---
title: "Against Meidias · Κατὰ Μειδίου περὶ τοῦ Κονδύλου"
author: "Demosthenes"
translator: "James Herbert Vince"
languages: [grc, en]
shelf: "Classical Greek"
section: 3 of 5
url: https://scriptura.si/works/demosthenes-against-meidias/3/
cite: "Demosthenes, tr. James Herbert Vince, Against Meidias · Κατὰ Μειδίου περὶ τοῦ Κονδύλου, section 3. Scriptura (scriptura.si), https://scriptura.si/works/demosthenes-against-meidias/3/"
---

# Against Meidias · Κατὰ Μειδίου περὶ τοῦ Κονδύλου

*Demosthenes, tr. James Herbert Vince*

A rich enemy punched Demosthenes in the theatre while he was serving as chorus-producer at the Dionysia.

> Greek: ed. Samuel Henry Butcher, from the Perseus Digital Library (canonical-greekLit, tlg0014.tlg021, CC BY-SA 4.0).

> English: James Herbert Vince, from the Perseus Digital Library (tlg0014.tlg021.perseus-eng2). Notes are not included.

> Rows follow the references the two texts share (chapters and sections), cut where both reach the end of a sentence.

## 3. Sections 91–132

Source: https://scriptura.si/works/demosthenes-against-meidias/3/ · cite a paragraph as https://scriptura.si/works/demosthenes-against-meidias/3/#p-N

[¶0] 91. But now that he has disfranchised the man he wanted to, and you have indulged him in this; now that he has sated that shameless temper that prompted him to this course, has he finished the business? Has he paid the fine, to escape which he ruined the poor fellow? Not a brass farthing of it to this day! He submits rather to be the defendant in an action for ejectment. So the one man is disfranchised and ruined on a side issue; the other is unscathed and is playing havoc with the laws, the arbitrators, and everything else that he pleases.

> Greek: 91. ἀλλʼ ἐπειδή γʼ ἠτίμωσεν ὃν ἐβουλήθη, καὶ τοῦτʼ ἐχαρίσασθʼ αὐτῷ, καὶ τὴν ἀναιδῆ γνώμην, ᾗ ταῦτα προαιρεῖται ποιεῖν, ἐνέπλησεν αὑτοῦ, ἐκεῖνʼ ἐποίησε, τὴν καταδίκην ἐκτέτεικε, διʼ ἣν τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἀπώλεσεν; οὐδὲ χαλκοῦν οὐδέπω καὶ τήμερον, ἀλλὰ δίκην ἐξούλης ὑπομένει φεύγειν. οὐκοῦν ὁ μὲν ἠτίμωται καὶ παραπόλωλεν, ὁ δʼ οὐδʼ ὁτιοῦν πέπονθεν, ἀλλʼ ἄνω κάτω τοὺς νόμους, τοὺς διαιτητάς, πάνθʼ ὅσʼ ἂν βούληται στρέφει.

[¶1] 92. Moreover, he has secured the validity of the award against the arbitrator, which he maneuvered to get without serving a summons, while the suit which he lost to me, wittingly and after due summons, this he renders invalid. Yet if such is the vengeance that he claims from arbitrators who have given judgement against him by default, what vengeance ought you to wreak on a man who openly and wantonly transgresses your laws? [For if disfranchisement and loss of all legal and civil rights is a fitting punishment for that other offence, death seems an inadequate one for this reckless outrage.]

> Greek: 92. καὶ τὴν μὲν κατὰ τοῦ διαιτητοῦ γνῶσιν, ἣν ἀπρόσκλητον κατεσκεύασεν, αὐτὸς κυρίαν αὑτῷ πεποίηται· ἣν δʼ αὐτὸς ὦφλεν ἐμοὶ προσκληθείς, εἰδώς, οὐκ ἀπαντῶν, ἄκυρον ποιεῖ. καίτοι εἰ παρὰ τῶν ἔρημον καταδιαιτησάντων αὐτοῦ τηλικαύτην δίκην οὗτος ἀξιοῖ λαμβάνειν, τίνʼ ὑμῖν προσήκει παρὰ τούτου λαβεῖν, τοῦ φανερῶς τοὺς ὑμετέρους νόμους ἐφʼ ὕβρει παραβαίνοντος; εἰ γὰρ ἀτιμία καὶ νόμων καὶ δικῶν καὶ πάντων στέρησις ἐκείνου τἀδικήματος προσήκουσʼ ἐστὶν δίκη, τῆς γʼ ὕβρεως μικρὰ θάνατος φαίνεται.

