34.35
After
consultation with his staff officers and military tribunes, Quinctius put into
writing the conditions on which peace was to be made with the tyrant. There
was to be a truce for six months between Nabis and his opponents -the
Romans, Eumenes and the Rhodians. T. Quinctius and Nabis were each to
send forthwith commissioners to Rome to secure the confirmation of the
peace by the senate. The armistice was to commence from the day on which
the document containing the conditions was handed to Nabis, and within ten
days from that date he was to withdraw all his garrisons from Argos and the
other towns in Argive territory and the places were to be handed over,
evacuated and free, to the Romans. No slaves were to be removed from
those places, whether they had belonged to the king or the public authorities
or private individuals, and if any had previously been so removed they were
to be duly restored to their owners. Nabis was to return the ships he had
taken from the maritime cities, and he himself was not to possess any vessel
beyond two light barques with not more than sixteen oars. All the cities
allied with Rome were to have their prisoners and deserters restored to
them, and all the property which the people of Messene could collect
together and identify was to be given back to them. Further, he was to allow
the Lacedaemonian refugees to have their wives and children with them,
provided that no woman should be forced to join her husband whilst in exile
against her will. Such of the tyrant's mercenaries as had gone back to their
homes or deserted to the Romans were to have all their property restored to
them. He was not to possess a single city in Crete, those which he had held
he was to deliver up to the Romans, nor was he to form alliances with or
make war against any of the Cretan cities, or anyone else. All the cities
which he had to surrender, and all who had voluntarily accepted the
suzerainty of Rome, were to be relieved of the presence of his garrisons;
neither he nor his subjects were in any way to interfere with them. He was
not to build a walled town or fortified post either on his own soil or
elsewhere. As a guarantee for the due observance of these conditions he was
to give five hostages to be selected by the Roman commander -one being his
own son -and he was to pay an indemnity of 100 talents of silver at once
and an annual instalment of 50 talents for the next eight years.
