περαιωθέντων δὲ πάντων ὁ Τιμολέων δεξάμενος αὐτοὺς τήν τε Μεσσήνην εὐθὺς εἶχε, καὶ συνταξάμενος ἐβάδιζεν ἐπὶ τὰς Συρακούσας, οἷς εὐτύχει καὶ κατώρθου μᾶλλον ἢ τῇ δυνάμει πεποιθώς· οὐ γὰρ ἦσαν οἱ σὺν αὐτῷ πλείους τετρακισχιλίων.
When they had all crossed over, Timoleon took them and at once occupied Messana, then, uniting them with his other forces, marched against Syracuse, relying on the good fortune and success that attended his efforts rather than on the strength of his army; for his followers were not more than four thousand in number.
ἀγγελλομένης δὲ τῆς ἐφόδου τῷ Μάγωνι θορυβούμενος καὶ δεδοικὼς ἔτι μᾶλλον εἰς ὑποψίαν ἦλθεν ἐκ τοιαύτης προφάσεως.
But when Mago got tidings of his approach, disturbed and fearful as he was, he was made still more suspicious for the following reason.
ἐν τοῖς περὶ τήν πόλιν τενάγεσι, πολὺ μὲν ἐκ κρηνῶν πότιμον ὕδωρ, πολὺ δʼ ἐξ ἑλῶν καὶ ποταμῶν καταρρεόντων εἰς τήν θάλατταν δεχομένοις, πλῆθος ἐγχέλεων νέμεται, καὶ δαψίλεια τῆς ἄγρας τοῖς βουλομένοις ἀεὶ πάρεστι.
In the shoals about the city, which receive much fresh water from springs, and much from marshes and rivers emptying into the sea, great numbers of eels live, and there is always an abundance of this catch for anybody.
ταύτας οἱ παρʼ ἀμφοτέρων μισθοῦ στρατευόμενοι σχολῆς οὔσης καὶ ἀνοχῶν συνεθήρευον.
These eels the mercenary soldiers on both sides, when they had leisure or a truce was on, used to hunt together.
οἷα δʼ Ἕλληνες ὄντες καὶ πρὸς ἀλλήλους οὐκ ἔχοντες ἰδίων ἀπεχθειῶν πρόφασιν, ἐν μὲν ταῖς μάχαις διεκινδύνευον εὐρώστως, ἐν δὲ ταῖς ἀνοχαῖς προσφοιτῶντες ἀλλήλοις διελέγοντο.
And since they were Greeks and had no reason for private hatred of one another, while in their battles they risked their lives bravely, in their times of truce they would visit and converse with one another.
καὶ τότε κοινὸν περὶ τήν ἁλιείαν ἔχοντες ἔργον ἐν λόγοις ἦσαν, θαυμάζοντες τῆς θαλάσσης τήν εὐφυΐαν καὶ τῶν χωρίων τήν κατασκευήν.
And so now, as they were busy together with their fishing, they conversed, expressing their admiration of the richness of the sea and the character of the adjacent lands.
καὶ τις εἶπε τῶν παρὰ τοῖς Κορινθίοις στρατευομένων τοσαύτην μέντοι πόλιν τὸ μέγεθος καὶ τοσούτοις ἐξησκημένην καλοῖς ὑμεῖς Ἕλληνες ὄντες ἐκβαρβαρῶσαι προθυμεῖσθε, τοὺς κακίστους καὶ φονικωτάτους Καρχηδονίους ἐγγυτέρω κατοικίζοντες ἡμῶν, πρὸς οὓς ἔδει πολλὰς εὔχεσθαι Σικελίας προκεῖσθαι τῆς Ἑλλάδος·
And one of those who were serving on the Corinthian side said: Can it really be that you, who are Greeks, are eager to barbarize a city of such great size and furnished with such great advantages, thus settling Carthaginians, who are the basest and bloodiest of men, nearer to us, when you ought to pray for many Sicilies to lie as a barrier between Greece and them?
ἢ δοκεῖτε τούτους στρατὸν ἀγείραντας ἀπὸ στηλῶν Ἡρακλείων καὶ τῆς Ἀτλαντικῆς ἥκειν θαλάττης δεῦρο κινδυνεύσοντας ὑπὲρ τῆς Ἱκέτου δυναστείας;
Or do you suppose that they have collected an army and are come hither from the pillars of Heracles and the Atlantic sea in order to risk their lives in behalf of the dynasty of Hicetas?
ὃς εἰ λογισμὸν εἶχεν ἡγεμόνος, οὐκ ἂν ἐξέβαλλε τοὺς πατέρας οὐδʼ ἐπῆγε τῇ πατρίδι τοὺς πολεμίους, ἀλλὰ καὶ τιμῆς καὶ δυνάμεως ἐτύγχανεν ὅσης πρέπει, Κορινθίους καὶ Τιμολέοντα πείσας.
He, if he reasoned like a true leader, would not be casting out his kindred people, nor would he be leading against his country her natural enemies, but would be enjoying a befitting amount of honour and power, with the consent of Timoleon and the Corinthians.
τούτους τοὺς λόγους οἱ μισθοφόροι διεθρόησαν ἐν τῷ στρατοπέδῳ, καὶ παρέσχον ὑποψίαν τῷ Μάγωνι προδίδοσθαι, χρῄζοντι πάλαι προφάσεως.
Such speeches as these the mercenaries disseminated in their camp, and made Mago suspicious of treachery, though he had long wanted a pretext for going away.
