herodotus

points of rock, they assembled together again and continued on theirvoyage.108. When day dawned, the Hellenes, seeing that the land-army wasstaying still in its place, supposed that the ships also were aboutPhaleron; and thinking that they would fight another sea-battle, theymade preparations to repel them. When however they were informed thatthe ships had departed, forthwith upon this they thought it good topursue after them. They pursued therefore as far as Andros, but didnot get a sight of the fleet of Xerxes; and when they had come toAndros, they deliberated what they should do. Themistocles thendeclared as his opinion that they should take their course through theislands and pursue after the ships, and afterwards sail straight tothe Hellespont to break up the bridges; but Eurybiades expressed theopposite opinion to this, saying that if they should break up thefloating-bridges, they would therein do[73] the greatest possible evilto Hellas: for if the Persian should be cut off and compelled toremain in Europe, he would endeavour not to remain still, since if heremained still, neither could any of his affairs go forward, nor wouldany way of returning home appear; but his army would perish of hunger:whereas if he made the attempt and persevered in it, all Europe mightbe brought over to him, city by city and nation by nation, theinhabitants being either conquered[74] or surrendering on terms beforethey were conquered: moreover they would have for food the crops ofthe Hellenes which grew year by year. He thought however thatconquered in the sea-fight the Persian would not stay in Europe, andtherefore he might be allowed to flee until in his flight he came tohis own land. Then after that they might begin the contest for theland which belonged to the Persian. To this opinion the commanders ofthe other Peloponnesians adhered also. 109. When Themistoclesperceived that he would not be able to persuade them, or at least thegreater number of them, to sail to the Hellespont, he changed hiscounsel[75] and turning to the Athenians (for these were grieved mostat the escape of the enemy and were anxious to sail to the Hellesponteven by themselves alone,[76] if the others were not willing) to themhe spoke as follows: "I myself also have been present before now onmany occasions, and have heard of many more, on which something ofthis kind came to pass, namely that men who were forced into greatstraits, after they had been defeated fought again and repaired theirformer disaster: and as for us, since we have won as a prize fromfortune the existence of ourselves and of Hellas by repelling from ourland so great a cloud of men, let us not pursue enemies who flee fromus: for of these things not we were the doors, but the gods andheroes, who grudged that one man should become king of both Asia andof Europe, and he a man unholy and presumptuous, one who made nodifference between things sacred and things profane,[77] burning and