[¶2] 93. However, to prove the truth of my statements, please call the witnesses, and also read the law concerning arbitrators. The Witnesses “We, Nicostratus of Myrrhinus and Phanias of Aphidna, know that Demosthenes, for whom we appear, and Meidias, who is being prosecuted by Demosthenes, when Demosthenes brought his action against him for slander, chose Strato as arbitrator; and when the statutory day arrived, Meidias did not appear in court but abandoned the case. Judgement having gone by default against Meidias, we know that Meidias tried to induce Strato, the arbitrator, and us, who were at that time Archons, to reverse the judgement against him, and he offered us fifty drachmas, and, when we resented his offer, he threatened us and so departed. Also we know that on this account Strato was victimized by Meidias and was disfranchised contrary to all justice.”

> Greek: 93. ἀλλὰ μὴν ὡς ἀληθῆ λέγω, κάλει μοι τούτων τοὺς μάρτυρας, καὶ τὸν τῶν διαιτητῶν ἀνάγνωθι νόμον. Μάρτυρες Νικόστρατος Μυρρινούσιος, Φανίας Ἀφιδναῖος οἴδαμεν Δημοσθένην, ᾧ μαρτυροῦμεν, καὶ Μειδίαν τὸν κρινόμενον ὑπὸ Δημοσθένους, ὅτʼ αὐτῷ Δημοσθένης ἔλαχε τὴν τοῦ κακηγορίου δίκην, ἑλομένους διαιτητὴν Στράτωνα, καὶ ἐπεὶ ἧκεν ἡ κυρία τοῦ νόμου, οὐκ ἀπαντήσαντα Μειδίαν ἐπὶ τὴν δίαιταν, ἀλλὰ καταλιπόντα. γενομένης δὲ ἐρήμου κατὰ Μειδίου, ἐπιστάμεθα Μειδίαν πείθοντα τόν τε Στράτωνα τὸν διαιτητὴν καὶ ἡμᾶς, ὄντας ἐκείνοις τοῖς χρόνοις ἄρχοντας, ὅπως τὴν δίαιταν αὐτῷ ἀποδιαιτήσομεν, καὶ διδόντα δραχμὰς πεντήκοντα. καὶ ἐπειδὴ οὐχ ὑπεμείναμεν, προσαπειλήσαντα ἡμῖν καὶ οὕτως ἀπαλλαγέντα. καὶ διὰ ταύτην τὴν αἰτίαν ἐπιστάμεθα Στράτωνα ὑπὸ Μειδίου καταβραβευθέντα καὶ παρὰ πάντα τὰ δίκαια ἀτιμωθέντα.

[¶3] 94. Read also the law concerning arbitrators. The Law “If any parties are in dispute concerning private contracts and wish to choose any arbitrator, it shall be lawful for them to choose whomsoever they wish. But when they have chosen by mutual agreement, they shall abide by his decisions and shall not transfer the same charges from him to another court, but the judgements of the arbitrator shall be final.”

> Greek: 94. λέγε δὴ καὶ τὸν τῶν διαιτητῶν νόμον. ΝΟΜΟΣ Ἐὰν δέ τινες περὶ συμβολαίων ἰδίων πρὸς ἀλλήλους ἀμφισβητῶσι καὶ βούλωνται διαιτητὴν ἑλέσθαι ὁντινοῦν, ἐξέστω αὐτοῖς αἱρεῖσθαι ὃν ἂν βούλωνται [διαιτητὴν ἑλέσθαι]. ἐπειδὰν δʼ ἕλωνται κατὰ κοινόν, μενέτωσαν ἐν τοῖς ὑπὸ τούτου διαγνωσθεῖσι, καὶ μηκέτι μεταφερέτωσαν ἀπὸ τούτου ἐφʼ ἕτερον δικαστήριον ταὐτὰ ἐγκλήματα, ἀλλʼ ἔστω τὰ κριθέντα ὑπὸ τοῦ διαιτητοῦ κύρια.

