ὁ δὲ Κλεομένης ἀπὸ τῶν Αἰγιαλῶν ἀναχθεὶς τῇ Λιβύῃ προσέβαλε, καὶ διὰ τῶν βασιλικῶν παραπεμπόμενος ἧκεν εἰς Ἀλεξάνδρειαν ι . ὀφθεὶς δὲ τῷ Πτολεμαίῳ, κατʼ ἀρχὰς μὲν ἐτύγχανε κοινῶς φιλανθρώπου καὶ μετρίου πρὸς αὐτόν· ἐπεὶ δὲ γνώμης διδοὺς πεῖραν ἀνὴρ ἐφαίνετʼ ἔμφρων, καὶ τῆς καθʼ ἡμέραν ὁμιλίας αὐτοῦ τὸ Λακωνικὸν καὶ ἀφελὲς τὴν χάριν ἐλευθεριον εἶχε, καὶ τὴν εὐγένειαν οὐδαμῇ καταισχύνων οὐδὲ καμπτόμενος ὑπὸ τῆς τύχης, τῶν πρὸς ἡδονὴν καὶ κολακείαν διαλεγομένων πιθανώτερος ἐφαίνετο,
But Cleomenes, putting to sea from Aegiala, landed in Libya, and travelled through the King’s country to Alexandria. After coming into the presence of Ptolemy, at first he met with only ordinary and moderate kindness from him; but when he had given proof of his sentiments and shown himself to be a man of good sense, and when, in his daily intercourse, his Laconian simplicity retained the charm which a free spirit imparts, while he in no wise brought shame upon his noble birth or suffered the blows of Fortune to bow him down, but showed himself more winning than those whose conversation sought only to please and flatter,
πολλὴ μὲν αἰδὼς καὶ μετάνοια τὸν Πτολεμαῖον εἶχεν ἀνδρὸς ἀμελήσαντα τοιούτου καὶ προέμενον τῷ Ἀντιγόνῳ, δόξαν ἅμα κεκτημένῳ τηλικαύτην καὶ δύναμιν, ἀναλαμβάνων δὲ τιμαῖς καὶ φιλοφροσύναις τὸν Κλεομένη παρεθάρρυνεν ὡς μετὰ νεῶν καὶ χρημάτων ἀποστελῶν αὑτὸν εἰς τὴν Ἑλλάδα καὶ καταστήσων εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν.
then Ptolemy was filled with great respect for him, and deeply repented that he had neglected such a man and abandoned him to Antigonus, who had thereby won great glory and power. Ptolemy therefore sought to regain Cleomenes by honours and kindnesses, and kept encouraging him with assurances that he would send him back to Greece with ships and treasure and restore him to his kingdom.
ἐδίδου δὲ καὶ σύνταξιν αὐτῷ τέσσαρα καὶ εἴκοσι τάλαντα καθʼ ἕκαστον ἐνιαυτόν. ἀφʼ ὧν ἐκεῖνος αὑτὸν καὶ τοὺς φίλους εὐτελῶς καὶ σωφρόνως διοικῶν, τὰ πλεῖστα κατανήλισκεν εἰς φιλανθρωπίας καὶ μεταδόσεις τῶν ἀπὸ τῆς Ἑλλάδος εἰς Αἴγυπτον ἐκπεπτωκότων.
He also gave him an annual pension of twenty-four talents. With this money Cleomenes maintained himself and his friends in a simple and modest manner, and spent the greater part in good offices and contributions to the refugees from Greece who were in Egypt.
ὁ μὲν οὖν πρεσβύτερος Πτολεμαῖος πρὶν ἐκτελέσαι τῷ Κλεομένει τὴν ἔκπεμψιν ἐτελεύτησε τῆς δὲ βασιλείας εὐθὺς εἰς πολλὴν ἀσέλγειαν καὶ παροινίαν καὶ γυναικοκρατίαν ἐμπεσούσης ἠμελεῖτο καὶ τὰ τοῦ Κλεομένους.
Well, then, the elder Ptolemy died before sending Cleomenes off as he had promised; and since the court at once plunged into excessive wantonness and drunkenness, and women wielded the power, the affairs of Cleomenes were neglected.
