Book 4
Now it happened at that time that Ischagoras, the Lacedaemonian, was on the point of taking an army by land to join Brasidas, but Perdiccas, partly because Nicias urged him, since he had made terms with the Athenians, to give them some token of his sincerity, partly also because he himself no longer wished the Peloponnesians to enter his territory, now worked upon his friends in Thessaly, with the foremost of whom he was always on good terms, and effectually stopped the army and the expedition, to such a degree that they did not even try to obtain permission from the Thessalians.
Ischagoras, however, with Ameinias and Aristeus, came by themselves to Brasidas, having been commissioned by the Lacedaemonians to look into the situation. And they brought from Sparta, contrary to custom, some of their young men, intending to place them as governors over the cities instead of entrusting these to anybody that might chance to offer. Accordingly, they placed at Amphipolis Clearidas son of Cleonymus and at Torone Pasitelidas son of Hegesander.
In the same summer the Thebans dismantled the wall of the Thespians, accusing them of favouring the Athenians. Indeed they had always wished to do this, but now found it easier, since the flower of the Thespians had perished in the battle with the Athenians.At Delium; cf. 4.93.4; 4.96.3.
In this same summer, too, the temple of Hera at Argos was burned down, ChrysisThe same who in 431 B.C. had held her office forty-eight years; cf. 2.2.1. the priestess having placed a lighted torch near the garlands and then gone to sleep, so that the whole place took fire and was ablaze before she was aware.
And Chrysis that very night, in fear of the Argives, fled to Phlius; but they appointed another priestess according to the custom prescribed, Phaeinis by name. Chrysis had been priestess during eight years of this war and half of the ninth when she fled.
Toward the close of the summer Scione was at length completely invested, and the Athenians, leaving a guard there, withdrew with the rest of their army.
In the following winter, on account of the armistice, matters were quiet with the Athenians and the Lacedaemonians; but the Mantineans and the Tegeans with their respective allies fought a battle at Laodoceum in the district of Oresthis. The victory was disputed; for each side routed the wing opposed to themselves, and both set up trophiesIt seems that the Mantineans and Tegeans each defeated the other's allies, which were on the left wings of the opposing armies. and sent spoils to Delphi.
Certain it is at any rate that after many had fallen on both sides and night had cut short the action, the issue of battle being still undecided, the Tegeans bivouacked on the field and set up a trophy at once, while the Mantineans retreated to Bucolion, and afterwards set up a rival trophy.
Toward the close of the same winter, when spring was near at hand, Brasidas made an attempt on Potidaea. He came up by night and placed a ladder against the wall, up to this point escaping detection; for the ladder was planted precisely at the interval of time after the bell had been carried by and before the patrol who passed it on had come back.It appears that the bell was passed from one sentinel to the next. Another, and probably more common, way of testing the watchfulness of the sentinels was to have a patrol with a bell make the round, each sentinel having to answer the signal. The guards, however, discovered it immediately, before an ascent could be made, and Brasidas made haste to lead his army back again, not waiting for day to come.
So ended the winter and with it the ninth year of this war of which Thucydides wrote the history.