Page:History of Greece Vol X.djvu/480

458 HISTORY OF GREECE. would be felt as a relief, and would procure credit for Dionysius. 1 It had been brought about under him, though not as a consequence of h".s exploits ; ibr his military operations against Imilkon al Gela had been completely unsuccessful (and even worse) ; and the Carthaginians had suffered no harm except from the pesti- lence. While his partisans had thus a plea for extolling him as the savior of the city, he also gathered strength in other ways out of the recent events. He had obtained a formal recognition of his government from the Carthaginians ; he had destroyed or ban- ished the chief Syracusan citizens opposed to his dominion, and struck terror into the rest ; he had brought back all his mercenary troops and guards, without loss or dissatisfaction. He now availed himself of his temporary strength to provide precautions for per- petuity, before the Syracusans should recover spirit, or obtain a favorable opportunity, to resist. His first measure was to increase the fortifications of the islet called Ortygia, strengthening it as a position to be held separately from Achradina and the remaining city. He constructed a new wall, provided with lofty turrets and elaborate defences of every kind, immediately outside of the mole which connected this islet with Sicily. On the outside of this new wall, he provided conve- nient places for transacting business, porticos spacious enough to shelter a considerable multitude, and seemingly a distinct strong fort, destined for a public magazine of corn. 2 It suited his pur- pose that the trade of the town should be carried on, and the per- sons of the traders congregated, under or near the outer walls of his peculiar fortress. As a farther means of security, he also 1 Plato, while he speaks of Dionysius and Hipparinus on this occasion aa the saviors of Syracuse, does not insist upon extraordinary valor and abil- ity on their parts, but assigns the result mainly to fortune and the favor <' the gods (Plato, Epistol. viii, p. 353 B.; p. 355 F.). His letter is written with a view of recommending a compromise at Sy- racuse, between the party of freedom, and the descendants of Dionysius and Hipparinus ; he thus tries to set up as good a case as he can, in favor of the title of both the two latter to the gratitude of the Syracusans. He reluctantly admits how much Dionysius the elder afterwards abused the confidence placed in him by the Syracusans (p. 353 C.). That this was the situation of the fortified hm-rca pullica at Syracuse, we see from Livy, xxiv, 21. I think we may presume that they were be- gun at this time by Dionysius, as they form a natural part of his scheme.