ὁ μὲν γὰρ βασιλεὺς αὐτὸς οὕτω διέφθαρτο τὴν ψυχὴν ὑπὸ γυναικῶν καὶ πότων ὥστε, ὁπότε νήφοι μάλιστα καὶ σπουδαιότατος αὑτοῦ γένοιτο, τελετὰς τελεῖν καὶ τύμπανον ἔχων ἐν τοῖς βασιλείοις ἀγείρειν, τὰ δὲ μέγιστα τῆς ἀρχῆς πράγματα διοικεῖν Ἀγαθόκλειαν τὴν ἐρωμένην τοῦ βασιλέως καὶ τὴν ταύτης μητέρα καὶ πορνοβοσκὸν Οἰνάνθην.
For the king himself was so corrupted in spirit by wine and women that, in his soberest and most serious moments, he would celebrate religious rites and act the mountebank in his palace, timbrel in hand, while the most important affairs of the government were managed by Agathocleia, the mistress of the king, and Oenanthe her mother, who was a bawd.
ὅμως δʼ οὖν ἔδοξέ τις ἐν ἀρχῇ καὶ τοῦ Κλεομένους χρεία γεγονέναι. δεδιὼς γὰρ Μάγαν τὸν ἀδελφὸν Πτολεμαῖος, ὡς ἰσχύοντα διὰ τῆς μητρὸς ἐν τῷ στρατιωτικῷ, τὸν Κλεομένη προσελάμβανε καὶ μετεδίδου τῶν ἀπορρήτων συνεδρίων, βουλευόμενος ἀνελεῖν τὸν ἀδελφόν. ὁ δέ, καίπερ ἁπάντων τοῦτο πράττειν κελευόντων, μόνος ἀπηγόρευσεν, εἰπὼν ὡς μᾶλλον, εἰ δυνατὸν ἦν, ἔδει φῦσαι τῷ βασιλεῖ πλείονας ἀδελφοὺς πρὸς ἀσφάλειαν καὶ διαμονὴν τῶν πραγμάτων.
But in spite of all this, at the outset Cleomenes seemed to be of some use. For Ptolemy was afraid of his brother Magas, believing that Magas had a strong following among the soldiers owing to his mother’s influence, and he therefore took Cleomenes into his following and gave him a place in his privy council, all the while plotting to kill his brother. But Cleomenes, although all other counsellors urged the king to take this step, alone advised against it, saying that it were better, were it possible, to get the king more brothers to increase the security and stability of his affairs.
Σωσιβίου δὲ τοῦ πλεῖστον ἐν τοῖς φίλοις δυναμένου φήσαντος οὐκ εἶναι τὰ τῶν μισθοφόρων αὐτοῖς βέβαια τοῦ Μάγα ζῶντος, ἀμελεῖν ἐκέλευσεν ὁ Κλεομένης ἕνεκά γε τούτου· πλείους γὰρ ἢ τρισχιλίους τῶν ξένων εἶναι Πελοποννησίους προσέχοντας αὐτῷ, κἂν μόνον νεύσῃ, προθύμως μετὰ τῶν ὅπλων παρεσομένους.
And when Sosibius, who had the most influence among the king’s ministers, declared that they could not be sure of the mercenaries as long as Magas was alive, Cleomenes bade him have no concern on that point at least; for more than three thousand of the mercenaries were Peloponnesians and attached to himself, and if he but gave them a nod they would readily come to his side in arms.
οὗτος ὁ λόγος τότε μὲν οὐ μικρὰν τῷ Κλεομένει καὶ πίστιν εὐνοίας καὶ δόκησιν ἰσχύος προσέθηκεν, ὕστερον δέ, τοῦ Πτολεμαίου τῆς ἀσθενείας ἐπιτεινούσης τὴν δειλίαν, καὶ καθάπερ εἴωθεν ἐν τῷ μηδὲν φρονεῖν, τοῦ πάντα δεδοικέναι καὶ πᾶσιν ἀπιστεῖν ἀσφαλεστάτου δοκοῦντος εἶναι, φοβερὸν ἐποίει τὸν Κλεομένη τοῖς αὐλικοῖς, ὡς ἰσχύοντα παρὰ τοῖς ξένοις·
At the time this speech won for Cleomenes no little faith in his good will and belief in his strength; but afterwards, when Ptolemy’s weakness intensified his cowardice, and, as is wont to happen where there is no sound judgment, His best course seemed to him to lie in fearing everybody and distrusting all men, it led the courtiers to be afraid of Cleomenes, on the ground that he had a strong following among the mercenaries;
καὶ πολλῶν ἦν ἀκούειν λεγόντων ὅτι οὗτος ὁ λέων ἐν τούτοις τοῖς προβάτοις ἀναστρέφεται. τῷ γὰρ ὄντι τοιοῦτον διέφαινεν ἦθος ἐν τοῖς βασιλικοῖς, ὑποβλέπων ἀτρέμα καὶ παρεπισκοπῶν τὰ πραττόμενα.
