Titus Livius (Livy), The History of Rome, Book 36
Rev. Canon Roberts, Ed.

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In a state of mind very unlike theirs Antiochus pitched his camp inside the narrowest part of the pass and barricaded it with defensive works, protecting every part of it with a double line of fosse and rampart [2??] and where it seemed necessary with a wall built up from the stones which were lying about everywhere. [3] He felt pretty confident that the Roman army would never force a passage there, and so he sent two detachments out of the 4000 Aetolians who had joined him, one to hold Heraclea, a place just in front of the pass, the other to Hypata. [4] He quite expected that the consul would attack Heraclea; and from Hypata numerous messages had come stating that the whole of the surrounding country was being laid waste. [5] The consul ravaged the territory of Hypata first and then that of Heraclea; in neither place did the Aetolians prove of the slightest use, and finally encamped opposite the king in the mouth of the pass at the hot springs. Both the Aetolian detachments shut themselves up in Heraclea. [6] Before the actual appearance of his enemy Antiochus thought that the whole of the pass was fortified and blocked by his troops, but now he felt anxious lest the Romans might find some paths on the surrounding heights by which they could turn his defences, for the Lacedaemonians [7??] were stated to have been similarly taken in the rear by the Persians, and Philip quite recently by the Romans. [8] Accordingly he sent a message to the Aetolians at Heraclea asking them to do him this service at least in the war, namely, to seize and hold the crests of the surrounding mountains and prevent the Romans from crossing them anywhere. On the receipt of this message there was a sharp difference of opinion among the Aetolians. [9] Some thought that they ought to comply with the king's request and go; others were in favour of remaining in their quarters at Heraclea, prepared for either eventuality. [10] If the king were defeated they would then have their forces intact and be able to assist in the defence of the cities round them, if on the other hand he were victorious they would then be in a position to take up the pursuit of the fugitive Romans. [11] Each party held to its opinion, and not only held to it but acted upon it; 2000 remained in Heraclea, and the others, formed into three divisions, occupied the three heights of Callidromus, Rhoduntia and Tichius.