the losses were small and fell now on one side
and now on the other. At the close of the winter, towards the beginning
of spring, the Argives went with scaling ladders to Epidaurus, expecting
to find it left unguarded on account of the war and to be able to take
it by assault, but returned unsuccessful. And the winter ended, and with
it the thirteenth year of the war ended also.

In the middle of the next summer the Lacedaemonians, seeing the
Epidaurians, their allies, in distress, and the rest of Peloponnese
either in revolt or disaffected, concluded that it was high time for
them to interfere if they wished to stop the progress of the evil, and
accordingly with their full force, the Helots included, took the field
against Argos, under the command of Agis, son of Archidamus, king of the
Lacedaemonians. The Tegeans and the other Arcadian allies of Lacedaemon
joined in the expedition. The allies from the rest of Peloponnese and
from outside mustered at Phlius; the Boeotians with five thousand heavy
infantry and as many light troops, and five hundred horse and the same
number of dismounted troopers; the Corinthians with two thousand heavy
infantry; the rest more or less as might happen; and the Phliasians with
all their forces, the army being in their country.

The preparations of the Lacedaemonians from the first had been known to
the Argives, who did not, however, take the field until the enemy was on
his road to join the rest at Phlius. Reinforced by the Mantineans with
their allies, and by three thousand Elean heavy infantry, they advanced
and fell in with the Lacedaemonians at Methydrium in Arcadia. Each party
took up its position upon a hill, and the Argives prepared to engage the
Lacedaemonians while they were alone; but Agis eluded them by breaking
up his camp in the night, and proceeded to join the rest of the allies
at Phlius. The Argives discovering this at daybreak, marched first
to Argos and then to the Nemean road, by which they expected the
Lacedaemonians and their allies would come down. However, Agis,
instead of taking this road as they expected, gave the Lacedaemonians,
Arcadians, and Epidaurians their orders, and went along another
difficult road, and descended into the plain of Argos. The Corinthians,
Pellenians, and Phliasians marched by another steep road; while the
Boeotians, Megarians, and Sicyonians had instructions to come down by
the Nemean road where the Argives were posted, in order that, if