Part 29

XVI. Dionysius at once removed Plato into the citadel, where, under pretence of showing him kindly respect, he was kept in an honourable captivity, in order that he might not sail away with Dion, a witness of his unjust treatment. By degrees, like a wild animal who gradually becomes used to the touch of human beings, so Dionysius accustomed himself to the society and discourses of Plato, and, after the manner of despots, conceived a violent passion for him. He was especially anxious that Plato should return his affection and should approve of his acts, and was even willing to entrust the government and the crown itself to him if he would only not prefer Dion's friendship to his own. This passion of his caused great annoyance to Plato, for like all true lovers he was furiously jealous and had frequent quarrels and reconciliations with him, being very eager to hear his discourses, and engage in the study of philosophy, and yet being influenced by those who advised him to keep away from Plato, as he would be corrupted by his teaching. Meanwhile, as some war broke out, he sent Plato away, promising that in a year's time he would recall Dion. This promise he broke at once, but he remitted to Dion the revenues of his estate, and besought Plato to pardon his breach of faith about the time, because of the war; for, as soon as peace should be made, he promised that he would at once send for Dion. He also asked Plato to beg Dion to remain quiet, and not to engage in any revolutionary schemes, and not to traduce his character to the Greeks.

XVII. Plato endeavoured to effect this, and turned Dion's attention to philosophy, and kept him in the Academy. Dion lived at this time in the city of Athens, in the house of Kallippus, one of his friends, though he also bought an estate in the country for recreation, which, when he subsequently set sail for Sicily, he presented to Speusippus, who, of all the Athenians, was his most intimate friend. This intimacy was brought about by Plato, who hoped that the harshness of Dion's character might be somewhat softened by the society of a well-bred and cheerful man. Such a person as this was Speusippus, whom we find spoken of in Timon's Silli as being "good at a jest." When Plato himself exhibited a chorus of boys, Dion both trained the chorus and defrayed all the expenses, and Plato permitted him to gain this distinction although it was likely to obtain popularity for Dion at his own expense. Dion also visited other cities, where he associated with the best and most statesmanlike of the citizens, and attended their solemn festivals, without ever betraying anything repulsive, affected, or imperious in his manner, but acting with manliness and discretion, and discoursing with elegance on philosophy as well as ordinary topics. By this conduct he everywhere gained good opinions, and public honours were decreed to him by various cities. The Lacedæmonians even adopted him as a Spartan, disregarding the anger of Dionysius, though he at the time was zealously assisting them in a war against the Thebans. We are told that once Dion wished to see Ptoiodorus, of Megara, and went to his house. Ptoiodorus, it seems, was a rich and powerful man; and when Dion observed the crowds at his door and the busy throng and saw how hard it was to gain an audience of him, he turned to his friends, who were vexed at this, and said: "Why should we find fault with this man? for we ourselves used to do just the same thing at Syracuse?"

XVIII. As time went on, Dionysius, feeling jealous of Dion, and fearing the popularity which he was obtaining among the Greeks, left off forwarding his revenues to him and confiscated his property. Being desirous of effacing the bad impression which he had made upon all philosophers by his treatment of Plato, he collected round him many men who had a reputation for learning. As he wished to surpass them all in argument, he was forced to make use, often improperly, of what he had very imperfectly learned from Plato. He now again began to wish for Plato, and blamed himself for not having made use of him when he was present, and for not having listened to all his noble language. Frantic in his desires, and impatient to obtain whatever he wished, as despots are, he at once set his heart upon Plato and tried every means to attract him. He induced Archytas and the other successors of the original Pythagorean philosophers to invite Plato; for it was by means of Plato that Dionysius had at first become their friend. They sent Archedemus to Plato, and Dionysius also despatched a trireme and several of his friends to entreat Plato to come: while he himself wrote a letter in which he distinctly stated that Dion would never get his rights if Plato refused to come to Sicily, but that if he would, Dion should receive them all. Many letters also reached Dion from his sister and his wife, urging him to beg Plato to accede to the request of Dionysius, and not afford him grounds for ill-treating them. Thus, they say, it was that Plato came to sail a third time into the straits of Scylla.

