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In this confusion the following event occurred: certain Phoenicians
belonging to the ships which had thus perished made their appearance
before the king, and laid the blame of their loss on the Ionians,
declaring that they were traitors, and had wilfully destroyed the
vessels. But the upshot of this complaint was that the Ionian
captains escaped the death which threatened them, while their
Phoenician accusers received death as their reward. For it happened
that, exactly as they spoke, a Samothracian vessel bore down on an
Athenian and sank it, but was attacked and crippled immediately by one
of the Eginetan squadron. Now the Samothracians were expert with the
javelin, and aimed their weapons so well, that they cleared the deck
of the vessel which had disabled their own, after which they sprang on
board, and took it. This saved the Ionians. Xerxes, when he saw
the exploit, turned fiercely on the Phoenicians - (he was ready, in
his extreme vexation, to find fault with any one) - and ordered their
heads to be cut off, to prevent them, he said, from casting the blame
of their own misconduct upon braver men. During the whole time of the
battle Xerxes sate at the base of the hill called Aegaleos, over
against Salamis; and whenever he saw any of his own captains perform
any worthy exploit he inquired concerning him; and the man's name was
taken down by his scribes, together with the names of his father and
his city. Ariaramnes too, a Persian, who was a friend of the
Ionians, and present at the time whereof I speak, had a share in
bringing about the punishment of the Phoenicians.
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