Isocrates Panegyricus 53

[53] And it is for this very reason that we are sometimes charged with adopting a foolish policy in that we are accustomed to cultivate the weaker peoples ¹ —as though such charges do not support those who desire to sing our praises. For it was not because we failed to appreciate how much more advantageous great alliances are in point of security that we pursued this policy in regard to the weak; no, although we realized much more exactly than our rivals the consequences of such a course, we nevertheless preferred to stand by the weaker even against our interests rather than to unite with the stronger in oppressing others for our own advantage.