History of the Peloponnesian War

When the Lacedaemonians saw things so contrary to their expectation, they thought that what had been told them by the Lesbians was not true; and considering themselves in a strait, as their allies at the same time had not joined them, and the thirty Athenian ships cruising round the Peloponnese were reported to be ravaging the land near their city, they returned home.

Afterwards, however, they prepared a fleet to send to Lesbos, and gave orders to the different states for ships to the number of forty, and appointed Alcidas, [*]( I am far from certain what is the exact force of this clause, but think it may possibly refer to the fact of Alcidas having been fixed upon to command this expedition before the office of high-admiral was conferred upon him; and that his subsequent appointment to that office is also referred to, c. 26. 1, τὰς ... ναῦς ἀπέστειλαν ἄρχοντα ʼαλκίδαν, ὅς ἦν αὐτοῖς ναύαρχος, προστάξαντες: in which case προστάξαντες would be far from being superfluous, as it has generally been supposed. If, however, this interpretation be thought fanciful, the ἔμελλεν must simply mean that he was to conduct the expedition in his capacity as admiral.) who was to conduct the expedition, their high-admiral.

The Athenians, too, returned with their hundred ships, when they saw that the Lacedaemonians had done so.

[*]( The object of this chapter, as Arnold observes, "is merely to bring in what Thucydides had forgotten to mention in its proper place, namely, the greatest naval force, and the greatest war expenditure, which Athens had ever been able to employ and support; just as he had mentioned, II. 31. 3, the greatest stand army which she had ever sent cut on one service.) At the time that this squadron was at sea, they had about the largest number of ships they had ever possessed at once, [*]( Literally, effective, in fine condition; with handsomeness, as Bloomfield renders it; whose interpretation of the passage I prefer to either Göller's or Poppo's.) in effective and fine condition : (though they had as many, or even more, at the beginning of the war.)

For a hundred kept guard round Attica, Euboea, and Salamis, while another hundred were cruising about the Peloponnese, besides those at Potidaea and in other places; so that altogether there were two hundred and fifty [in service] in the course of that one summer. And it was this, in conjunction with Potidaea, that most exhausted their revenues.