μετὰ ταῦτα Φαρνάβαζος εἰς λόγους αὐτῷ συνελθεῖν ἠθέλησε, καὶ συνῆγεν ἀμφοτέρους ὢν ξένος ὁ Κυζικηνὸς Ἀπολλοφάνης. πρότερος δὲ μετὰ τῶν φίλων ὁ Ἀγησίλαος ἐλθὼν εἰς τὸ χωρίον, ὑπὸ σκιᾷ τινι πόας οὔσης βαθείας καταβαλὼν ἑαυτόν, ἐνταῦθα περιέμενε τὸν Φαρνάβαζον.
After this, Pharnabazus desired to have a conference with him, and Apollophanes of Cyzicus, who was a guest-friend of both, brought the two together. Agesilaüs, with his friends, came first to the appointed place, and throwing himself down in a shady place where the grass was deep, there awaited Pharnabazus.
ὁ δὲ ὡς ἐπῆλθεν, ὑποβεβλημένων αὐτῷ κωδίων τε μαλακῶν καὶ ποικίλων δαπίδων, αἰδεσθεὶς τὸν Ἀγησίλαον οὕτω κατακείμενον κατεκλίνη καὶ αὐτός, ὡς ἔτυχεν, ἐπὶ τῆς πόας χαμᾶζε, καίπερ ἐσθῆτα θαυμαστὴν λεπτότητι καὶ βαφαῖς ἐνδεδυκώς. ἀσπασάμενοι δὲ ἀλλήλους ὁ μὲν Φαρνάβαζος οὐκ ἠπόρει λόγων δικαίων, ἅτε δὴ πολλὰ καὶ μεγάλα Λακεδαιμονίοις χρήσιμος γεγονὼς ἐν τῷ πρὸς Ἀθηναίους πολέμῳ, νῦν δὲ πορθούμενος ὑπʼ αὐτῶν·
And when Pharnabazus came, although soft cushions and broidered rugs had been spread for him, he was ashamed to see Agesilaüs reclining as he was, and threw himself down likewise, without further ceremony, on the grassy ground, although he was clad in raiment of wonderful delicacy and dyes. After mutual salutations, Pharnabazus had plenty of just complaints to make, since, although he had rendered the Lacedaemonians many great services in their war against the Athenians, his territory was now being ravaged by them.
ὁ δὲ Ἀγησίλαος, ὁρῶν τοὺς σὺν αὐτῷ Σπαρτιάτας ὑπʼ αἰσχύνης κύπτοντας εἰς τὴν γῆν καὶ διαποροῦντας ἀδικούμενον γὰρ ἑώρων τὸν Φαρνάβαζον, ἡμεῖς, εἶπεν, ὦ Φαρνάβαζε, καὶ φίλοι ὄντες πρότερον βασιλέως ἐχρώμεθα τοῖς ἐκείνου πράγμασι φιλικῶς καὶ νῦν πολέμιοι γεγονότες πολεμικῶς. ἓν οὖν καὶ σὲ τῶν βασιλέως κτημάτων ὁρῶντες εἶναι βουλόμενον, εἰκότως διὰ σοῦ βλάπτομεν ἐκεῖνον.
But Agesilaüs, seeing the Spartans with him bowed to the earth with shame and at a loss for words (for they saw that Pharnabazus was a wronged man), said: We, O Pharnabazus, during our former friendship with the King, treated what belongs to him in a friendly way, and now that we have become his enemies, we treat it in a hostile way. Accordingly, seeing that thou also desirest to be one of the King’s chattels, we naturally injure him through thee.
ἀφʼ ἧς δʼ ἂν ἡμέρας σεαυτὸν ἀξιώσῃς Ἑλλήνων φίλον καὶ σύμμαχον μᾶλλον ἢ δοῦλον λέγεσθαι βασιλέως, ταύτην νόμιζε τὴν φάλαγγα καὶ τὰ ὅπλα καὶ τὰς ναῦς καὶ πάντας ἡμᾶς τῶν σῶν κτημάτων φύλακας εἶναι καὶ τῆς ἐλευθερίας, ἧς ἄνευ καλὸν ἀνθρώποις οὐδὲν οὐδὲ ζηλωτόν ἐστιν.
But from the day when thou shalt deem thyself worthy to be called a friend and ally of the Greeks instead of a slave of the King, consider this army, these arms and ships, and all of us, to be guardians of thy possessions and of thy liberty, without which nothing in the world is honourable or even worthy to be desired.