"Again the dread Charybdis to explore."

XIX. His arrival afforded unbounded delight to Dionysius, and again filled Sicily with great hopes; for all men prayed and were eager that Plato and philosophy should get the better of Philistus and despotism. He was treated with great respect by the ladies,[483] and received from Dionysius a mark of confidence which was accorded to no one else, in being allowed to come into his presence without his clothes being searched. As Dionysius frequently offered valuable presents to Plato, who never would receive them, Aristippus of Cyrene, who was present, observed that Dionysius exercised a very cheap generosity; for he gave small presents to himself and to others who wished for more, and offered great ones to Plato, who would not accept of any. When, however, after the first welcome was over, Plato began to speak of Dion, Dionysius at first put off discussing the subject, and subsequently reproaches and quarrels took place between them, of which no one else was aware, since Dionysius kept them secret, and by showing Plato assiduous attentions and marks of respect tried to win him over from his friendship for Dion. Plato, too, at first would not publish what he knew of the treachery and falsehood of Dionysius, but affected not to perceive it and endured it in silence. While they were on these terms, though they believed that no one knew it, Helikon of Kyzikus, an intimate friend of Plato, foretold an eclipse of the sun; and as it happened according to his prediction, the despot was much impressed, and gave him a talent of silver. Aristippus now in joke said to the other philosophers that he too had a remarkable event to predict; and when they begged him to tell them what it was, he said, "I predict that before long Plato and Dionysius will become foes." At last Dionysius sold Dion's property and kept the money, and even removed Plato from the lodgings in the gardens near his own palace, where he had hitherto dwelt, and quartered him among the mercenary troops, who had long disliked Plato and wished to make away with him, because they believed him to be counselling Dionysius to abdicate and to live without a bodyguard.

XX. Archytas and his friends, when they heard of the danger to which Plato was exposed, at once sent a thirty-oared vessel with an embassy to Dionysius, demanding Plato from him, and alleging that he had originally come to Syracuse at their request, and that they were responsible for his safety. Dionysius concealed his dislike of Plato by feasting him and treating him kindly on his departure, but could not help saying to him, "I suppose, Plato, you will abuse me terribly to your fellow-philosophers," or something to that effect. At this Plato smiled, and replied, "I trust that we shall never be so ill off in the Academy for subjects to discuss, as for any one to make mention of you." Such, they say, were the terms upon which they parted; though this does not entirely agree with Plato's own account of the matter.

XXI. Dion was much angered by these proceedings of Dionysius, and shortly afterwards was converted into an open enemy on hearing of the treatment of his wife, on which subject Plato wrote in enigmas to Dionysius. This happened as follows:--After the expulsion of Dion, Dionysius, when he sent Plato away, bade him secretly make inquiries as to whether there was anything to prevent Dion's wife being bestowed upon another man; for there was a rumour, which may have been true or merely invented by Dion's enemies, that the marriage had been forced upon Dion against his will, and that he and his wife had not lived happily together. Plato, as soon as he arrived at Athens conversed freely with Dion, and then wrote a letter to the despot, some of which was clearly expressed, but which in one part intimated to him, in a manner which he alone could understand, that the writer had spoken about the matter to Dion, and that he would certainly be furious if Dionysius attempted anything of the kind. At that time, as there were still great hopes of arranging their quarrel, Dionysius did nothing further, but allowed his sister to remain living with her child by Dion. When, however, they became irreconcilable enemies and Plato, after his second visit, was sent away bitterly disliked by Dionysius, he proceeded to give Arete in marriage, sorely against her will, to one of his friends, named Timokrates, not imitating in this respect the gentle conduct of his father; for the elder Dionysius also had for an enemy Polyxenus the husband of his sister Theste. Polyxenus, fearing for his life, escaped from Syracuse and left Sicily. Upon this Dionysius sent for his sister and blamed her for having known of her husband's intention to take flight, and not having told him of it; but she, undismayed, answered him fearlessly, "Dionysius, do you think me so bad and cowardly a wife that, if I had known of the intention of my husband to flee, I should not have accompanied him? Indeed, I did not know of it; for it would have been more creditable to me to have been spoken of as the wife of Polyxenus the exile than as the sister of Dionysius the despot." It is said that when Theste used this bold language the despot regarded her with admiration, and she was also so much admired by the people of Syracuse for her courage and goodness that after the fall of the dynasty they still continued to treat her with the honours due to royalty, and, when she died, all the citizens came in procession to her funeral. These circumstances have required a digression which is not without value.

