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When some became objects of suspicion, he took away the arms of all of them and demolished their walls by means of the inhabitants themselves. For having sent letters everywhere, and having ordered them to be delivered to everyone on the same day, he commanded them to tear down the circuit-walls that very day, threatening death to those who disobeyed. Having read these, those in authority, and believing each that the letter had been written to them alone, and not even taking time for deliberation, all demolished the walls. But Cato crossed the Iberus, and not daring to engage the Celtiberians who were allied with his enemies because of their great number, he handled them in a remarkable way, at one time persuading them to change sides to him by the offer of greater pay, at another advising them to return home, and at other times even announcing battle against them for a set day. For as a result of this they fell into strife with one another, and becoming afraid, they no longer dared to make war against him. At that time Flamininus also marched against Argos. 2.301 For the Romans, seeing that Nabis was neither faithful to them nor anything but a terror to the Greeks, made him an enemy. And when allies from Philip also joined him, Flamininus marched against Sparta, and without difficulty he crossed Taygetus and approached the city with no one opposing him. For Nabis, fearing the Romans and suspecting the inhabitants, did not move to meet Flamininus in advance; but when he drew near, he sallied out against him, despising him both because of his fatigue from the march and because he was occupied with making camp, and he threw some of them into confusion. On the next day he went out against the attackers, and after losing many men he no longer came out. Flamininus, therefore, leaving a part of his army there so that Nabis might not move anywhere, turned with the rest against the country; and he and his brother and the Rhodians and Eumenes, the son of Attalus, ravaged it. Therefore, because of these things, Nabis, in despair, sent a herald to Flamininus concerning peace. And he accepted his proposals, but did not immediately make peace. For the agreements, which Nabis was required to make, he neither dared to refuse nor consented to make. But the multitude prevented him from coming to terms. And at that time he did not make a truce, but when the Romans attacked again and captured nearly all of Sparta, for it was unwalled in part, he held out no longer, but made a treaty with Flamininus and, sending an embassy to Rome, was reconciled. Flamininus at that time set all the Greeks free, but later, calling them together and reminding them of the benefits they had received, he advised them to maintain goodwill 2.302 toward Rome, and he withdrew all the garrisons, and departed with his entire army. But when Flamininus arrived in Rome, Nabis started a revolution. And from this, all of Greece, so to speak, was thrown into confusion, with the Aetolians inciting them; and they prepared for war, and sent embassies to Philip and Antiochus. And they persuaded him to go to war with the Romans, on the grounds that he would rule over both Greece and Italy. But for the Romans, with their affairs in turmoil, there was no hope of overcoming Antiochus, but they were content if they could save their own possessions. For Antiochus seemed great on account of his own power, both for other reasons and because he had subdued Media, and he became much greater still because he had added Ptolemy the king of Egypt and Ariarathes the king of Cappadocia as relatives by marriage. The Romans, thinking Antiochus to be such a man, courted him as long as they were at war with Philip, both speaking with him amicably through ambassadors and sending gifts; but when they defeated him, they also looked down on this man, whom they had previously feared. But he crossed over to Thrace and both subdued other places and re-founded Lysimachia, which was in ruins, intending to use it as a base of operations; for both Philip and Nabis had invited him. And Hannibal, having met with him, had made him hope to sail to Carthage and from there to Italy, and to subdue in addition the nations of the Ionian gulf, and with them to march upon Rome.