[¶4] 95. Call also Strato, the victim of this persecution, for no doubt he will be allowed to stand up in court. This man, Athenians, is a poor man perhaps, but certainly not a bad man. He was once a citizen and served at the proper age in all the campaigns; he has done nothing reprehensible, yet now there he stands silent, stripped not only of all our common privileges, but also of the right to speak or complain; he is not even allowed to tell you whether he has suffered justly or unjustly.

> Greek: 95. κάλει δὴ καὶ τὸν Στράτωνʼ αὐτὸν τὸν τὰ τοιαῦτα πεπονθότα· ἑστάναι γὰρ ἐξέσται δήπουθεν αὐτῷ. οὗτος, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, πένης μὲν ἴσως ἐστίν, οὐ πονηρὸς δέ γε. οὗτος μέντοι πολίτης ὤν, ἐστρατευμένος ἁπάσας τὰς ἐν ἡλικίᾳ στρατείας καὶ δεινὸν οὐδὲν εἰργασμένος, ἕστηκε νυνὶ σιωπῇ, οὐ μόνον τῶν ἄλλων ἀγαθῶν τῶν κοινῶν ἀπεστερημένος, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῦ φθέγξασθαι ἢ ὀδύρασθαι· καὶ οὐδʼ εἰ δίκαιʼ ἢ ἄδικα πέπονθεν, οὐδὲ ταῦτʼ ἔξεστιν αὐτῷ πρὸς ὑμᾶς εἰπεῖν.

[¶5] 96. All this he has endured at the hands of Meidias, and from the wealth and pride of Meidias, because he himself is poor and friendless and just one of the multitude. If in violation of the laws he had accepted the fifty drachmas and changed his verdict from a condemnation to an acquittal, he would now be a full citizen, untouched by harm and sharing with the rest of us in our common rights; but because he disregarded Meidias in comparison with justice and feared the laws more than his threats, therefore he has met with this great and terrible misfortune through the act of this man.

> Greek: 96. καὶ ταῦτα πέπονθʼ ὑπὸ Μειδίου καὶ τοῦ Μειδίου πλούτου καὶ τῆς ὑπερηφανίας παρὰ τὴν πενίαν καὶ ἐρημίαν καὶ τὸ τῶν πολλῶν εἷς εἶναι. καὶ εἰ μὲν παραβὰς τοὺς νόμους ἔλαβεν τὰς πεντήκοντα δραχμὰς παρʼ αὐτοῦ, καὶ τὴν δίκην ἣν κατεδιῄτησεν ἀποδεδιῃτημένην ἀπέφηνεν, ἐπίτιμος ἂν ἦν καὶ οὐδὲν ἔχων κακὸν τῶν ἴσων μετεῖχε τοῖς ἄλλοις ἡμῖν· ἐπειδὴ δὲ παρεῖδε πρὸς τὰ δίκαια Μειδίαν, καὶ τοὺς νόμους μᾶλλον ἔδεισε τῶν ἀπειλῶν τῶν τούτου, τηνικαῦτα τηλικαύτῃ καὶ τοιαύτῃ συμφορᾷ περιπέπτωκεν ὑπὸ τούτου.

[¶6] 97. And then this same man, so cruel, so heartless, who has taken such dire vengeance for his wrongs—you have only his word for them, for he really suffered none—will you acquit him when you have detected him in a wanton outrage on one of the citizens? [If he regards neither festivals nor temples nor law nor anything else, will you not condemn him? Will you not make an example of him?]

> Greek: 97. εἶθʼ ὑμεῖς τὸν οὕτως ὠμόν, τὸν οὕτως ἀγνώμονα, τὸν τηλικαύτας δίκας λαμβάνονθʼ ὧν αὐτὸς ἠδικῆσθαι φησὶ μόνον (οὐ γὰρ ἠδίκητό γε), τοῦτον ὑβρίζοντα λαβόντες εἴς τινα τῶν πολιτῶν [ἀφήσετε], καὶ μήθʼ ἑορτῆς μήθʼ ἱερῶν μήτε νόμου μήτʼ ἄλλου μηδενὸς πρόνοιαν ποιούμενον, οὐ καταψηφιεῖσθε;

[¶7] 98. If not, what have you to say, gentlemen of the jury? What fair and honorable excuse, in heaven’s name, can you find for him? Is it because he is a ruffian and a blackguard? That is true enough, but surely, men of Athens, your duty is to hate such creatures, not to screen them. Is it because he is wealthy? But you will find that his wealth was the main cause of his insolence, so that your duty is to cut off the resources from which his insolence springs, rather than spare him for the sake of those resources; for to allow such a reckless and abominable creature to have such wealth at his command is to supply him with resources to use against yourselves.