ἐκ τούτου λέγει πρὸς αὐτὸν ὁ Φαρνάβαζος ἣν εἶχε διάνοιαν. ἐγὼ γάρ, εἶπεν, ἐὰν μὲν ἄλλον ἐκπέμψῃ βασιλεὺς στρατηγόν, ἔσομαι μεθʼ ὑμῶν, ἐὰν δʼ ἐμοὶ παραδῷ τὴν ἡγεμονίαν, οὐδὲν ἐλλείψω προθυμίας ἀμυνόμενος ὑμᾶς καὶ κακῶς ποιῶν ὑπὲρ ἐκείνου. ταῦτα δʼ ἀκούσας ὁ Ἀγησίλαος ἥσθη, καὶ τῆς δεξιᾶς αὐτοῦ λαβόμενος καὶ συνεξαναστάς, εἴθε, εἶπεν, ὦ Φαρνάβαζε, τοιοῦτος ὢν φίλος ἡμῖν γένοιο μᾶλλον ἢ πολέμιος.
Upon this, Pharnabazus declared to him his purposes. As for me, indeed, he said, if the King shall send out another general in my stead, I will be on your side; but if he entrusts me with the command, I will spare no efforts to punish and injure you in his behalf. On hearing this, Agesilaüs was delighted, and said, as he seized his hand and rose up with him, O Pharnabazus, I would that such a man as thou might be our friend rather than our enemy.
ἀπιόντος δὲ τοῦ Φαρναβάζου μετὰ τῶν φίλων, ὁ υἱὸς ὑπολειφθεὶς προσέδραμε τῷ Ἀγησιλάῳ καί μειδιῶν εἶπεν· ἐγώ σε ξένον, ὦ Ἀγησίλαε, ποιοῦμαι. καί παλτὸν ἔχων ἐν τῇ χειρὶ δίδωσιν αὐτῷ. δεξάμενος οὖν ὁ Ἀγησίλαος καί ἡσθεὶς τῇ τε ὄψει καί τῇ φιλοφροσύνῃ τοῦ παιδός, ἐπεσκόπει τοὺς παρόντας, εἴ τις ἔχοι τι τοιοῦτον οἷον ἀντιδοῦναι καλῷ καί γενναίῳ δῶρον.
As Pharnabazus and his friends were going away, his son, who was left behind, ran up to Agesilaüs and said with a smile: I make thee my guest-friend, Agesilaüs, and offered him a javelin which he held in his hand. Agesilaüs accepted it, and being delighted with the fair looks and kindly bearing of the boy, looked round upon his companions to see if any one of them had anything that would do for a return-gift to a fair and gallant friend;
ἰδὼν δὲ ἵππον Ἰδαίου τοῦ γραφέως κεκοσμημένον φαλάροις, ταχὺ ταῦτα περισπάσας τῷ μειρακίῳ δίδωσι. καί τὸ λοιπὸν οὐκ ἐπαύετο μεμνημένος, ἀλλὰ καί χρόνῳ περιϊόντι τὸν οἶκον ἀποστερηθέντος αὐτοῦ καί φυγόντος ὑπὸ τῶν ἀδελφῶν εἰς Πελοποννησον, ἰσχυρῶς ἐπεμελεῖτο.
and seeing that the horse of Idaeus, his secretary, had a decorated head-gear, he quickly took this off and gave it to the youth. Nor afterwards did he cease to remember him, but when, as time went on, the youth was robbed of his home by his brothers and driven into exile in Peloponnesus, he paid him much attention. He even gave him some assistance in his love affairs.
καί τι καί τῶν ἐρωτικῶν αὐτῷ συνέπραξεν. ἠράσθη γὰρ ἀθλητοῦ παιδὸς ἐξ Ἀθηνῶν ἐπεὶ δὲ μέγας ὢν καί σκληρὸς Ὀλυμπίασιν ἐκινδύνευσεν ἐκκριθῆναι, καταφεύγει πρὸς τὸν Ἀγησίλαον ὁ Πέρσης δεόμενος ὑπὲρ τοῦ παιδός· ὁ δὲ καί τοῦτο βουλόμενος αὐτῷ χαρίζεσθαι, μάλα μόλις διεπράξατο σὺν πολλῇ πραγματείᾳ. τἆλλα μὲν γὰρ ἦν ἀκριβὴς καί νόμιμος, ἐν δὲ τοῖς φιλικοῖς πρόφασιν ἐνόμιζεν εἶναι τὸ λίαν δίκαιον.
For the Persian was enamoured of an Athenian boy, an athlete, who, owing to his stature and strength, was in danger of being ruled out of the lists at Olympia. He therefore had recourse to Agesilaüs with entreaties to help the boy, and Agesilaüs, wishing to gratify him in this matter also, with very great difficulty and with much trouble effected his desires. Indeed, although in other matters he was exact and law-abiding, in matters of friendship he thought that rigid justice was a mere pretext.
