My husband, although he completed the compositionof this work in his lifetime, passed away beforehe had fully revised and prepared it for the press,and the privilege of finally revising and editing ithas, consequently, devolved upon me. This, fromthe nature of the subject, has been a task of somedifficulty, but I have spared no pains to accomplishit to the best of my ability.

As regards the orthography of Greek propernames, I have thought it right to adhere, in mostcases, to the views of my husband, who was stronglyof opinion that the original spelling of the words inGreek should, so far as practicable, be followed andreproduced when they were expressed in Englishcharacters.

I should also mention that his reasons for usingthe name of ‘the Great Athenian War’ to describethe long contest usually known as ‘the PeloponnesianviWar’ are given at the beginning ofChapter XXIX. at page 415 of the book.

It was a source of great delight to my husbandto compose this story of the life and times ofAlkibiades, and it is hoped that many of its readerswill feel, at any rate in some degree, a like pleasurefrom perusing it.

It will remind many who loved him of thatbrilliant talk, that refined sensitiveness, that freshnessof wit and humour which went to make up hisunusual personality.