Greek Texts & Translations

5.3.21Now Agesilaus had already gone beyond the time ^note for which the food-supply in Phlius was said to suffice; for self-restraint in appetite differs so much from unrestrained indulgence that the Phliasians, by voting to consume half as much food as before and carrying out this decision, held out under siege for twice as long a time as was to have been expected. 5.3.22Furthermore, courage sometimes differs so much from cowardice that a certain Delphion, who was regarded as a brilliant man, taking to himself three hundred of the Phliasians, was able to hold in check those who desired to make peace, was able to shut up and keep under guard those whom he distrusted, and had the power to compel the masses of the people to go to their posts and by putting sentinels over them to keep these people faithful. Frequently also he would sally forth with the three hundred picked men and beat off the troops on guard at one point and another of the wall of circumvallation. 5.3.23When, however, these picked men with searching in every way could not find food in the city, thereupon they sent to Agesilaus and asked him to give them safe conduct for going on an embassy to Lacedaemon; for they said that they had resolved to ^note leave it to the authorities of the Lacedaemonians to do whatever they would with the city. 5.3.24Agesilaus, however, angered because they treated him as one without authority, sent to his friends at home and arranged that the decision about Phlius should be left to him, but nevertheless he gave safe conduct to the embassy. Then he kept guard with a force even stronger than before, in order that no one of the people in the city might escape. In spite of this, however, Delphion, and with him a branded desperado who had many times stolen away weapons from the besiegers, escaped by night. 5.3.25But when messengers arrived from Lacedaemon with word that the state left it to Agesilaus to decide as he thought best upon matters in Phlius, Agesilaus decided in this way — that fifty men from the restored exiles and fifty from the people at home should, in the first place, make inquiry to determine who ought justly to be left alive in the city and who ought to be put to death, and, secondly, should draw up a constitution under which to conduct the government; and until such time as these matters should be settled, he left behind him a garrison and six months' pay for those who composed it. After doing all this he dismissed the allies and led his citizen troops back home. And thus the affair of Phlius in its turn came to a conclusion, after a year and eight months.

5.3.26At this time also Polybiades compelled the Olynthians, who were in an exceedingly wretched state from famine, inasmuch as they got no food from their own land and none was brought in to them by sea, to send to Lacedaemon to treat for peace; and those who went thither, being ambassadors with full powers, concluded a compact to count the same ^note people enemies and friends as the Lacedaemonians did, to follow wherever they led the way, and to be their allies. Then after taking an oath that they would abide by this compact, they went back home.

5.3.27And now that success had to such an extent attended the efforts of the Lacedaemonians that the Thebans and the rest of the Boeotians were completely in their power, the Corinthians had become absolutely faithful, the Argives had been humbled for the reason that their plea of the sacred months was no longer of any help to them, and the Athenians were left destitute of allies, while on the other hand those among the allies of the Lacedaemonians who had been unfriendly to them had been chastised, it seemed that they had at length established their empire most excellently and securely.

ch. 4 5.4.1Now one could mention many other incidents, both among Greeks and barbarians, to prove that the gods do not fail to take heed of the wicked or of those who do unrighteous things; but at present I will speak of the case which is before me. The Lacedaemonians, namely, who had sworn that they would leave the states independent, after seizing possession of the Acropolis of Thebes were punished by the very men, unaided, who had been thus wronged, although before that time they had not been conquered by any single one of all the peoples that ever existed; while as for those among the Theban citizens who had led them into the Acropolis and had wanted the state to be in subjection to the Lacedaemonians in order that they might rule despotically themselves, just seven of the exiles were enough to destroy the government of these men. ^note How all this came to pass I will proceed to relate.

5.4.2There was a certain Phillidas, who acted as secretary to Archias and his fellow polemarchs ^note and in other ways served them, as it seemed, most excellently. Now this man went to Athens on a matter of business, and there met Melon, one of the Thebans in exile at Athens and a man who had been an acquaintance of his even before this time. Melon, after learning of the doings of the polemarch Archias and the tyrannous rule of Philippus, and finding out that Phillidas hated the conditions that existed at home even more than he himself did, exchanged pledges with him and came to an agreement as to how everything should be managed.