XXII. Dion after this at once prepared for war. Plato would take no part in his attempts, both out of respect for Dionysius and because of his own advanced age; but Speusippus and his other companions joined Dion, and encouraged him to set free Sicily, which they said was stretching out its hands to him for help and would eagerly welcome him. It seems, indeed, that when Plato was at Syracuse, Speusippus and his friends, who mixed more with the people, discovered their real feelings. At first they were afraid to speak plainly, fearing that the despot was experimenting upon them, but at length they took courage. All told the same story, begging and encouraging Dion to come, not with ships of war and horse and foot soldiers, but to embark in an open boat, and lend merely his person and his name to the Sicilians in their struggle against Dionysius. Encouraged by these reports, which he received from Speusippus and his friends, Dion secretly levied a force of mercenaries, but not in his own name, and without disclosing his intention. Many statesmen and philosophers assisted him, among the later Eudemus of Cyprus, in whose honour, after his death, Aristotle composed his dialogue upon the soul, and Timonides of Leukas. They brought over to him also Miltas of Thessaly, a soothsayer and former student of the Academy. Yet, of all those men who had been banished by the despot, who were not less than a thousand in number, five-and-twenty alone took part in the expedition, and all the rest shrank from doing so. Their starting-point was the island of Zakynthus, where was assembled a force numbering less than eight hundred soldiers, all of whom, however, were men of distinction who had served in many great campaigns, and were in admirable bodily condition, and such bold and skilful warriors as would be able to excite and inspire with courage the multitude which Dion hoped would rally round him in Sicily.

XXIII. These men, when they heard that the expedition was directed against Sicily and Dionysius, were at first scared and refused to go, declaring that only the frenzy excited by some personal quarrel, or the failure of all reasonable hopes of success, could have led Dion to embark upon such a desperate enterprise, and they were incensed with their own officers and those who had enlisted them for not having at the outset informed them of the object of the war. When, however, Dion addressed them, pointing out the rottenness of the monarchy, and informing them that he was taking them, not so much as soldiers as in order to use them as leaders for the Syracusans and other peoples of Sicily, who had long been ripe for revolt, and when, after Dion's speech, Alkimenes, one of the expedition, who was one of the most celebrated of the Achæans both by birth and merit, spoke to the same effect, they consented to go. The time was midsummer and the Etesian[484] winds were blowing over the sea. The moon was at the full. Dion prepared a magnificent sacrifice to Apollo and marched in solemn procession to the temple with his soldiers, all arrayed in complete armour. After the sacrifice he feasted them in the stadium or race-course of the people of Zakynthus, where they had an opportunity of admiring the splendour of his gold and silver plate, and reflected that a man past middle life, as he was, and possessed of such wealth, would never attempt an extravagant enterprise without reasonable expectation of success, or unless his friends upon the spot had promised to furnish him with abundant resources.

