under cover
of the darkness, he concealed many of the Achaeans, armed with daggers,
in the rough ground near the city. By this stratagem Nabis's force
suffered great losses, for as they did not retreat in a body, but each
man as best he could, they fell into their foemen's hands at the city
gate like birds into a snare.

XV. Philopoemen gained so much glory by these exploits, and was so much
honoured by the Greeks wherever he appeared in public, that he roused
the jealousy of Flamininus, who thought that he, a consul of Rome, was
worthier of respect than a mere Arcadian, while he had moreover done
much more for Greece, having by one proclamation restored those
liberties of which Philip and his Macedonians had deprived it.
Flamininus put an end to the war with Nabis, who was shortly
afterwards assassinated by the AEtolians. As this event threw Sparta
into disorder, Philopoemen seized the opportunity, marched thither with
an army, and partly by persuasion, partly by force, prevailed upon the
city to join the Achaean league. This wonderfully raised his fame
throughout Greece, that he should have won over so famous and powerful
a city, for Sparta formed a most important member of the league. He
also gained the good will of the Lacedaemonian nobles, who hoped that
he would protect their newly-won liberty. They sold the house and
property of Nabis, and decreed that the money, amounting to a hundred
and twenty talents, should be presented to him by a deputation. On
this occasion Philopoemen showed himself to be a man of real virtue.
At the interview none of the Spartans liked to propose to him to
receive the money, but they excused themselves, and made his own
especial friend Timolaus undertake to do this. Timolaus, however, when
he reached Megalopolis, and living in the house of Philopoemen had an
opportunity of observing the noble simplicity of his character and his
lofty integrity, in the familiar intercourse of private life, dared
not mention the bribe, but gave some other excuse for his visit and
returned home. He was sent a second time, with the same result. On a
third visit he with great hesitation broached the subject. Philopoemen
listened to him without anger, and sent him back to the Spartans with
the advice that they should not corrupt their friends, whose services
they could obtain gratis, but keep their money to bribe those who
endeavoured to countermine their city in the public assembly of the
Achaean league, a