The Illyrians and Acarnanians Join
Philip then passed the winter in Macedonia, in an
note
energetic enlistment of troops for the coming
campaign, and in securing his frontier on the
side of the Barbarians. And having accomplished these objects, he met Scerdilaidas and put himself
fearlessly in his power, and discussed with him the terms
-- 305 --
of friendship and alliance; and partly by promising to help
him in securing his power in Illyria, and partly by bringing against the Aetolians the charges to which they were only
too open, persuaded him without difficulty to assent to his
proposals. The fact is that public crimes do not differ from
private, except in quantity and extent; and just as in the case
of petty thieves, what brings them to ruin more than anything else is that they cheat and are unfaithful to each other, so
was it in the case of the Aetolians. They had agreed with
Scerdilaidas to give him half the booty, if he would join them
in their attack upon Achaea; but when, on his consenting to do
so, and actually carrying out his engagement, they had sacked
Cynaetha and carried off a large booty in slaves and cattle,
they gave him no share in the spoil at all. He was therefore
already enraged with them; and required very little persuasion on Philip's part to induce him to accept the proposal,
and agree to join the alliance, on condition of receiving a
yearly subsidy of twenty talents; and, in return, putting to
sea with thirty galleys and carrying on a naval war with the
Aetolians.
