Aristides

Now with the Athenians the men of Tegea came to strife regarding their position in the line. They claimed that, as had always been the case, since the Lacedaemonians held the right wing, they themselves should hold the left, and in support of their claim they sounded loudly the praises of their ancestors. The Athenians were incensed, and Aristides came forward and made this speech: To argue with the men of Tegea about noble birth and bravery, there is surely no time now; but we declare to you, O Spartans, and to the rest of the Hellenes, that valor is not taken away from a man, nor is it given him, by his position in the line. Whatsoever post ye shall assign to us, we will endeavor to maintain and adorn it, and so bring no disgrace upon the contests we have made before.

We are come, not to quarrel with our allies, but to do battle with our foes; not to heap praises on our fathers, but to show ourselves brave men in the service of Hellas. It is this contest which will show how much any city or captain or private soldier is worth to Hellas. On hearing this, the councillors and leaders declared for the Athenians, and assigned to them the other wing.

While Hellas was thus in suspense and Athens especially in danger, certain men of that city who were of prominent families and large wealth, but had been impoverished by the war, saw that with their riches all their influence in the city and their reputation had departed, while other men now had the honors and offices. They therefore met together secretly at a certain house in Plataea, and conspired to overthrow the democracy; or, if their plans did not succeed, to injure the general cause and betray it to the Barbarians.

Such was the agitation in the camp, and many had already been corrupted, when Aristides got wind of the matter, and, fearful of the crisis that favoured the plot, determined not to leave the matter in neglect, nor yet to bring it wholly to the light, since it could not be known how many would be implicated by a test which was based on justice rather than expediency. Accordingly, he arrested some eight or so of the many conspirators.

Two of these, against whom the charge was first formally brought, and who were really the most guilty ones, Aeschines of Lamptrae and Agesias of Acharnae, fled the camp. The rest he released, affording thus an opportunity for encouragement and repentance to those who still thought they had escaped detection, and suggested to them that the war was a great tribunal for their acquittal from the charges made against them, provided they took sincere and righteous counsel in behalf of their country.

After this, Mardonius made trial of the Hellenes with that arm of his service in which he thought himself most superior. He despatched all his cavalry against them as they lay encamped at the foot of Cithaeron, in positions that were rugged and rocky—all except the Megarians. These, to the number of three thousand, were encamped the rather in open plain. For this reason they suffered severely at the hands of the cavalry, which poured in tides against them, and found access to them on every side.

Accordingly, they sent a messenger in haste to Pausanias, bidding him come to their aid, since they were unable of themselves to withstand the host of the Barbarians. Pausanias, on hearing this, and seeing at once that the camp of the Megarians was as good as hidden from view by the multitude of the enemy’s javelins and arrows, and that its defenders were huddled together in narrow quarters, on his own part had no way of rendering them aid against horsemen, since his phalanx of Spartans was full-armored and slow of movement;

but to the rest of the generals and captains of the Hellenes who were about him he proposed, in order to stir up their valor and ambition, that some of them should volunteer to make contention for the succour of the Megarians. The rest all hesitated, but Aristides, in behalf of the Athenians, undertook the task, and despatched his most zealous captain, Olympiodorus, with the three hundred picked men of his command, and archers mingled with them.

These quickly arrayed themselves and advanced to the attack on the run. Masistius, the commander of the Barbarian cavalry, a man of wonderful prowess and of surpassing stature and beauty of person, saw them coming, and at once wheeled his horse to face them and charged down upon them. Then there was a mighty struggle between those who withstood and those who made the charge, since both regarded this as a test of the whole issue between them.