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ὑπόπτων τινῶν γενομένων τά τε οπλα πάντων ἀφείλετο καὶ τὰ τείχη σφῶν δι' αὐτῶν τῶν ἐπιχωρίων κατέσκαψε. γράμματα γὰρ ἑκασταχόσε διαπέμψας, καὶ ἐν τῇ αὐτῇ ἡμέρᾳ απασιν αὐτὰ ἀποδοθῆναι κελεύσας, προσέταξε τοὺς περιβόλους αὐθημερὸν καθελεῖν, θάνατον ἀπειλήσας τοῖς ἀπειθήσασιν. α ἀναγνόντες οἱ ἐν ταῖς ἀρχαῖς οντες, καὶ νομίσαντες εκαστοι μόνοις αὐτοῖς γεγράφθαι, καὶ μηδὲ καιρὸν λαβόντες βουλῆς, κατέβαλον πάντες τὰ τείχη. ̔Ο δὲ Κάτων διέβη τὸν Ιβηρα, καὶ τοῖς Κελτίβηρσι συμμαχοῦσι τοῖς πολεμίοις αὐτοῦ διὰ τὸ πλῆθος συμβαλεῖν μὴ θαρσήσας, μετεχειρίσατο θαυμασίως αὐτούς, ποτὲ μὲν μεταπείθων πρὸς αὐτὸν μεταστῆναι δόσει μείζονος μισθοῦ, ποτὲ δὲ παραινῶν σφίσιν ἐπανελθεῖν οικαδε, εστι δ' οτε καὶ μάχην αὐτοῖς ἐς ἡμέραν ἐπαγγέλλων ῥητήν. ἐκ γὰρ τούτου ἐστασίασαν πρὸς ἀλλήλους, καὶ φοβηθέντες οὐκέτι αὐτῷ πολεμῆσαι ἐτόλμησαν. Τότε δὲ καὶ Φλαμίνιος ἐπὶ τὸ Αργος ἐστράτευσε. 2.301 τὸν γὰρ Νάβιν ουτε σφίσιν πιστὸν καὶ τοῖς Ελλησι φοβερὸν ὁρῶντες οἱ ̔Ρωμαῖοι πολέμιον ἐποιήσαντο. προσγενομένων δὲ καὶ συμμάχων ἐκ τοῦ Φιλίππου αὐτῷ, ἐπὶ τὴν Σπάρτην ηλασεν ὁ Φλαμίνιος, καὶ ἀπόνως τὰ Ταΰγετά τε ὑπερέβη καὶ πρὸς τὴν πόλιν προσῆλθε μηδενὸς ἐναντιουμένου. ὁ γὰρ Νάβις, τούς τε ̔Ρωμαίους δείσας καὶ τοὺς ἐπιχωρίους ὑποπτεύσας, οὐκ ἐκινήθη ωστε προαπαντῆσαι τῷ Φλαμινίῳ· πλησιάσαντι δὲ ἐπεξέδραμε, καταφρονήσας διά τε τὸν κάματον τὸν ἐκ τῆς πορείας καὶ οτι περὶ τὴν στρατοπέδευσιν ἀπησχόλητο, καί τινας συνετάραξε. τῇ δ' ὑστεραίᾳ ἐπεξῆλθε τοῖς προσβάλλουσι, καὶ πολλοὺς ἀποβαλὼν οὐκέτι ἐπεξῆλθε. καταλιπὼν ουν μέρος τοῦ στρατοῦ ἐκεῖ ὁ Φλαμίνιος, οπως μηδαμοῦ κινηθείη, τοῖς λοιποῖς ἐπὶ τὴν χώραν ἐτράπετο· κἀκεῖνός τε καὶ ὁ ἀδελφὸς αὐτοῦ καὶ οἱ ̔Ρόδιοι καὶ ὁ τοῦ ̓Αττάλου παῖς Εὐμένης ἐπόρθουν αὐτήν. ἀπογνοὺς ουν διὰ ταῦτα ὁ Νάβις κήρυκα τῷ Φλαμινίῳ ὑπὲρ εἰρήνης ἀπέστειλε. καὶ ος τοὺς μὲν λόγους αὐτοῦ προσήκατο, οὐκ αὐτίκα δὲ κατελύσατο. τὰς