A source-book of ancient history - The Search For Mecca

Aristagoras at Athens 157
he had said at Sparta about the wealth which there was in
Asia, and about the Persian manner of making war, how
they used neither shield nor spear and were easy to overcome.
Thus I say he said, and also he added this, namely Ancient
that the Milesians were colonists from the Athenians,
and that it was reasonable that the Athenians should
rescue them, since they had such great power; and there
was nothing which he did not promise, being very urgent
in his request, until at last he persuaded them; for it
would seem that it is easier to deceive many than one,
seeing that, though he did not prove able to deceive Cleomenes
the Lacedasmonian by himself, yet he did this
to thirty thousand Athenians. The Athenians, then, I
say, being persuaded, voted a resolution to despatch twenty
ships to help the lonians, and appointed to command them
Melanthius, one of their citizens who was in all things
highly reputed.
These ships proved to be the beginning
of evils for the Hellenes and the barbarians. . . .
Aristagoras meanwhile, when the Athenians had ar- The Greeks
rived with twenty ships, bringing with them also five against
triremes of the Eretrians, who joined the expedition not
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for the sake of the Athenians but of the Milesians themselves,
to repay them a debt which they owed ; for the Hdt. v. 99.
Milesians in former times had borne with the
Eretrians
the burden of all that war which they had with the Chalcidians,
at the time when the Chalcidians on their side were
helped by the Samians against the Eretrians and Milesians.
When these, I say, had arrived and the other allies were
on the spot, Aristagoras proceeded to make a march upon
Sardis.
On this march he did not go himself, but remained
at Miletus, and appointed others to be in command of
the Milesians, namely his brother Charopinus and of the
other citizens one Hermophantus.