Description of Greece

​Mummius, bringing with him Orestes, who had previously come on account of the dispute between the Lacedaemonians and the Achaeans, arrived at the Roman army about dawn; and having sent Metellus and those who followed him back to Macedonia, he himself waited at the Isthmus for the entire preparation to be assembled. There arrived three thousand five hundred cavalry, and the number of infantry became twenty-three thousand; there also came Cretan archers and, from Pergamos above the Caicus, Philopoemen bringing soldiers from Attalus.

​Mummius indeed stationed some of those from Italy and the auxiliary troops twelve stades away, to be a guard in front of the whole army. But the Achaeans, since the Romans were keeping guard rather carelessly out of pride, attacked this first guard of theirs, and killed some, and shut up still more into their camp, and took about five hundred shields. And by this exploit the Achaeans were encouraged to make their sally before the Romans should begin the battle.

​But when Mummius also advanced against them, those of the Achaeans who had been stationed in the cavalry immediately fled, not even awaiting the first charge of the Roman horse. The infantry force was discouraged by the rout of the cavalry, but having received the charge of the Roman hoplites, although hard pressed by numbers and failing from their wounds, they nevertheless held out with spirit, until indeed a thousand chosen Romans fell upon them from the flanks and turned the Achaeans into headlong rout.

​And if Diaeus had dared to run into Corinth after the battle and to receive within the wall those who were escaping from the flight, the Achaeans might even have obtained some favor from Mummius by entering upon a siege and a protraction of the war; but as it was, while the Achaeans were still beginning to give way, Diaeus fled straight for Megalopolis, behaving in no way toward the Achaeans as Callistratus the son of Empedus did toward the Athenians.

​For to this man, who was cavalry commander in Sicily, when the Athenians and all the others who had shared in the expedition were being destroyed at the river Asinarus—to this Callistratus then came the courage to break through the enemy, leading his horsemen. And when he had saved most of them to Catana, he turned back again by the same road to Syracuse, and finding the Athenian camp still being plundered, he cut down about five of them, and having himself and his horse received mortal wounds, they yielded up their life.