γὰρ ὁμολογίας, ας ἀπῃτεῖτο ὁ Νάβις ποιήσασθαι, ουτ' ἀπαγορεῦσαι ἐθάρρει ουτε ποιῆσαι συγκατετίθετο. τὸ δὲ πλῆθος ἐκώλυσαν αὐτὸν συμβῆναι. καὶ τότε μὲν οὐκ ἐσπείσατο, προσβαλόντων δὲ τῶν ̔Ρωμαίων αυθις καὶ τὴν Σπάρτην ὀλίγου πᾶσαν, καὶ γὰρ ἀτείχιστος ην ἐν μέρει, ἑλόντων οὐκέτ' ἐπέσχεν, ἀλλὰ πρός τε τὸν Φλαμίνιον σπονδὰς ἐποιήσατο καὶ πρὸς τὴν ̔Ρώμην πρεσβευσάμενος συνηλλάγη. ̔Ο δὲ Φλαμίνιος τότε μὲν πάντας τοὺς Ελληνας ἐλευθέρους ἀφῆκεν, υστερον δὲ συγκαλέσας αὐτοὺς καὶ ὑπομνήσας ων εὐηργέτηντο, παρῄνεσεν ευνοιαν 2.302 τῇ ̔Ρώμῃ τηρεῖν, καὶ τὰς φρουρὰς ἁπάσας ἐξήγαγε, καὶ ἀπῆρε μετὰ παντὸς τοῦ στρατοῦ. ̓Αφικομένου δ' ἐς ̔Ρώμην τοῦ Φλαμινίου ὁ Νάβις ἐνεωτέρισε. κἀκ τούτου καὶ τὸ Ἑλληνικὸν απαν ὡς εἰπεῖν ἐταράχθη, τῶν Αἰτωλῶν σφᾶς ἐναγόντων· παρεσκευάζοντό τε ὡς πολεμήσοντες, καὶ πρὸς τὸν Φίλιππον καὶ τὸν ̓Αντίοχον ἐπρεσβεύοντο. καὶ επεισαν αὐτὸν ἐκπολεμωθῆναι ̔Ρωμαίοις, ὡς καὶ τῆς ̔Ελλάδος τῆς ̓Ιταλίας τε βασιλεύσοντα. τοῖς δὲ ̔Ρωμαίοις τῶν πραγμάτων τεταραγμένων οὐχὶ περιγενέσθαι τοῦ ̓Αντιόχου ἐλπὶς ην, ἀλλ' ἠγάπων ει γε τὰ ἑαυτῶν διασώσαιντο. ὁ γὰρ ̓Αντίοχος μέγας μὲν καὶ ἐπὶ τῇ οἰκείᾳ δυνάμει ἐδόκει δι' αλλα τε καὶ οτι τὴν Μηδίαν κατεστρέψατο, πολλῷ δ' ετι μείζων ἐγένετο οτι τὸν Πτολεμαῖον τὸν τῆς Αἰγύπτου βασιλέα καὶ τὸν ̓Αριαράθην τὸν τῆς Καππαδοκίας κηδεστὴν προσετέθειτο. Τοιοῦτον τὸν ̓Αντίοχον νομιζόμενον οἱ ̔Ρωμαῖοι, μέχρι μὲν τῷ Φιλίππῳ ἐπολέμουν, ἐθεράπευον, φιλίως τε διὰ πρέσβεων ὁμιλοῦντες καὶ δῶρα πέμποντες· ἐπεὶ δ' ἐκεῖνον ἐνίκησαν, καὶ τούτου, ον πρόσθεν ἐδεδίεσαν, κατεφρόνουν. ὁ δὲ ἐς τὴν Θρᾴκην ἐπεραιώθη καὶ αλλα τε παρεστήσατο καὶ τὴν Λυσιμαχίαν ἀνεστηκυῖαν συνῴκισεν, ὡς ὁρμητηρίῳ ταύτῃ χρησόμενος· καὶ γὰρ αὐτὸν καὶ ὁ Φίλιππος καὶ ὁ Νάβις ἐπηγάγοντο. ο τε ̓Αννίβας αὐτῷ συγγενόμενος ἐλπίσαι πεποίηκεν ἐς τὴν Καρχηδόνα κἀκεῖθεν εἰς τὴν ̓Ιταλίαν πλεῦσαι, καὶ τὰ τοῦ ̓Ιονίου κόλπου εθνη προσκαταστρέψασθαι, καὶ μετ' αὐτῶν ἐπὶ τὴν ̔Ρώμην ὁρμῆσαι.