διὸ καὶ δεομένου τοῦ Ἱκέτου παραμένειν καὶ διδάσκοντος ὅσῳ βελτίονές εἰσι τῶν πολεμίων, μᾶλλον οἰόμενος ἀρετῇ καὶ τύχῃ λείπεσθαι Τιμολέοντος ἢ πλήθει δυνάμεως ὑπερβάλλειν, ἄρας εὐθὺς ἀπέπλευσεν εἰς Λιβύην, αἰσχρῶς κατʼ οὐδένα λογισμὸν ἀνθρώπινον ἐκ τῶν χειρῶν ἀφεὶς Σικελίαν.
Therefore when Hicetas begged him to remain and tried to show him how much superior they were to their enemies, he thought rather that they were more inferior to Timoleon in bravery and good fortune than they surpassed him in the number of their forces, and weighing anchor at once, sailed off to Libya, thus letting Sicily slip out of his hands disgracefully and for no reason that man could suggest.
τῇ δʼ ὑστεραίᾳ παρῆν ὁ Τιμολέων ἐπὶ μάχην συντεταγμένος· ὡς δὲ τὴν φυγὴν ἐπυνθάνοντο καὶ τὴν ἐρημίαν ἑώρων τῶν νεωρίων, γελᾶν αὐτοῖς ἐπῄει τὴν ἀνανδρίαν τοῦ Μάγωνος, καὶ περιϊόντες ἐκήρυττον ἐν τῇ πόλει μήνυτρα τῷ φράσαντι τὸν Καρχηδονίων στόλον ὅπῃ σφᾶς ἀποδέδρακεν.
On the day after his departure, Timoleon came up with his forces arrayed for battle. But when they learned of Mago’s flight and saw the docks empty of vessels, they could not help laughing at his cowardice, and went about the city proclaiming a reward for any one who told them whither the Carthaginian fleet had fled away from them.
οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ τοῦ Ἱκέτου φιλομαχοῦντος ἔτι καὶ τὴν λαβὴν οὐ προϊεμένου τῆς πόλεως, ἀλλὰ ἐμπεφυκότος οἷς κατεῖχε μέρεσι καρτεροῖς οὖσι καὶ δυσπροσμάχοις, διελὼν ὁ Τιμολέων τὴν δύναμιν αὐτὸς μὲν ᾗ βιαιότατον ἦν παρὰ τὸ ῥεῖθρον τοῦ Ἀνάπου προσέβαλλεν,
However, since Hicetas was still eager for battle and would not let go his hold upon the city, but clung to the parts of it in his possession, which were strong and dangerous to attack, Timoleon divided his forces, he himself attacking along the river Anapus where the struggle was likely to be hottest,
ἄλλους δʼ ἐκ τῆς Ἀχραδινῆς ἐκέλευεν ἐπιχειρεῖν, ὧν Ἰσίας ἡγεῖτο ὁ Κορίνθιος, τοὺς δὲ τρίτους ἐπῆγον ἐπὶ τὰς Ἐπιπολὰς Δείναρχος καὶ Δημάρετος, οἱ τὴν ὑστέραν ἀγαγόντες ἐκ Κορίνθου βοήθειαν.
and ordering others, under the lead of Isias the Corinthian, to make their attempt from Achradina. The third division was led against Epipolae by Deinarchus and Demaretus, who had brought the second reinforcement from Corinth.
ἅμα δὲ καὶ πανταχόθεν τῆς ἐφόδου γενομένης καὶ τῶν περὶ τὸν Ἱκέτην ἀνατραπέντων καὶ φευγόντων, τὸ μὲν ἁλῶναι τὴν πόλιν κατʼ ἄκρας καὶ γενέσθαι ταχέως ὑποχείριον ἐκπεσόντων τῶν πολεμίων δίκαιον ἀναθεῖναι τῇ τῶν μαχομένων ἀνδραγαθίᾳ καὶ τῇ δεινότητι τοῦ στρατηγοῦ,
The attack was made in all three places at once, and the troops of Hicetas were overwhelmed and took to flight. That the city was taken by storm and fell quickly into their hands after the enemy had been driven out, it is right to ascribe to the bravery of the soldiers and the ability of their general;
τὸ δὲ μὴ ἀποθανεῖν τινα μηδὲ τρωθῆναι τῶν Κορινθίων ἴδιον ἔργον αὑτῆς ἡ Τιμολέοντος ἐπεδείξατο τύχη, καθάπερ διαμιλλωμένη πρὸς τὴν ἀρετὴν τοῦ ἀνδρός, ἵνα τῶν ἐπαινουμένων αὐτοῦ τὰ μακαριζόμενα μᾶλλον οἱ πυνθανόμενοι θαυμάζωσιν.
but that not one of the Corinthians was killed or even wounded, this the good fortune of Timoleon showed to be her own work, vying emulously, as it were, with his valour, in order that those who hear his story may wonder at his happy successes more than at his laudable efforts.
οὐ γὰρ μόνον Σικελίαν πᾶσαν οὐδʼ Ἰταλίαν εὐθὺς ἡ φήμη κατέσχεν, ἀλλʼ ἡμερῶν ὀλίγων ᾗ Ἑλλὰς διήχει τὸ μέγεθος τοῦ κατορθώματος, ὥστε τὴν τῶν Κορινθίων πόλιν ἀπιστοῦσαν εἰ διαπέπλευκεν ὁ στόλος, ὁμοῦ καὶ σεσῳσμένους καὶ νενικηκότας ἀκούειν τοὺς ἄνδρας.
For his fame not only filled at once all Sicily and Italy, but within a few days Greece echoed with his great success, so that the city of Corinth, which was in doubt whether his armament had got across the sea, heard at one and the same time that it had safely crossed, and that it was victorious.
οὕτως εὐρόησαν αἱ πράξεις, καὶ τοσοῦτο τῷ κάλλει τῶν ἔργων τὸ τάχος ἡ τύχη προσέθηκεν.
So prosperous was the course of his enterprises, and such was the speed with which Fortune crowned the beauty of his achievements.
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