94

HISTORY OF MARINE ARCHITECTURE.

in them which they ought most to wonder, the folly which had causedsuch a useless waste of labour, or the skill displayed by a people, till then,totally unpractised in the science of Marine Architecture, in putting togetherso enormous a floating structure.

Diodorus, lib. xii. after mentioning this victory, relates, that the vessel inquestion was consequently dedicated, as a spolium opimum, to Neptune. Asecond contest quickly succeeded to the first ; for the Spartans, bearing tooarrogant a spirit to sink under the pressure of the first misfortune, strainedevery nerve to send forth a second armament; so that a second Lacedaemonianfleet made its appearance at sea, ere the rejoicings had ceased for the defeatof the first. The conflict which took place was checquered, perhaps, withmore varied success than had ever before occurred in the history of naval war.The Spartans, notwithstanding their want of skill, which they very strangelyand blindly appeared very little conscious of, having attacked their enemy witha great superiority of force, succeeded in making themselves masters of ninegallies, out of twenty, which composed the Athenian fleet; but pursuing asan almost certain prey the remainder of their routed adversaries, and attackingthem somewhat incautiously, six were captured, several sunk, and all the restof their companions driven on shore. To conclude and render complete thedisasters of the Spartans, their nine prizes, first taken, were recaptured, andPhormio returned once more to Athens in all the pride of victory.

Misfortune, however, appeared still incapable of damping the natural courageof the Lacedaemonians. A far greater armament was speedily collected after the•ruin of the second, in force so powerful, that the Spartans meditated an attackon Piraeum, the port belonging to Athens, and the only place from whence shehad it in her power to send forth a navy. It would to a certainty have beencarried into execution, and not improbably with success, had it not been pre-vented by a sudden and unfortunate change of the wind. One of the most extra-ordinary feats that is recorded in history, appears to have been effected by thesame people very soon after the failure just mentioned. Having attacked andcarried the city of Corcyra, now Corfu, they retired towards the isthmus, whichjoins Leucate to the main land of Acarnania : on this spot the city of Leucatestood ; and an Athenian armament, consisting of thirty triremes, dispatched inquest of the plunderers, arriving in the opposite sea, the very narrow isthmusjust mentioned separated the contending parties. The pursuers delayed not toproceed round the promontory to attack their enemy ; but some time being

necessarily