§4.76.1Ἀπελλῆς δʼ, ὃς ἦν μὲν εἷς τῶν ὑπʼ Ἀντιγόνου καταλειφθέντων ἐπιτρόπων τοῦ παιδός, πλεῖστον δʼ ἐτύγχανε τότε δυνάμενος παρὰ τῷ βασιλεῖ, βουληθεὶς τὸ τῶν Ἀχαιῶν ἔθνος ἀγαγεῖν εἰς παραπλησίαν διάθεσιν τῇ Θετταλῶν, ἐπεβάλετο πρᾶγμα ποιεῖν μοχθηρόν.
Apelles, who was one of the guardians of the boy left by Antigonus, and who happened at that time to possess the greatest influence with the king, wishing to reduce the Achaean nation to a position similar to that of the Thessalians, undertook a mischievous task.
§4.76.2Θετταλοὶ γὰρ ἐδόκουν μὲν κατὰ νόμους πολιτεύειν καὶ πολὺ διαφέρειν Μακεδόνων, διέφερον δʼ οὐδέν, ἀλλὰ πᾶν ὁμοίως ἔπασχον Μακεδόσι καὶ πᾶν ἐποίουν τὸ προσταττόμενον τοῖς βασιλικοῖς.
For the Thessalians were thought to live under their own laws and to differ greatly from the Macedonians, but in fact they differed not at all, experiencing everything in the same manner as the Macedonians and doing everything ordered by the royal officers.
§4.76.3διὸ καὶ πρὸς ταύτην ἁρμοζόμενος τὴν ὑπόθεσιν ὁ προειρημένος ἐπεβάλετο καταπειράζειν τῶν συστρατευομένων.
Therefore, adapting himself to this objective, the aforementioned man undertook to make trial of those who were serving in the campaign.
§4.76.4τὸ μὲν οὖν πρῶτον ἐπέτρεψε τοῖς Μακεδόσιν ἐκβαλεῖν ἐκ τῶν σταθμῶν ἀεὶ τοὺς προκατέχοντας τῶν Ἀχαιῶν καταλύσεις, ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ τὴν λείαν ἀφαιρεῖσθαι·
First of all, then, he permitted the Macedonians to evict from their quarters those of the Achaeans who had already occupied lodgings, and likewise to take away their booty.
§4.76.5μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα τὰς χεῖρας προσέφερε διὰ τῶν ὑπηρετῶν ἐπὶ ταῖς τυχούσαις αἰτίαις, τοὺς δὲ συναγανακτοῦντας ἢ προσβοηθοῦντας τοῖς μαστιγουμένοις παρὼν αὐτὸς εἰς τὴν ἅλυσιν ἀπῆγε, §4.76.6πεπεισμένος διὰ τοῦ τοιούτου τρόπου τὸ κατὰ βραχὺ λήσειν εἰς συνήθειαν ἀγαγὼν τοῦ μηδένα μηδὲν ἡγεῖσθαι δεινόν, ὅ ποτʼ ἂν πάσχῃ τις ὑπὸ τοῦ βασιλέως,
After this, he laid hands on them through his subordinates upon any chance pretexts, and those who joined in the indignation or came to the aid of those being flogged, he himself, being present, led away to the chains, being convinced that by such a method, gradually and unnoticed, he would bring them into the habit of thinking nothing to be dreadful, whatever they might suffer at the hands of the king.
§4.76.7καὶ ταῦτα μικροῖς χρόνοις πρότερον μετʼ Ἀντιγόνου συνεστρατευμένος, καὶ τεθεαμένος τοὺς Ἀχαιοὺς ὅτι παντὸς δεινοῦ λαβεῖν πεῖραν ὑπέμειναν, ἐφʼ ᾧ μὴ ποιεῖν Κλεομένει τὸ προσταττόμενον.
And this he did, though he had served in the army with Antigonus only a short time before, and had seen that the Achaeans submitted to experience every kind of hardship so as not to perform what was commanded by Cleomenes.
§4.76.8οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ συστραφέντων τινῶν Ἀχαϊκῶν νεανίσκων, καὶ προσελθόντων τοῖς περὶ τὸν Ἄρατον καὶ διασαφούντων τὴν Ἀπελλοῦ βούλησιν, ἧκον ἐπὶ τὸν Φίλιππον οἱ περὶ τὸν Ἄρατον, κρίναντες ἐν ἀρχαῖς περὶ τῶν τοιούτων διίστασθαι καὶ μὴ καταμέλλειν.
Nevertheless, when some Achaean young men banded together and approached Aratus and his circle, making clear the intention of Apelles, Aratus and his associates came to Philip, deciding to make a stand concerning such matters at the very beginning and not to delay.
ἐντυχόντων δʼ αὐτῶν τῷ βασιλεῖ περὶ τούτων, §4.76.9διακούσας ὁ Φίλιππος τὰ γεγονότα, τοὺς μὲν νεανίσκους παρεκάλει θαρρεῖν, ὡς οὐδενὸς αὐτοῖς ἔτι συμβησομένου τοιούτου, τῷ δʼ Ἀπελλῇ παρήγγειλε μηδὲν ἐπιτάττειν τοῖς Ἀχαιοῖς χωρὶς τῆς τοῦ στρατηγοῦ γνώμης.
When they had met the king concerning these matters, Philip, having heard the whole story of what had happened, encouraged the young men to be of good cheer, as nothing of the kind would happen to them again, and commanded Apelles not to order any of the Achaeans to do anything without the consent of their general.