The Persian gold coins bore the device of an archer:  and Agesilaus as he broke up his camp observed that he was being driven out of Asia by ten thousand archers, meaning that so many of these coins had been distributed among the statesmen of Athens and Thebes, to bribe them into forcing those countries to go to war with Sparta.

XVI.  He now crossed the Hellespont and proceeded through Thrace.  Here he did not ask leave of any of the barbarian tribes to traverse their country, but merely inquired whether they would prefer him to treat them as friends or as enemies during his passage.  All the tribes received him in a friendly manner and escorted him through their land, except the Trallians,[180] to whom it is said that Xerxes himself gave presents, who demanded from Agesilaus a hundred talents of silver and a hundred female slaves for his passage.  He answered, “Why did they not come at once and take them;” and immediately marched into their country, where he found them strongly posted, and routed them with great slaughter.

He made the same enquiry, about peace or war, of the King of Macedonia, and on receiving the answer that he would consider the question, “Let him consider,” said he, “but let us march in the meanwhile.”  Struck with admiration and fear at his daring, the king bade him pass through as a friend.  On reaching the country of Thessaly, he found the Thessalians in alliance with the enemies of Sparta, and laid waste their lands.  He sent however Xenokles and Skythes to Larissa, the chief town in Thessaly, to arrange terms of peace.  These men were seized upon by the Thessalians and cast into prison, at which the army was greatly excited, thinking that Agesilaus could do no less than besiege and take Larissa.  He, on the other hand, said that he valued the lives of either of these two men more than all Thessaly, and obtained their release by negotiation.  This ought not to surprise us in Agesilaus, for when he heard of the great battle at Corinth where so many distinguished men fell, and where though many of the enemy perished the Spartan loss was very small, he showed no signs of exultation, but sighed heavily, and said, “Alas for Greece, that she should by her own fault have lost so many men, who if they were alive could conquer all the barbarians in the world.”

The Thessalian tribe of the Pharsalians[181] now attacked his army, upon which he charged them with five hundred horse, and having routed them erected a trophy near Mount Narthakius.  Agesilaus took great pride in this victory, because in it he had defeated the Thessalian horsemen, supposed to be the best in Greece, with cavalry disciplined by himself in Asia.