> Greek: 98. οὐ παράδειγμα ποιήσετε; καὶ τί φήσετʼ, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί; καὶ τίνʼ, ὢ πρὸς τῶν θεῶν, ἕξετʼ εἰπεῖν πρόφασιν δικαίαν ἢ καλήν; ὅτι νὴ Δίʼ ἀσελγής ἐστι καὶ βδελυρός· ταῦτα γάρ ἐστι τἀληθῆ· ἀλλὰ μισεῖν ὀφείλετʼ, ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, δήπου τοὺς τοιούτους μᾶλλον ἢ σῴζειν. ἀλλʼ ὅτι πλούσιός ἐστιν· ἀλλὰ τοῦτό γε τῆς ὕβρεως αὐτοῦ σχεδὸν αἴτιον εὑρήσετʼ ὄν, ὥστʼ ἀφελεῖν τὴν ἀφορμήν, διʼ ἣν ὑβρίζει, προσήκει μᾶλλον ἢ σῶσαι διὰ ταύτην· τὸ γὰρ χρημάτων πολλῶν θρασὺν καὶ βδελυρὸν καὶ τοιοῦτον ἄνθρωπον ἐᾶν εἶναι κύριον, ἀφορμήν ἐστιν ἐφʼ ὑμᾶς αὐτοὺς δεδωκέναι.

[¶8] 99. What plea, then, is left? Pity, forsooth! He will group his children round him and weep and beg you to pardon him for their sakes. That is his last move. [But I need not remind you that pity is the due of those who unjustly suffer more than they can endure, not of those who are paying the penalty for the misdeeds they have committed.] And who could justly pity his children, when he sees that Meidias had no pity for Strato’s children, whose distress is enhanced by the reflection that for their father’s calamity no relief is possible? For it is not a question of paying a fixed fine and regaining his civil rights; he has been disfranchised absolutely, at one stroke, by the wanton resentment of Meidias.

> Greek: 99. τί οὖν ὑπόλοιπον; ἐλεῆσαι νὴ Δία· παιδία γὰρ παραστήσεται καὶ κλαήσει καὶ τούτοις αὑτὸν ἐξαιτήσεται· τοῦτο γὰρ λοιπόν. ἀλλʼ ἴστε δήπου τοῦθʼ ὅτι τοὺς ἀδίκως τι πάσχοντας, ὃ μὴ δυνήσονται φέρειν, ἐλεεῖν προσήκει, οὐ τοὺς ὧν πεποιήκασι δεινῶν δίκην διδόντας. καὶ τίς ἂν ταῦτʼ ἐλεήσειε δικαίως, ὁρῶν τὰ τοῦδʼ οὐκ ἐλεηθένθʼ ὑπὸ τούτου, ἃ τῇ τοῦ πατρὸς συμφορᾷ χωρὶς τῶν ἄλλων κακῶν οὐδʼ ἐπικουρίαν ἐνοῦσαν ὁρᾷ. οὐ γάρ ἐστιν ὄφλημʼ ὅ τι χρὴ καταθέντʼ ἐπίτιμον γενέσθαι τουτονί, ἀλλʼ ἁπλῶς οὕτως ἠτίμωται τῇ ῥύμῃ τῆς ὀργῆς καὶ τῆς ὕβρεως τῆς Μειδίου.

[¶9] 100. Whose insolence then will be checked, and who will be deprived of the wealth that makes such outrages possible, if you are prepared to pity Meidias as though he were an innocent victim, while, if a poor man, who has done no wrong, has through him become unjustly involved in utmost ruin, you fail even to share in his indignation? It must not be. No one deserves pity who shows no pity; no one deserves pardon who grants no pardon.

