XI. As the quarrel between Nikias and Alkibiades had now reached such
a pitch, it was decided that the remedy of ostracism must be applied
to them. By this from time to time the people of Athens were wont to
banish for ten years any citizen whose renown or wealth rendered him
dangerous to the state. Great excitement was caused by this measure,
as one or the other must be utterly ruined by its application. The
Athenians were disgusted by the licentiousness of Alkibiades, and
feared his reckless daring, as has been explained at greater length in
his Life, while Nikias was disliked because of his great wealth and
his reserved and unpopular mode of life. Moreover he had frequently
offended the people by acting in direct opposition to their wishes,
forcing them in spite of themselves to do what was best for them. On
the one side were arrayed the young men and those who wished for war,
and on the other the older men and the party of peace, who would be
sure to vote respectively, one for the banishment of Nikias, the other
for that of Alkibiades. Now

"In revolutions bad men rise to fame,"

and it appears that the violence of these factions at Athens gave an
opportunity for the lowest and basest citizens to gain reputation.
Amongst these was one Hyperbolus, of the township of Peirithois, a man
of no ability or power, but who owed his elevation to sheer audacity,
and whose influence was felt to be a disgrace to Athens. This man, who
never dreamed that ostracism would be applied to him, as the pillory
would have been more suitable to his deserts, openly showed his
delight at the discord between Nikias and Alkibiades, and excited the
people to deal severely with them, because he hoped that if one of
them were to be banished, he might succeed to his place, and become a
match for the one who was left behind. But the parties which supported