XXIV. Just after the libations[485] and customary prayers, the moon became eclipsed. Dion and his friends saw nothing remarkable in this, as they could calculate the periods of eclipses, and knew how the shadow was produced upon the moon by the interposition of the earth between it and the sun. As, however, the soldiers were alarmed at the portent and required some encouragement, Miltas the soothsayer came into the midst of them and addressed them, bidding them be of good cheer and expect the most complete success; for the gods, he declared, foretold by this sign that something brilliant would be extinguished. Now there was nothing more brilliant than the monarchy of Dionysius, whose light was fated to be quenched by them as soon as they arrived at Sicily. This interpretation Miltas told to them all; but when a swarm of bees was seen to settle on the sterns of the ships, he privately told Dion and his friends that he feared lest this might portend that at first they would be very properous, but that after blooming for a short time their prosperity would wither away. It is said, too, that many ominous signs were vouchsafed by Heaven to Dionysius. An eagle snatched up a spear from one of the life-guards, soared aloft with it, and let it fall into the sea; and one day the sea-water which washes the walls of the citadel became quite sweet and drinkable, so that all men noticed it. Swine also were born without ears, though perfect in all other parts. This was interpreted by the soothsayers to be a sign of insurrection and disobedience, and to mean that the people would no longer hearken to the commands of the despot, while the portent of the sea-water meant that after bitter miseries sweet and pleasant times were in store for the people of Syracuse. The eagle, they said, is the servant of Zeus, and the spear is the symbol of power and sovereignty; wherefore the greatest of the gods must intend to sink and destroy the monarchy. These incidents we are told by Theopompus.

XXV. The soldiers of Dion were contained in two merchant-ships, which were accompanied by another small vessel and two galleys of thirty oars.[486] Besides the arms carried by the soldiers, Dion took with him two thousand shields, many spears and missiles, and sufficient provisions to supply them during the whole voyage, which was to be performed entirely under canvass and over the open sea, because they feared to approach the land, and had learned that Philistus was cruising off the Iapygian Cape with a squadron to intercept them. Sailing with a light and gentle wind for twelve days, on the thirteenth they reached Pachynus, the southern extremity of Sicily. Here Protus their pilot bade them make haste to disembark, warning them that if they left the land and steered away from the cape, they would be obliged to spend many days and nights at sea during the summer season, when a southerly gale might be expected. Dion, however, feared to disembark so near his foes, and, wishing to land further away, sailed along the coast past Cape Pachynus. Hereupon a violent northerly wind, accompanied by a high sea, drove the ships away from Sicily, while at the rising of Arcturus a storm of thunder and lightning burst upon them with furious rain. At this the sailors became dismayed, and lost their reckoning, but suddenly found that the ships were being carried by the waves towards the rockiest and most precipitous cliffs of the island Kerkina,[487] off the coast of Libya. They narrowly escaped being dashed to pieces upon the rocks, but struggled along, keeping themselves off the land with punting-poles,[488] until at length the storm abated and they learned from a vessel which they fell in with that they were near what are called the "Heads" of the Great Syrtis. It now fell calm and they became disheartened and quarrelled with one another; but soon an off-shore wind sprang up from the south, though they, not expecting a southerly wind, could scarcely believe in the change. The wind gradually increased in force, and they, setting all the sail they were able, and commending themselves in prayer to the gods, crossed the open sea from Libya to Sicily before the wind. They made a quick passage, and on the fifth day came to an anchor at Minoa, a small city in that part of Sicily which belonged to the Carthaginians. The Carthaginian commander, Synalus, who was a friend of Dion, happened to be present in the town. Not knowing what the expedition was, or that Dion, was with it, he attempted to prevent the soldiers from landing; but they poured out of their ships fully armed, and though in accordance with Dion's order they killed no one, because of his friendship with the Carthaginian leader, yet they routed the Minoans, entered their city with the fugitives, and captured it. When the two chiefs met, they embraced one another, and Dion restored the city to Synalus without doing it any hurt, while Synalus showed hospitality to the soldiers and provided Dion with the supplies which he needed.

