§737ὡς δʼ ἐπὶ νίκῃ λαμπροτάτῃ καὶ παραλόγως τισὶ δοκούσῃ γενέσθαι (οὐ γὰρ εἰκὸς ἐνόμιζον ὀλιγωτέρους πολὺ πλειόνων ἐν ἀλλοτρίᾳ γῇ παρὰ τοσόνδε κρατῆσαι, καὶ μάλιστα φάλαγγος Μακεδόνων, εὖ γεγυμνασμένης καὶ εὐανδρούσης τότε μάλιστα, καὶ δόξαν ἄμαχόν τε καὶ φοβερὰν ἐχούσης), οἱ μὲν Ἀντιόχου φίλοι τὴν προπέτειαν αὐτοῦ τῆς ἐς Ῥωμαίους διαφορᾶς καὶ τὴν ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἀπειρίαν τε καὶ ἀβουλίαν ἐπεμέμφοντο, Χερρόνησόν τε καὶ Λυσιμάχειαν αὐτοῖς ὅπλοις καὶ τοσῇδε παρασκευῇ μεθέντος ἐκ χειρῶν πρὶν καὶ ἐς πεῖραν ἐλθεῖν τοῖς πολεμίοις, καὶ τὴν τοῦ Ἑλλησπόντου φυλακὴν ἐκλιπόντος, Ῥωμαίων οὐκ ἂν εὐμαρῶς ἐλπισάντων βιάσασθαι τὴν διάβασιν.
As was natural after a victory so brilliant and, in the eyes of some, unexpected (for they did not think it likely that so far fewer men could have prevailed over so many more in a foreign land to such an extent, and especially over a Macedonian phalanx, which was then exceptionally well-trained and rich in men, and possessed an invincible and terrifying reputation), Antiochus' friends blamed his rashness in his dispute with the Romans, and his inexperience and folly from the beginning. They censured his letting slip from his hands both the Chersonese and Lysimachia, with such great forces and preparation, before even coming to a trial with the enemy, and his abandoning the guard of the Hellespont, when the Romans could not easily have hoped to force the crossing.
κατεμέμφοντο δʼ αὐτοῦ καὶ τὴν τελευταίαν ἀφροσύνην, ἀχρεῖον ἐν στενῷ τὸ κράτιστον τοῦ στρατοῦ πεποιηκότος, καὶ τὴν ἐλπίδα θεμένου ἐν πλήθει συγκλύδων ἀνδρῶν ἀρτιπολέμων μᾶλλον ἢ ἐν ἀνδράσι διὰ μελέτην καὶ χρόνον ἐργάταις τε οὖσι πολέμου καὶ ἐκ τοσῶνδε πολέμων τὸ φρόνημα ἐς εὐτολμίαν καὶ θάρσος ηὐξημένοις.
They also blamed his final folly, in having rendered the best part of his army useless in a narrow space, and having placed his hope in a multitude of raw recruits recently mobilized, rather than in men who, through practice and time, were workers of war, and whose spirit had been increased to courage and confidence from so many wars.
τοιαῦτα μὲν ἦν τὰ περὶ Ἀντιόχου λογοποιούμενα, Ῥωμαίοις δʼ ἐπῇρτο τὰ φρονήματα, καὶ οὐδὲν ἔτι σφίσιν ἡγοῦντο εἶναι δυσεργὲς ὑπό τε ἀρετῆς καὶ θεῶν ἐπικουρίας· καὶ γὰρ δὴ καὶ ἐς δόξαν εὐτυχίας ἔφερεν ὅτι οὕτω γε ὀλίγοι τε πολλῶν καὶ ἐξ ἐφόδου καὶ ἐν πρώτῃ μάχῃ καὶ ἐν ἀλλοτρίᾳ γῇ τοσῶνδε ἐθνῶν καὶ παρασκευῆς βασιλικῆς, καὶ μισθοφόρων ἀρετῆς, καὶ δόξης Μακεδόνων, καὶ βασιλέως αὐτοῦ μεγίστην τε ἀρχὴν κεκτημένου καὶ ἐπίκλησιν μεγάλου, κεκρατηκότες ἦσαν ἡμέρᾳ μιᾷ.
Such were the reports circulated about Antiochus, but the spirits of the Romans were raised, and they thought nothing was any longer difficult for them, through both their own valor and the help of the gods; for indeed, it also contributed to their reputation for good fortune that they, being so few against so many, and at the first onset, in the first battle, and in a foreign land, had conquered so many nations, such royal preparation, the valor of mercenaries, the reputation of Macedonians, and the king himself, who possessed the greatest empire and the surname of "the Great," all in a single day.
πολύ τε σφίσιν ἦν τὸ ἔπος ἐν τοῖς λόγοις,
ἦν βασιλεὺς Ἀντίοχος ὁ μέγας. §738τοιάδε μὲν δὴ καὶ Ῥωμαῖοι περὶ σφῶν ἐμεγαλαύχουν· ὁ δὲ ὕπατος, ἐπεὶ αὐτῷ ῥαΐσας ὁ ἀδελφὸς Πόπλιος ἦλθεν ἀπὸ τὴς Ἐλαίας, ἐχρημάτιζε τοῖς Ἀντιόχου πρέσβεσιν.
And a common saying was often on their lips: "King Antiochus the Great was." In such a way indeed did the Romans also boast about themselves; but the consul, when his brother Publius, having recovered, came to him from Elaea, held a conference with Antiochus' envoys.
οἱ μὲν δὴ μαθεῖν ἠξίουν ὅ τι ποιῶν ὁ βασιλεὺς Ἀντίοχος ἔσται Ῥωμαίοις φίλος· ὁ δὲ Πόπλιος αὐτοῖς ὧδε ἀπεκρίνατο· αἴτιος μὲν αὑτῷ διὰ πλεονεξίαν Ἀντίοχος καὶ τῶν νῦν καὶ τῶν πρότερον γεγονότων, ὃς ἀρχὴν μεγίστην ἔχων τε, καὶ Ῥωμαίων αὐτὸν ἐώντων ἔχειν, Πτολεμαίου συγγενοῦς ἰδίου καὶ Ῥωμαίοις φίλου Συρίαν τὴν κοίλην ἀφείλετο, καὶ ἐς τὴν Εὐρώπην οὐδὲν αὐτῷ προσήκουσαν ἐμβαλὼν Θρᾴκην κατεστρέφετο καὶ Χερρόνησον ὠχύρου καὶ Λυσιμάχειαν ἤγειρεν, ἔς τε τὴν Ἑλλάδα διελθὼν ἐδουλοῦτο τοὺς Ἕλληνας ὑπὸ Ῥωμαίων ἄρτι αὐτονόμους ἀφειμένους, μέχρι περὶ Θερμοπύλας ἡττήθη μάχῃ.
They indeed requested to learn by doing what King Antiochus would be a friend to the Romans; and Publius answered them thus: "Antiochus is the cause to himself, through his greed, of both the present and the past events. Although he possessed the greatest empire, and the Romans allowed him to keep it, he took away Coele-Syria from Ptolemy, his own relative and a friend to the Romans, and invading Europe, which in no way belonged to him, he subdued Thrace, fortified the Chersonese, and rebuilt Lysimachia; and crossing over into Greece, he sought to enslave the Greeks who had just been left autonomous by the Romans, until he was defeated in battle near Thermopylae.
καὶ φυγὼν οὐδʼ ὣς ἔληξε τῆς πλεονεξίας, ἀλλὰ κἀν τῇ θαλάττῃ πολλάκις ἐλαττωθεὶς σπονδῶν μέν, ἄρτι τὸν Ἑλλήσποντον ἡμῶν πεπερακότων, ἐδεήθη, διὰ δὲ ὑπεροψίαν τὰ προτεινόμενα ὑπερεῖδε, καὶ στράτευμα αὖθις πολὺ καὶ παρασκευὴν ἄπειρον ἐφʼ ἡμᾶς συναγαγὼν ἐπολέμει, βιαζόμενος ἐς πεῖραν ἐλθεῖν τοῖς ἀμείνοσι, μέχρι συνηνέχθη μεγάλῳ κακῷ.
And having fled, not even so did he cease from his greed, but though often worsted at sea, he begged for a treaty when we had just crossed the Hellespont, yet through arrogance he overlooked what was proposed, and having again gathered a large army and infinite preparation against us, he waged war, forcing a trial of strength with his betters, until he met with great disaster.
ἡμᾶς δὲ εἰκὸς μὲν ἦν αὐτῷ μείζονα τὴν ζημίαν ἐπιθεῖναι, βιασαμένῳ πολλάκις Ῥωμαίοις ἐς χεῖρας ἐλθεῖν· ἀλλʼ οὐχ ὑβρίζομεν ταῖς εὐπραξίαις, οὐδʼ ἐπιβαροῦμεν τοῖς ἑτέρων ἀτυχήμασιν.
It would have been natural for us to impose a heavier penalty on him, since he forced the Romans to come to blows so many times; but we do not behave insolently in our successes, nor do we weigh heavily upon the misfortunes of others.
δίδομεν δὲ ὅσα καὶ πρότερον αὐτῷ προὐτείνομεν, μικρὰ ἄττα προσθέντες, ὅσα καὶ ἡμῖν ἔσται χρήσιμα καὶ αὐτῷ λυσιτελῆ πρὸς τὸ μέλλον ἐς ἀσφάλειαν, ἀπέχεσθαι μὲν αὐτὸν τῆς Εὐρώπης ὅλης καὶ Ἀσίας τῶν ἐπὶ τάδε τοῦ Ταύρου (καὶ τούτοις ὅροι τεθήσονται), παραδοῦναι δʼ ἐλέφαντας ὅσους ἔχει καὶ ναῦς ὅσας ἂν ἐπιτάξωμεν, ἔς τε λοιπὸν ἐλέφαντας μὲν οὐκ ἔχειν, ναῦς δὲ ὅσας ἂν ὁρίσωμεν, δοῦναι δὲ καὶ εἴκοσιν ὅμηρα, ἃ ἂν ὁ στρατηγὸς ἐπιγράψῃ, καὶ χρήματα ἐς τὴν τοῦδε τοῦ πολέμου δαπάνην, διʼ αὐτὸν γενομένου, τάλαντα Εὐβοϊκὰ αὐτίκα μὲν ἤδη πεντακόσια, καὶ ὅταν τάσδε τὰς σπονδὰς ἡ σύγκλητος ἐπιψηφίσῃ, δισχίλια καὶ πεντακόσια, δώδεκα δʼ ἔτεσιν ἄλλοις ἕτερα μύρια καὶ δισχίλια, τὸ μέρος ἑκάστου ἔτους ἀναφέροντα ἐς Ῥώμην· ἀποδοῦναι δʼ ἡμῖν αἰχμάλωτα καὶ αὐτόμολα πάντα, καὶ Εὐμένει ὅσα λοιπὰ τῆς πρὸς Ἄτταλον τὸν Εὐμένους πατέρα συνθήκης ἔχει.
We grant him the same terms we proposed before, adding a few minor things which will be useful to us and profitable to him for the future to ensure safety: that he abstain from the whole of Europe and from Asia this side of the Taurus (and boundaries shall be set for these), and deliver up all the elephants he has and as many ships as we shall prescribe, and for the future keep no elephants, and only as many ships as we shall define, and give also twenty hostages, whom the general shall designate, and money for the expense of this war, which arose through him, namely five hundred Euboic talents immediately, and when the senate ratifies these terms, two thousand five hundred, and in another twelve years twelve thousand more, bringing each year's portion to Rome; and restore to us all prisoners and deserters, and to Eumenes whatever remains of the treaty with Attalus, Eumenes' father.
ταῦτα Ἀντιόχῳ πράττοντι ἀδόλως δίδομεν εἰρήνην τε καὶ φιλίαν, ὅταν ἡ σύγκλητος ἐπιψηφίσῃ.
If Antiochus performs these things without deceit, we grant him peace and friendship, once the senate ratifies it."