φέρεται γοῦν ἐπιστόλιον αὐτοῦ πρὸς Ἱδριέα τὸν Κᾶρα τοιοῦτο· Νικίας εἰ μὲν μὴ ἀδικεῖ, ἄφες· εἰ δὲ ἀδικεῖ, ἡμῖν ἄφες· πάντως δὲ ἄφες. ἐν μὲν οὖν τοῖς πλείστοις τοιοῦτος ὑπὲρ τῶν φίλων ὁ Ἀγησίλαος· ἔστι δὲ ὅπου πρὸς τὸ συμφέρον ἐχρῆτο τῷ καιρῷ μᾶλλον, ὡς ἐδήλωσεν, ἀναζυγῆς αὐτῷ θορυβωδεστέρας γενομένης, ἀσθενοῦντα καταλιπὼν τὸν ἐρώμενον. ἐκείνου γὰρ δεομένου καί καλοῦντος αὐτὸν ἀπιόντα, μεταστραφεὶς εἶπεν ὡς χαλεπὸν ἐλεεῖν ἅμα καί φρονεῖν. τουτὶ μὲν Ἱερώνυμος ὁ φιλόσοφος ἱστόρηκεν.
At any rate, there is in circulation a letter of his to Hidrieus the Carian, which runs as follows: As for Nicias, if he is innocent, acquit him; if he is guilty, acquit him for my sake; but in any case acquit him. Such, then, was Agesilaüs in most cases where the interests of his friends were concerned; but sometimes he used a critical situation rather for his own advantage. Of this he gave an instance when, as he was decamping in some haste and confusion, he left his favourite behind him sick. The sick one besought him loudly as he was departing, but he merely turned and said that it was hard to be compassionate and at the same time prudent. This story is related by Hieronymus the philosopher.
ἤδη δὲ περιϊόντος ἐνιαυτοῦ δευτέρου τῇ στρατηγίᾳ. πολὺς ἄνω λόγος ἐχώρει τοῦ Ἀγησιλάου, καὶ δόξα θαυμαστὴ κατεῖχε τῆς τε σωφροσύνης αὐτοῦ καὶ εὐτελείας καὶ μετριότητος, ἐσκήνου μὲν γὰρ ἀποδημῶν καθʼ αὑτὸν ἐν τοῖς ἁγιωτάτοις ἱεροῖς, ἃ μὴ πολλοὶ καθορῶσιν ἄνθρωποι πράττοντας ἡμᾶς, τούτων τοὺς θεοὺς ποιούμενος ἐπόπτας καὶ μάρτυρας· ἐν δὲ χιλιάσι στρατιωτῶν τοσαύταις οὐ ῥᾳδίως ἄν τις εἶδε φαυλοτέραν στιβάδα τῆς Ἀγησιλάου.
Agesilaüs had now been nearly two years in the field, and much was said about him in the interior parts of Asia, and a wonderful opinion of his self-restraint, of his simplicity of life, and of his moderation, everywhere prevailed. For when he made a journey, he would take up his quarters in the most sacred precincts by himself, thus making the gods overseers and witnesses of those acts which few men are permitted to see us perform; and among so many thousands of soldiers, one could hardly find a meaner couch than that of Agesilaüs;
πρός τε θάλπος οὕτω καὶ ψῦχος εἶχεν ὥσπερ μόνος ἀεὶ χρῆσθαι ταῖς ὑπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ κεκραμέναις ὥραις πεφυκώς. ἥδιστον δὲ θέαμα τοῖς κατοικοῦσι τὴν Ἀσίαν Ἕλλησιν ἦσαν οἱ πάλαι βαρεῖς καὶ ἀφόρητοι καὶ διαρρέοντες ὑπὸ πλούτου καὶ τρυφῆς ὕπαρχοι καὶ στρατηγοὶ δεδιότες καὶ θεραπεύοντες ἄνθρωπον ἐν τρίβωνι περιϊόντα λιτῷ, καὶ πρὸς ἓν ῥῆμα βραχὺ καὶ Λακωνικὸν ἁρμόζοντες ἑαυτοὺς καὶ μετασχηματίζοντες, ὥστε πολλοῖς ἐπῄει τὰ τοῦ Τιμοθέου λέγειν, Ἄρης τύραννος· χρυσὸν δὲ Ἕλλας οὐ δέδοικε.
while to heat and cold he was as indifferent as if nature had given him alone the power to adapt himself to the seasons as God has tempered them. And it was most pleasing to the Greeks who dwelt in Asia to see the Persian viceroys and generals, who had long been insufferably cruel, and had revelled in wealth and luxury, now fearful and obsequious before a man who went about in a paltry cloak, and at one brief and laconic speech from him conforming themselves to his ways and changing their dress and mien, insomuch that many were moved to cite the words of Timotheus:— Ares is Lord; of gold Greece hath no fear. /
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