- Source
- Polybius. Vols. 1-4. Büttner-Wobst, Theodor, editor. Leipzig: Teubner, 1893.
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:5.37.1-5.37.12
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-09
Sosibius makes use of Nicagoras, a Messenian who harbored a grudge against Cleomenes. Upon arriving in Alexandria, Nicagoras encounters Cleomenes and later reports his mocking words to Sosibius.
ἐχρήσατο συνεργήματι τοιούτῳ τινί. Νικαγόρας τις ἦν Μεσσήνιος· οὗτος ὑπῆρχε πατρικὸς ξένος Ἀρχιδάμου τοῦ Λακεδαιμονίων βασιλέως.
[Sosibius] made use of a cooperative circumstance of the following kind. There was a certain Nicagoras, a Messenian; this man was a hereditary guest-friend of Archidamus, the king of the Lacedaemonians.
τὸν μὲν οὖν πρὸ τοῦ χρόνον βραχεῖά τις ἦν τοῖς προειρημένοις ἐπιπλοκὴ πρὸς ἀλλήλους· καθʼ ὃν δὲ καιρὸν Ἀρχίδαμος ἐκ τῆς Σπάρτης ἔφυγε δείσας τὸν Κλεομένην, καὶ παρεγένετʼ εἰς Μεσσηνίαν, οὐ μόνον οἰκίᾳ καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις ἀναγκαίοις ὁ Νικαγόρας αὐτὸν ἐδέξατο προθύμως, ἀλλὰ καὶ κατὰ τὴν ἑξῆς συμπεριφορὰν ἐγένετό τις αὐτοῖς ὁλοσχερὴς εὔνοια καὶ συνήθεια πρὸς ἀλλήλους.
In the time before this, there had been only a slight intercourse between the aforementioned men; but at the time when Archidamus fled from Sparta in fear of Cleomenes and came to Messenia, Nicagoras not only received him eagerly into his house and provided other necessities, but also, during their subsequent life together, a complete goodwill and intimacy arose between them.
διὸ καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα, τοῦ Κλεομένους ὑποδείξαντος ἐλπίδα καθόδου καὶ διαλύσεως πρὸς τὸν Ἀρχίδαμον, ἔδωκεν αὑτὸν ὁ Νικαγόρας εἰς τὰς διαποστολὰς καὶ τὰς ὑπὲρ τῶν πίστεων συνθήκας.
Therefore, when after this Cleomenes held out to Archidamus the hope of return and reconciliation, Nicagoras gave himself up to the missions and the negotiations for the guarantees.
ὧν κυρωθέντων ὁ μὲν Ἀρχίδαμος εἰς τὴν Σπάρτην κατῄει, πιστεύσας ταῖς διὰ τοῦ Νικαγόρου γεγενημέναις συνθήκαις, ὁ δὲ Κλεομένης ἀπαντήσας τὸν μὲν Ἀρχίδαμον ἐπανείλετο, τοῦ δὲ Νικαγόρου καὶ τῶν ἄλλων τῶν συνόντων ἐφείσατο.
When these were ratified, Archidamus returned to Sparta, trusting in the treaty made through Nicagoras. But Cleomenes, meeting him, put Archidamus to death, but spared Nicagoras and the others who were with him.
πρὸς μὲν οὖν τοὺς ἐκτὸς ὁ Νικαγόρας ὑπεκρίνετο χάριν ὀφείλειν τῷ Κλεομένει διὰ τὴν αὑτοῦ σωτηρίαν, ἐν αὑτῷ γε μὴν βαρέως ἔφερε τὸ συμβεβηκός, δοκῶν αἴτιος γεγονέναι τῷ βασιλεῖ τῆς ἀπωλείας.
To outsiders, therefore, Nicagoras pretended to owe thanks to Cleomenes for his own safety, but in his heart he took what had happened very bitterly, believing that he had been the cause of the king’s destruction.
οὗτος ὁ Νικαγόρας ἵππους ἄγων κατέπλευσε βραχεῖ χρόνῳ πρότερον εἰς τὴν Ἀλεξάνδρειαν.
This Nicagoras had sailed into Alexandria a short time before, bringing horses.
ἀποβαίνων δʼ ἐκ τῆς νεὼς καταλαμβάνει τόν τε Κλεομένην καὶ τὸν Παντέα καὶ μετʼ αὐτῶν Ἱππίταν ἐν τῷ λιμένι παρὰ τὴν κρηπῖδα περιπατοῦντας.
On disembarking from his ship, he found Cleomenes, Panteus, and with them Hippitas walking in the harbor near the quay.
ἰδὼν δʼ ὁ Κλεομένης αὐτὸν καὶ συμμίξας, ἠσπάζετο φιλοφρόνως, καὶ προσεπύθετο τί παρείη.
When Cleomenes saw him and met him, he welcomed him cordially and asked besides for what purpose he was there.
τοῦ δʼ εἰπόντος ὅτι παραγέγονεν ἵππους ἄγων "ἐβουλόμην ἄν1 σε" ἔφη "καὶ λίαν ἀντὶ τῶν ἵππων κιναίδους ἄγειν καὶ σαμβύκας· τούτων γὰρ ὁ νῦν βασιλεὺς κατεπείγεται.
And when Nicagoras replied that he had come bringing horses, Cleomenes said, “I could wish indeed that you had brought pathics and harp-girls instead of horses; for it is of these that the present king stands in urgent need.”
" τότε γοῦν ἐπιγελάσας ὁ Νικαγόρας ἐσιώπησε, μετὰ δέ τινας ἡμέρας ἐπὶ πλεῖον ἐλθὼν εἰς τὰς χεῖρας2 τῷ Σωσιβίῳ διὰ τοὺς ἵππους εἶπε κατὰ τοῦ Κλεομένους τὸν ἄρτι ῥηθέντα λόγον, θεωρῶν δὲ τὸν Σωσίβιον ἡδέως ἀκούοντα, πᾶσαν ἐξέθετο τὴν προϋπάρχουσαν
At that time, indeed, Nicagoras smiled and kept silence; but a few days later, having come into closer contact with Sosibius because of the horses, he repeated this remark against Cleomenes. And seeing that Sosibius heard it with pleasure, he set forth all the pre-existing
- 5.37.10ἐβουλόμην ἄν
The imperfect indicative with the particle ἄν expresses an unrealizable wish in the present ("I could wish that... but it is not so").
- 5.37.11ἐλθὼν εἰς τὰς χεῖρας
A participial form of the idiom ἔρχομαι εἰς χεῖράς τινι, meaning "to come into close contact or dealings with someone." Here it refers to Nicagoras entering into close negotiations with Sosibius.