He concluded his speech with conjuring them, in the mildest and most gentle terms, to preserve and maintain, by their prudent conduct, the liberty which they owed to foreign arms: and to make the Romans sensible, that in restoring them to their freedom, they had not afforded their protection and beneficence to persons unworthy of it.

This counsel was received as from a father to his children. Whilst he spoke in this manner, the whole assembly wept for joy, and Quintius himself could not refrain from tears. A gentle murmur expressed the sentiments of all that were present. They gazed upon another with admiration; and every one exhorted his neighbour to receive, with gratitude and respect, the words of the Roman general, as so many oracles, and preserve the remembrance of them in their hearts for ever.

After this, Quintius causing silence to be made, desired that they would inquire strictly after such Roman citizens as were in slavery in Greece, and send them to him in Thessaly in two months; adding, that it would ill become them to leave those in captivity to whom they were indebted for their freedom. All the people replied with the highest applauses, and thanked Quintius in particular, for hinting to them so just and indispensable a duty. The number of these slaves was very considerable. They were taken by Hannibal in the Punic war; but the Romans refusing to redeem them, they had been sold. It cost only the Achæans an hundred talents, that is, an hundred thousand crowns, to reimburse the masters the price they had paid for the slaves, at the rate of about * twelve pounds ten shillings an head; consequently the number here amounted to twelve hundred. The reader may form a judgment, in proportion, of all the rest of Greece. Before the assembly broke up, the garrison was seen marching down from the citadel, and afterwards out

• Five hundred denarii.

of the city. Quintius followed it soon after, and withdrew in the midst of the acclamations of the people, who called him their saviour and deliverer, and implored heaven to bestow all possible blessings upon him.

He withdrew in the same manner the garrisons from Chalcis and Demetrias, and was received in those cities with the like acclamations. From thence he went into Thessaly, where he found all things in the utmost disorder and confusion.

At last he embarked for Italy, and upon his arrival at Rome entered it in triumph. The ceremony lasted three days, during which he exhibited to the people (amidst the other pomp) the precious spoils he had taken in the wars against Philip and Nabis. Demetrius, son of the former, and Armenes, of the latter, were among the hostages, and graced the victor's triumph. But the noblest ornament of it was the Roman citizens, delivered from slavery, who fol lowed the victor's car, with their heads shaved, as a mark of the liberty to which they had been restored.

SECT. V. Universal preparations for the war between Antiochus and the Romans. Mutual embassies and interviews on both sides, which come to nothing. The Romans send troops against Nabis, who had infringed the treaty. Philopamen gains another victory over him. The Etolians implore the assistance of Antiochus. Nabis is killed. Antiochus goes at last to Greece.

'ANTIOCHUS and the Romans were preparing for war. Ambassadors were arrived at Rome, in the name of all the Greeks, from a great part of Asia Minor, and from several kings. They were favourably received by the senate; but as the affairs of king Antiochus required a long examination, it was

< Liv. 1. xxxiv. n. 57–62.

referred to Quintius and the commissioners who were returned from Asia. The debates were carried on with great warmth on both sides. The ambassadors of the king were surprised, as their sovereign had sent them merely to conclude an alliance and friendship with the Romans, that the latter should pretend to prescribe laws to him as to a conquered monarch; and nominate those cities which he might keep, and such as he was to abandon. Quintius, in concert with his colleagues, after a great many speeches and replies, declared to the king's ambassadors, that the Romans persisted in the resolution they had taken to deliver the Grecian cities of Asia, as they had done those of Europe; and should see whether Antiochus would approve of that condition. They answered, that they could not enter into any engagement that tended to lessen the dominions of their sovereign. On the morrow, all the rest of the ambassadors were again introduced into the senate. Quintius reported what had been spoken and transacted in the conference; and entreated each of them in particular, to inform their respective cities, that the Romans were determined to defend their liberties against Antiochus, with the same ardour and courage as they had done against Philip. Antiochus's ambassadors conjured the senate, not to form any rash resolution in an affair of so much importance; to allow the king time to reflect on matters; and to weigh and consider things maturely on their side, before they passed a decree, in which the public tranquillity would be involved. They did not yet come to a decision, but deputed to the king Sulpitius, Villius, and Ælius, the same ambassadors who had already conferred with him at Lysimachia.

Scarce were they gone, but ambassadors from Carthage arrived at Rome, and acquainted the senate, that Antiochus, at the instigation of Hannibal, was certainly preparing to carry on the war against the Romans. I have observed before, that

Hannibal had.fled for refuge to this prince, and was arrived at his court at the very instant the king was. deliberating whether he should embark in this war. The presence and counsels of such a general, contributed very much to determine him to it. His opinion at that time (and he always persisted in it) was that he ought to carry his arms into Italy. That by this means the enemy's country would furnish them with troops and provisions; that otherwise, no prince nor people could be superior to the Romans, and that Italy could never be conquered but in Italy. He demanded but an hundred gallies, ten thousand foot, and a thousand horse. He declared, that with this fleet he would first go into Africa, where he was persuaded the Carthaginians would join him; but that, should he not succeed in the latter, he would sail directly for Italy, and there find effectual means to distress the Romans; that it was necessary that the ing should go over into Europe with the rest of his forces, and halt in some part of Greece, and not go immediately into Italy, though he should always seem upon the point of doing it.

The king approving this project at first, Hannibal sent a Tyrian, in whom he could confide, to Carthage, to sound the citizens; for he did not care to venture letters, lest they should be intercepted; not to mention that business is transacted much better by word of mouth than by writing. But the Tyrian was discovered, and escaped with great difficulty. The Carthaginian senate sent immediate advice of this to the Romans, who apprehended being engaged at the same time in a war with Antiochus and the Carthaginians.

'No people, at this time, hated the Romans A. M. more than the Etolians. Thoas, their general, was 381. for ever incensing them; representing, in the most Ant. J. C. aggravating terms, the contempt the Romans had

f Liv, 1. xxxv. n. 12.

194

for them from their last victory, though chiefly owing to them. His remonstrance had the intended effect; and Damocritus was sent ambassador to Nabis, Nicander to Philip, and Dicæarchus, Thoas's brother, to Antiochus, charged with particular instructions in regard to each of those princes.

The first represented to the tyrant of Sparta, that the Romans had entirely enervated his power, by dispossessing him of his maritime towns, as they furnished him with gallies, soldiers, and sailors: That, confined within his own walls, he had the mortification to see the Achæans reign over Peloponnesus that he would never have so favourable an opportunity for recovering his ancient power, as that which then presented itself: that the Romans had no army in Greece: that he might easily seize upon Gythium, which was situated very commodiously for him and that the Romans would not think it worth while to send their legions again into Greece, to take a city of so little consequence.

Nicander employed still stronger motives to rouse Philip, who had been thrown down from a much superior height of greatness, and deprived of abundantly more than the tyrant. Besides which, he enlarged on the ancient glory of the kings of Macedonia, and in what manner the whole world had been subdued by their arms: that the proposal he made him would not expose him to any danger: that he did not desire him to declare war, till Antiochus should have passed into Greece with his army; and that if he (Philip) unassisted by Antiochus, had, with only his own forces, sustained so long a war against the Romans and the Etolians united, how would it be possible for the Romans to resist him, when he should have concluded an alliance with Antiochus and the Etolians? He did not forget to mention Hannibal, the sworn enemy to the Romans, of whose generals more had been defeated by him, than were living at that time.

Dicæarchus employed other arguments with An