36.41
All
this time Antiochus was stopping in Ephesus quite unconcerned about the
war with Rome as though the Romans had no intention of landing in Asia.
This apathy was due either to the blindness or the flattery of most of his
councillors. Hannibal, who at that time had great influence with the king,
was the only one who told him the truth. He said that so far from feeling any
doubt about the Romans going, his only wonder was that they were not
there already. The voyage, he pointed out, from Greece to Asia was shorter
than from Italy to Greece, and Antiochus was a more dangerous foe than the
Aetolians, nor were the arms of Rome less potent on sea than on land. Their
fleet had been for some time cruising off Malea, and he understood that fresh
ships and a fresh commander had come from Italy to take part in the war. He
begged Antiochus therefore to give up all hopes of being left in peace. Asia
would be the scene of conflict, for Asia itself he would have to fight by sea
and by land, and either he must wrest the supreme power from those who
were aiming at world-wide dominion or else he must lose his own throne.
The king realised that Hannibal was the only one who saw what was coming
and told him the honest truth. Following his advice, he took all the ships that
were ready for war to the Chersonese in order to strengthen the places there
with garrisons in case the Romans came by land. Polyxenidas received
instructions to fit out the rest of the fleet and put to sea, and a number of
scouting vessels were sent to patrol the waters round the islands.
