[20,6] Αὐτὸς δὲ ὁ Πύρρος τοὺς Ὁμηρικοὺς ἐπιφθεγξάμενος στίχους, οὓς Ἕκτωρ αὐτῷ πεποίηται πρὸς Αἴαντα λέγων, ὡς ὑπὸ Ῥωμαίων εἰρημένους πρὸς ἑαυτόν· Τῷ σε καὶ οὐκ ἐθέλω βαλέειν, τοιοῦτον ἐόντα, Λάθρη ὀπιπτεύσας, ἀλλ´ ἀμφαδόν, αἴ κε τύχοιμι καὶ μετὰ τοῦτ´ εἰπών, ὅτι κινδυνεύει πονηρὰν πεποιῆσθαι τὴν ὑπόθεσιν τοῦ πολέμου πρὸς ἀνθρώπους ὁσιωτάτους Ἑλλήνων καὶ δικαιοτάτους, μίαν ἔφη θεωρεῖν ἀπαλλαγὴν τοῦ πολέμου καλὴν καὶ συμφέρουσαν, εἰ φίλους ἀντὶ πολεμίων αὐτοὺς ποιήσαιτο, φιλανθρωπίας τινὸς μεγάλης καταρξάμενος. Προαχθῆναι δὲ κελεύσας τοὺς Ῥωμαίων αἰχμαλώτους καὶ δοὺς ἅπασιν ἐσθῆτας ἐλευθέροις πρεπούσας σώμασι καὶ ἐνοδίους δαπάνας, παρεκάλεσεν αὐτοὺς μεμνῆσθαι, οἷος εἰς αὐτοὺς ἐγένετο, καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις λέγειν, ὅταν δ´ εἰς τὰς ἑαυτῶν ἔλθωσι πατρίδας, πάσῃ προθυμίᾳ πράττειν, ὅπως φίλους ποιήσουσι τὰς πόλεις. Ἄμαχον δή τινα ἰσχὺν τὸ βασιλικὸν ἔχει χρυσίον, καὶ οὐδεμία εὕρηται πρὸς τοῦτο τὸ βέλος ἀνθρώποις φυλακή.

[20,6] (19.2) Pyrrhus himself, having uttered the Homeric lines which Hector is represented by the poet as speaking to Ajax, as if they had been addressed by the Romans to himself, I would not smite thee, then, who art so brave, By stealth, but openly, if so I may. (p411) and afterwards declaring that he had probably been wrong in planning his war against people who were more pious than the Greeks and more just, said he saw only one honourable and advantageous way of ending the war, and that was to make friends of them instead of enemies, beginning with some great act of kindness. 2 (3) After ordering the Roman prisoners to be brought forward and giving to all of them raiment befitting free persons and expense money for the journey, he bade them remember how he had treated them and to tell all the others, and what they should come to their own cities, to strive with all zeal to make those cities friendly to him. 3 A certain irresistible sight, indeed, has the gold of a king, and no defence has been found by mortals against this weapon.