and many of them were heard to say: There goes the lion up and down along these sheep. And such, in fact, he clearly was among the courtiers, eyeing with quiet contempt and closely watching what was going on.
ναῦς μὲν οὖν αἰτῶν καὶ στρατιὰν ἀπεῖπε· πυνθανόμενος δὲ τεθνάναι τὸν Ἀντίγονον, Αἰτωλικῷ δὲ πολέμῳ συμπεπλέχθαι τοὺς Ἀχαιούς, τὰ δὲ πράγματα ποθεῖν αὐτὸν καὶ παρακαλεῖν, ἐν ταραχῇ καὶ διασπασμῷ τῆς Πελοποννήσου γεγενημένης, ἠξίου μὲν μόνος ἀποσταλῆναι μετὰ τῶν φίλων, ἔπειθε δὲ οὐδένα,
For ships, therefore, and an army, he gave up asking; but on learning that Antigonus was dead and that the Achaeans were involved in a war with the Aetolians, and that affairs yearned and called for him now that Peloponnesus was rent asunder and in confusion, he demanded to be sent away with his friends merely; but he could persuade no one.
τοῦ μὲν βασιλέως οὐκ εἰσακούοντος, ἀλλʼ ἐν γυναιξὶ καὶ θιάσοις καὶ κώμοις συνέχοντος ἑαυτόν, ὁ δὲ τῶν ὅλων προεστηκὼς καὶ προβουλεύων Σωσίβιος μένοντα μὲν τὸν Κλεομένη παρὰ γνώμην ἡγεῖτο δυσμεταχείριστον εἶναι καὶ φοβερόν, ἀφεθέντα δὲ τολμηρὸν, ἄνδρα καὶ μεγαλοπράγμονα καὶ τῆς βασιλείας νοσούσης θεατὴν γεγενημένον.
The king would not give him a hearing, but was absorbed with women and Dionysiac routs and revels; and Sosibius, the prime minister and chief counsellor, thought that if Cleomenes remained against his will he might be hard to manage, indeed, and an object of fear, but that if he were sent away he would make some bold attempt, being a man of large undertakings, and one who had been an eye-witness of the distempers of the realm.
οὐδὲ γὰρ αἱ δωρεαὶ κατεπράυνον αὐτόν, ἀλλʼ ὥσπερ τὸν Ἆπιν ἐν ἀφθόνοις διαιτώμενον καὶ τρυφᾶν δοκοῦντα τοῦ κατὰ φύσιν βίου καὶ δρόμων ἀφέτων καὶ σκιρτήσεων ἵμερος ἔχει, καὶ δῆλός ἐστι δυσανασχετῶν τὴν ἐν ταῖς χερσὶ τῶν ἱερέων διατριβήν, οὕτως ἐκεῖνον οὐδὲν ἤρεσκε τῶν μαλθακῶν, ἀλλὰ φθινύθεσκε φίλον κῆρ, ὥσπερ Ἀχιλλεύς, αὖθι μένων, ποθέεσκε δʼ ἀυτήν τε πτόλεμόν τε.
For not even gifts would soften him, but just as the sacred bull Apis, though living in plenty and believed to be having a luxurious time, feels a desire for the life that was his by nature, for coursings without restraint, and leaps and bounds, and is manifestly disgusted with his treatment at the hands of the priests, so Cleomenes took no pleasure in his life of ease and luxury, but kept pining away in his dear heart, / like Achilles, As he lingered there, and kept yearning for war-cry and battle. /
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