
hold out, in that case there will be the more time for us to exercise
ourselves in naval matters; and as soon as we have arrived at an
equality in science, we need scarcely ask whether we shall be their
superiors in courage. For the advantages that we have by nature they
cannot acquire by education; while their superiority in science must be
removed by our practice. The money required for these objects shall be
provided by our contributions: nothing indeed could be more monstrous
than the suggestion that, while their allies never tire of contributing
for their own servitude, we should refuse to spend for vengeance and
self-preservation the treasure which by such refusal we shall forfeit to
Athenian rapacity and see employed for our own ruin.

"We have also other ways of carrying on the war, such as revolt of their
allies, the surest method of depriving them of their revenues, which are
the source of their strength, and establishment of fortified positions
in their country, and various operations which cannot be foreseen at
present. For war of all things proceeds least upon definite rules, but
draws principally upon itself for contrivances to meet an emergency; and
in such cases the party who faces the struggle and keeps his temper
best meets with most security, and he who loses his temper about it
with correspondent disaster. Let us also reflect that if it was merely
a number of disputes of territory between rival neighbours, it might be
borne; but here we have an enemy in Athens that is a match for our whole
coalition, and more than a match for any of its members; so that unless
as a body and as individual nationalities and individual cities we make
an unanimous stand against her, she will easily conquer us divided and
in detail. That conquest, terrible as it may sound, would, it must be
known, have no other end than slavery pure and simple; a word which
Peloponnese cannot even hear whispered without disgrace, or without
disgrace see so many states abused by one. Meanwhile the opinion would
be either that we were justly so used, or that we put up with it from
cowardice, and were proving degenerate sons in not even securing for
ourselves the freedom which our fathers gave to Hellas; and in allowing
the establishment in Hellas of a tyrant state, though in individual
states we think it our duty to put down sole rulers. And we do not know
how this conduct can be held free from three of the g