History of the Peloponnesian War

But Alcibiades (for his relations with Tissaphernes were not altogether firm, he being now more afraid of the Peloponnesians and still wishing to follow the policy inculcated by Alcibiades and wear out both parties) now had recourse to this device—that Tissaphernes should make as great demands as possible upon the Athenians and in this way come to no agreement with them. And Tissaphernes also, as it seems to me, wished the same thing, fear being the motive in his case;

but Alcibiades, as soon as he saw that even on his own terms he did not want to reach an agreement, wished it to appear to the Athenians, not that he was unable to persuade him but that the Athenians, after Tissaphernes had been persuaded and in spite of his wishing to come to terms, were not conceding enough.

For Alcibiades made such excessive demands, speaking himself on behalf of Tissaphernes and in his presence, that although for a long time the Athenians yielded whatever he demanded, the blame for the failure must nevertheless fall upon them; for he insisted that all Ionia should be given up, after that the adjacent islands, and so on. When the Athenians did not oppose these demands, finally, at the third conference, fearing that his utter lack of influence would be openly exposed, he insisted that the King be permitted to build ships and sail along the Athenian coasts wherever he wished and with as many ships as he pleased. At that point the Athenians yielded no further, but believing that there was no way out of the matter and that they had been deceived by Alcibiades, departed in anger and made their way back to Samos.

Immediately after this, in the course of the same winter, Tissaphernes proceeded to Caunus, wishing to bring the Peloponnesians back to Miletus, and after concluding with them such other agreements as he found practicable, to supply them with maintenance, and not be in a state of complete hostility; for he was afraid that, if they should be in difficulty about the maintenance of a large fleet, they might either be forced to fight the Athenians and suffer defeat, or that, their ships being emptied of men by desertion, the Athenians might get what they wanted without his help; and he was afraid, furthermore and chiefly, that in searching for supplies they might ravage the mainland.