The Fall of the Athenian Empire-(A New History of the Peloponnesian War) Donald Kagan - (1987)

370 THE FALL OF THE ATHENIAN EMPIRE
Callixeinus, took advantage of the new atmosphere to propose a procedure
for dealing with the generals that was most prejudicial to them.
It assumed that the cases for both accusers and defense had been fully
made at the first assembly, so there would be no further discussion at
the second. That would guarantee that the vote on guilt or innocence
would take place in the current hostile atmosphere, so that the generals
and their defenders would have no chance to change minds with argument.
The vote would be taken by tribe and would ask whether or
not the generals were guilty "for not rescuing the men who had won
the victory in the naval battle," a way of putting the question most
damaging to the defendants. If they were judged guilty, they were to
be put to death and their property confiscated, a tenth of it to be given
to Athena. These penalties were almost as severe as those imposed on
Phrynichus, Antiphon, and Archeptolemus for treason, but those men
had been given individual trials with full time to defend themselves
before regular courts, enjoying due process. Callixeinus' proposal required
that the generals be tried in common and that the inadequate
time they had been given to speak in the first assembly suffice for their
entire defense. In spite of the prejudicial character of his proposals,
the council, nonetheless, voted for them, and their terms governed the
procedure at the second assembly."
The discussion in the second assembly obviously began in the emotional
atmosphere created by the Apaturia and was reflected in the
Council of 5oo's choice of procedure. Xenophon reports that a man
claimed he had been at Arginusae and had been saved by clinging to
a tub and that he had heard drowning men near by ask him to tell the
people that "the generals had not rescued the men who had shown
themselves the best in the service of their country."" In the heated
atmosphere created by such talk, it took courage to resist the tide of
passion, but Euryptolemus the son of Peisianax rose to do so. Euryptolemus
was a cousin of Alcibiades and had been one of his closest
associates. He had been one of his representatives in his dealings with
Pharnabazus, and it had been the sight of Euryptolemus that had given
Alcibiades the courage to land at the Piraeus after his return from the
57 Xen. 1 . 7.9-1 o. Xenophon alleges that Theramenes bribed Callixeinus to make his
proposal in the Council of soo, but this accusation, like that concerning the mourners,
is implausible and unnecessary. Callixeinus' proposal would have been of no value if
more than half of the 500 members of the council had not approved it. If so many men
liked the idea, why was there any need to bribe someone to put it forth?
581.7.11.