As for the barbarian, nothing is more to his purpose than to take measures to prevent us
 from ever ceasing to make war upon each other; while we, on the contrary, are so far from
 doing anything to embroil his interests or foment rebellion among his subjects that when,
 thanks to fortune, dissensions do break out in his empire we actually lend him a hand in
 putting them down. Even now, when the two armies are fighting in Cyprus , Reference to the
 ten years’ war between Artaxerxes and Evagoras, king of Salamis . For Evagoras see introduction to Isoc.
 2 , and for the war see Isoc. 9.64 ff. we
 permit him to make use of the one The armament of
 Tiribazus, composed largely of an army of Greek mercenaries and a navy drawn from Ionian
 Greeks. and to besiege the other, That of
 Evagoras. although both of them belong to Hellas ; for the Cyprians, who are in revolt against him, are not only on friendly terms with
 us See Isoc. 9.53-54 ; Xen. Hell. 4.8.24 . but are also seeking the
 protection of the Lacedaemonians; and as to the forces which are led by Tiribazus, the
 most effective troops of his infantry have been levied from these parts, Greeks who sold their services as mercenary troops because of
 poverty at home. See Isoc. 4.168 and note. and most
 of his fleet has been brought together from Ionia ; and all these would much more gladly make common cause and plunder
 Asia than risk their lives fighting against
 each other over trifling issues. But these things we take no thought to prevent; instead, we wrangle about the islands of
 the Cyclades , when we have so recklessly given
 over so many cities and such great forces to the barbarians. And therefore some of our
 possessions are now his, some will soon be his, and others are threatened by his
 treacherous designs. And he has rightly conceived an utter contempt for us all; for he has attained what no one of his ancestors ever did: Asia has been conceded both by us and by the Lacedaemonians to belong to
 the King; and as for the cities of the Hellenes, he has taken them so absolutely under his
 control that he either razes them to the ground or builds his fortresses within them. And
 all this has come about by reason of our own folly, not because of his power.