id not succeed either in capturing
the city or in doing anything else worthy of their preparations. For the
plague attacked them here also, and committed such havoc as to cripple
them completely, even the previously healthy soldiers of the former
expedition catching the infection from Hagnon's troops; while Phormio
and the sixteen hundred men whom he commanded only escaped by being no
longer in the neighbourhood of the Chalcidians. The end of it was that
Hagnon returned with his ships to Athens, having lost one thousand and
fifty out of four thousand heavy infantry in about forty days; though
the soldiers stationed there before remained in the country and carried
on the siege of Potidaea.

After the second invasion of the Peloponnesians a change came over the
spirit of the Athenians. Their land had now been twice laid waste; and
war and pestilence at once pressed heavy upon them. They began to find
fault with Pericles, as the author of the war and the cause of all their
misfortunes, and became eager to come to terms with Lacedaemon, and
actually sent ambassadors thither, who did not however succeed in their
mission. Their despair was now complete and all vented itself upon
Pericles. When he saw them exasperated at the present turn of affairs
and acting exactly as he had anticipated, he called an assembly,
being (it must be remembered) still general, with the double object of
restoring confidence and of leading them from these angry feelings to a
calmer and more hopeful state of mind. He accordingly came forward and
spoke as follows:

"I was not unprepared for the indignation of which I have been the
object, as I know its causes; and I have called an assembly for the
purpose of reminding you upon certain points, and of protesting against
your being unreasonably irritated with me, or cowed by your sufferings.
I am of opinion that national greatness is more for the advantage of
private citizens, than any individual well-being coupled with public
humiliation. A man may be personally ever so well off, and yet if his
country be ruined he must be ruined with it; whereas a flourishing
commonwealth always affords chances of salvation to unfortunate
individuals. Since then a state can support the misfortunes of private
citizens, while they cannot support hers, it is surely the duty of every
one to be forward in her defence, and not like you to be so confounded
with your domestic afflictions as to give up all thoughts of the comm