History of the Peloponnesian War

When it was now day, and the town was safely in his possession, Brasidas made a proclamation to the Toronaeans who had taken refuge with the Athenians, that whoever wished should come out to his own property, and live in the town in security. To the Athenians he sent a herald, and told them to evacuate Lecythus under truce, with their property, as the place belonged to the Chalcidians.

They refused to evacuate it, but begged him to grant them a truce for one day, that they might take up their dead. He granted it for two days; during which he himself fortified the neighbouring houses, and the Athenians their positions. Having convened also an assembly of the Toronaeans, he said nearly the same things as at Acanthus;

that it was not right for them to regard as bad men, or traitors, those who had negotiated with them for the capture of the city; (for they had not done so to bring it into slavery, nor because they had been bribed, but for the advantage and liberty of the town;) nor for those who had taken no part in it to suppose that they would not reap the same benefits; for he had not come to destroy either city or individual. For this reason he had made the proclamation to those who had fled for refuge to the Athenians, as he had none the worse opinion of them for their friendship to them:

and he thought that when they had made trial of the Lacedaemonians, they would not be less kindly disposed towards them, but far more so, inasmuch as they were acting more justly: but as it was, through want of such a trial, they were afraid of them.

And he desired them all to prepare for being stanch allies, and for having to answer in future for whatever they did amiss: but as regarded the past, it was not the Lacedaemonians that were injured, but themselves rather, by others who were too strong for them; and so allowance was to be made for any thing in which they had opposed him.

Having thus addressed and encouraged them, on the expiration of the truce, he made his assault upon Lecythus; while the Athenians defended themselves from a poor wall, and from some houses that had battlements. For one day they beat him off;

but on the next, when an engine was going to be brought up against them by the enemy, from which they intended to throw fire on the wooden defences, and when the army was now advancing where they thought they should best bring up the engine, and where the place was most assailable, the defenders placed a wooden tower on the wall opposite to them, and carried up on to it many jars and casks of water, with large stones, an a large party of men ascended it.

But the building, having had too great a weight put on it, suddenly broke down, and making a loud noise, vexed more than it terrified those of the Athenians who were near and saw it; but those who were at a distance, and most of all those who were at the greatest, thinking that the place was already taken in that quarter, hurried away, and fled to the sea and to their ships.

When Brasidas perceived that they were deserting the battlements, and saw what was going on, he rushed up with his army, d immediately took the fort, and put to the sword as many s he found in it.

The Athenians in this way evacuated the race, and went across in their boats and ships to Pallene. How there is in Lecythus a temple of Minerva; and Brasidas had proclaimed, when he was about to make the assault, that the man who first scaled the wall he would give thirty minae of silver. Thinking, therefore, that the capture had been effected by other means than human, he presented the thirty mine to the goddess, for the use of her temple; and having razed and cleared Lecythus, he devoted the whole, as sacred ground.

During the remainder of the winter, he was settling the affairs of the places in his possession, and forming designs against others; and at the expiration of the winter, the eighth year of this war ended.

At the commencement of the spring of the following summer, the Lacedaemonians and Athenians immediately concluded an armistice for a year; the Athenians considering that Brasidas would then no longer win any more of their towns to revolt, before they had made their preparations for securing them at their leisure; and at the same time, that if it were for their interest, they might conclude a general peace: while the Lacedaemonians thought that the Athenians feared what they really were afraid of; and that after having a suspension of their miseries and suffering, they would be more desirous, from their taste of it, to effect a reconciliation, and, restoring their men, to make a treaty for a longer time.

For they deemed it of [*]( I have followed Göller in referring τοῖς δὲ to the troops which Sparta would still retain, in opposition to τῶν μὲν, the prisoners whose services she would have lost. Others refer it to the Athenians, while Arnold thinks it corrupt.) greater importance to recover their men at a time when Brasidas was still prosperous: and, [on the other hand,] if he reached a still greater measure of success, and put matters on an equality, they were likely to lose those men, and while defending themselves with their others, on equal terms, still to run a risk of not gaining the mastery.

An armistice was therefore concluded by them and their allies on the following terms: