alive, for whom, under a false impression, they are mourning.  Well, but you say, though all these things were so, Romans, how do they concern you?  Can you say this to the deliverers of Greece; to people who crossed the sea, and have maintained a war on sea and land, to effect its deliverance?  Still you tell us, you have not directly violated the alliance, or the friendship established between us.  How many instances must I produce of your having done so?  But I will not go into long detail; I will bring the matter to a short issue.  By what acts is friendship violated?  Most effectually by these two:  by treating our friends as foes; and by uniting yourself with our enemies.  Each of these has been done by you.  For Messene, which had been united to us in friendship, by one and the same bond of alliance with Lacedaemon, you, while professing yourself our ally, reduced to subjection by force of arms, though you knew it was in alliance with us; and you contracted with Philip, our professed enemy, not only an alliance, but even an affinity, through the intervention of his general, Philocles:  and waging actual war against us, with your piratical ships, you made the sea round Malea unsafe, and you captured and slew more Roman citizens almost than Philip himself; and to our ships conveying provisions to our armies the coast of Macedonia itself was less dangerous, than the promontory of Malea.  Cease, therefore, to vaunt your good faith, and the obligations of treaties; and, dropping a popular style of discourse, speak as a tyrant, and as an enemy.”

33.  Aristaenus then began, at first to advise, and afterwards even to beseech Nabis, while it was yet in his power, and he had the opportunity, to consider what was best for himself and his interests.  He then mentioned the names of several tyrants in the neighbouring states who had resigned their authority, and restored liberty to their people, and afterwards spent among their fellow citizens not only a secure but an honoured old age.  These observations having been reciprocally made and listened to, the approach of night broke up the conference.  Next day Nabis said, that he was willing to cede Argos, and withdraw his garrison, since such was the desire of the Romans, and to deliver up the prisoners and deserters; and if they demanded any thing further, he requested that they would set it down in writing, that he might deliberate on it with his friends.  Thus the tyrant gained time for consultation; and Quinctius also, on his part, called a council, to which he summoned the chiefs of the allies.  The greatest part were of opinion, that “they ought to persevere in the war, and that the tyrant should be altogether got rid of; otherwise the liberty of Greece would never be secure.  That it would have been much better never to have entered on the war than to drop it after it was begun; for this would be a kind of approbation of his tyrannical usurpation, and which would establish him more firmly,