XXVI. What specially encouraged them was the absence of Dionysius from Syracuse, although they had no hand in bringing it about; for he had just started on a voyage to the coast of Italy with a fleet of eighty ships. Although Dion begged his soldiers to wait and recruit their strength after the hardships of their long sea voyage, they would not remain there, but in their eagerness to seize this favourable opportunity bade Dion lead them to Syracuse. Dion now left behind his surplus arms and baggage at Minoa, and, begging Synalus to send them on to him when he should have need of them, set out on his march to Syracuse. On the road, he was first joined by two hundred horsemen, citizens of Agrigentum, dwelling near Eknomon. After these, some of the people of Gela also joined his army.

The news of Dion's march soon reached Syracuse, and Timokrates, the husband of Dion's late wife, the sister of Dionysius, who was left in charge of the garrison, sent a messenger in great haste to Dionysius with a letter telling of Dion's arrival. He himself endeavoured to maintain order and put down all insurrections in the city, for all the people were excited at the news, but remained quiet as yet, through fear and doubt. Meantime a strange mischance befel the bearer of the letter to Dionysius. He crossed the straits to Italy, passed through the city of Rhegium, and as he hurried on towards Kaulonia, where Dionysius was, he fell in with one of his friends, carrying a newly slaughtered victim. He was given a piece of meat by the man, and went on in haste. He walked some part of the night, but being forced by fatigue to take a little sleep, he lay down, just as he was, in a wood by the road-side. While he slept, a wolf, attracted by the smell, snatched up the meat, which he had tied to his wallet, and ran off with it, carrying away with it the wallet in which the man had placed the letter. When the man woke and discovered his loss, after much vain searching, as he could not find it, he decided not to go to the despot without the letter, but to make off and keep out of the way.

XXVII. In consequence of this Dionysius only heard of the war in Sicily much later and from other persons, and meanwhile Dion had been joined on his march by the people of Kamarina, and by a considerable number of the Syracusans who lived in the country. The Leontines and Campanians, who formed the garrison of Epipolæ, in consequence of Dion's sending them a false report that he intended to attack their city first, left Timokrates, and went away thither to defend their own property. When news of this reached Dion, who was encamped near Akræ, he aroused his soldiers while it was yet night and marched to the river Anapus, which is ten stadia distant from the city. There he halted and offered sacrifice beside the river, praying to the rising sun, and at the same time the soothsayers declared that the gods would give him the victory. Observing that Dion wore a garland because he was sacrificing, all those who were present at the sacrifice with one impulse crowned themselves with flowers. No less than five thousand men had joined him on his march. They were badly armed in a make-shift fashion, but their zeal supplied the deficiencies of their equipment, and when Dion led the way they all started at a run, shouting for joy, and encouraging one another to recover their freedom.

XXVIII. Of the Syracusans within the walls, the chief men and upper classes in their most splendid raiment met Dion at the gates, while the populace attacked the friends of the despot, and seized upon the spies, a wicked and hateful class of men, who used to live among the people of the city and report their opinions and conversations to the despot. These men were the first to suffer for their crimes, as they were beaten to death by any of the citizens who fell in with them. Timokrates, unable to reach the garrison of the citadel, mounted his horse and rode away from the city, spreading alarm and confusion everywhere as he fled by exaggerating the numbers of Dion's army, that he might not be thought to have surrendered the city through fear to a small force.

Meanwhile Dion could already be seen plainly, as he marched first of all his men, clad in splendid armour. On one side of him was his brother Megakles, and on the other the Athenian Kallippus, both crowned with garlands. Next marched a hundred of the mercenary soldiers, as a bodyguard for Dion, while the rest of the men were led on by their officers in battle array. The entire procession was looked upon and welcomed as though it were sacred by the citizens of Syracuse, who, after forty-two years of tyranny, saw liberty and a popular constitution restored to their city.