Alc. 8.1Neque tamen ā cāritāte patriae potuit recēdere.Yet he could not withdraw from love of his country. Alc. 8.1Nam cum apud Aegōs flūmen Philoclēs, praetor Athēniēnsium, classem cōnstituisset suam neque longē abesset Lȳsander, praetor Lacedaemoniōrum, quī in eō erat occupātus ut bellum quam diūtissimē dūceret, quod ipsīs pecūnia ā rēge suppeditābātur, contrā Athēniēnsibus exhaustīs praeter arma et nāvēs nihil erat super, Alcibiadēs ad exercitum vēnit Athēniēnsium ibique praesente vulgō agere coepit: sī vellent, sē coāctūrum Lȳsandrum dīmicāre aut pācem petere ;For when Philocles, the Athenian general, had stationed his fleet at Aegospotami, and Lysander, the Spartan general, was not far off, busy prolonging the war as long as possible, because money was being supplied to them by the king, whereas the Athenians were exhausted and had nothing left but arms and ships, Alcibiades came to the Athenian army and there, in the presence of the troops, began to argue: if they wished, he would force Lysander either to fight or to sue for peace; Alc. 8.2lacedaemoniōs eō nōlle classe cōnflīgere, quod pedestribus cōpiīs plūs quam nāvibus valērent;the Spartans did not want to fight with their fleet for this reason, that they were stronger in land forces than in ships; Alc. 8.3sibi autem esse facile Seuthem, rēgem Thraecum, addūcere ut eum terrā dēpelleret: quō factō necessāriō aut classe cōnflīctūrum aut bellum compositūrum.but it would be easy for him to induce Seuthes, king of the Thracians, to drive Lysander off the land: once that was done, he would of necessity either fight with his fleet or end the war.
Alc. 8.4Id etsī vērē dictum Philoclēs animadvertēbat, tamen postulāta facere nōluit, quod sentiēbat sē Alcibiade receptō nūllīus mōmentī apud exercitum futūrum et, sī quid secundī ēvēnisset, nūllam in eā rē suam partem fore, contrā ea, sī quid adversī accidisset, sē ūnum eius dēlictī futūrum reum.Although Philocles saw that this was truly said, he nevertheless refused to do what was asked, because he felt that if Alcibiades were taken back he himself would be of no account with the army, and that if any success came there would be no share of it for him, whereas if any setback occurred he alone would be held to blame for the failure. Alc. 8.5Ab hōc discēdēns Alcibiadēs "quoniam" inquit "victōriae patriae repugnās, illud moneō, nē iūxtā hostem castra habeās nautica: perīculum est enim, nē immodestiā mīlitum vestrōrum occāsiō dētur Lȳsandrō vestrī opprimendī exercitūs".As he left him, Alcibiades said, 'Since you oppose your country's victory, I give you this warning: do not keep your naval camp near the enemy; for there is a danger that the indiscipline of your soldiers will give Lysander the opportunity to crush your army.' Alc. 8.6Neque ea rēs illum fefellit.Nor was he mistaken in this.
Alc. 8.6Nam Lȳsander, cum per speculātōrēs comperisset vulgum Athēniēnsium in terram praedātum exīsse nāvēsque paene inānēs relictās, tempus reī gerendae nōn dīmīsit eōque impetū bellum tōtum dēlēvit.For Lysander, having learned through scouts that the mass of the Athenians had gone ashore to plunder and that the ships had been left almost empty, did not let slip the opportunity for action, and with that attack he wiped out the whole war.