> Greek: 100. τίς οὖν ὑβρίζων παύσεται καὶ διʼ ἃ ταῦτα ποιεῖ χρήματʼ ἀφαιρεθήσεται, εἰ τοῦτον ὥσπερ δεινὰ πάσχοντʼ ἐλεήσετε; εἰ δέ τις πένης μηδὲν ἠδικηκὼς ταῖς ἐσχάταις συμφοραῖς ἀδίκως ὑπὸ τούτου περιπέπτωκε, τούτῳ δʼ οὐδὲ συνοργισθήσεσθε; μηδαμῶς· οὐδεὶς γάρ ἐστι δίκαιος τυγχάνειν ἐλέου τῶν μηδένʼ ἐλεούντων, οὐδὲ συγγνώμης τῶν ἀσυγγνωμόνων.

[¶10] 101. For I think that all men, in all that they do, feel bound to make a contribution out of their own pockets for the benefit of their own life. Here am I, let us suppose; moderate and merciful towards all, and a benefactor of many. To such a man all men ought to make an equivalent return, if occasion offers or need demands. Here again is a very different man; violent, showing no pity to his neighbor, nor even treating him as a fellow-man. Such a man deserves to be paid in his own coin. And such, Meidias, was the contribution that you paid for your own benefit; such is the return that you deserve.

> Greek: 101. ἐγὼ γὰρ οἶμαι πάντας ἀνθρώπους φέρειν ἀξιοῦν παρʼ ἑαυτῶν εἰς τὸν βίον αὑτοῖς ἔρανον παρὰ πάνθʼ ὅσα πράττουσιν· οἷον ἐγώ τις οὑτοσὶ μέτριος πρὸς ἅπαντάς εἰμʼ, ἐλεήμων, εὖ ποιῶν πολλούς· ἅπασι προσήκει τῷ τοιούτῳ ταὔτʼ εἰσφέρειν, ἐάν του καιρὸς ἢ χρεία παραστῇ. ἕτερος οὑτοσί τις βίαιος, οὐδένʼ οὔτʼ ἐλεῶν οὔθʼ ὅλως ἄνθρωπον ἡγούμενος· τούτῳ τὰς ὁμοίας φορὰς παρʼ ἑκάστου δίκαιον ὑπάρχειν. σὺ δή, πληρωτὴς τοιούτου γεγονὼς ἐράνου σεαυτῷ, τοῦτον δίκαιος εἶ συλλέξασθαι.

[¶11] 102. Therefore, men of Athens, I think that even if I had no other charge to bring against Meidias, and even if what I shall allege hereafter were not more serious than what I have already said, you would be justified, in view of my statements, in condemning him and imposing the utmost penalty of the law. Yet the tale is not complete, and I think I shall not be at a loss what to say next, so lavishly has he furnished me with matter for indictment.

> Greek: 102. ἡγοῦμαι μὲν τοίνυν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, καὶ εἰ μηδὲν ἔτʼ ἄλλʼ εἶχον κατηγορεῖν Μειδίου, μηδὲ δεινότερʼ ἦν ἃ μέλλω λέγειν ὧν εἴρηκα, δικαίως ἂν ὑμᾶς ἐκ τῶν εἰρημένων καὶ καταψηφίσασθαι καὶ τιμᾶν αὐτῷ τῶν ἐσχάτων. οὐ μὴν ἐνταῦθʼ ἕστηκε τὸ πρᾶγμα, οὐδʼ ἀπορήσειν μοι δοκῶ τῶν μετὰ ταῦτα· τοσαύτην ἀφθονίαν οὗτος πεποίηκε κατηγοριῶν.

[¶12] 103. How he trumped up a charge of desertion against me and bribed another to bring the action—a scoundrel ready for any dirty job, the filthy Euctemon—that I shall pass over; for that blackmailer never moved for a trial, nor had Meidias hired him for any other purpose than to have this notice posted up before the Tribal Heroes for all men to read, “Euctemon of the Lusian deme has indicted Demosthenes of the Paeanian deme for desertion of his post.” Indeed I think he would have been delighted, if it had been in order, to add that Meidias had hired him to indict me. But I pass that over, because Euctemon, having disfranchised himself by failing to follow up the charge, has given me all the satisfaction that I require.

> Greek: 103. ὅτι μὲν δὴ λιποταξίου γραφὴν κατεσκεύασεν κατʼ ἐμοῦ καὶ τὸν τοῦτο ποιήσοντʼ ἐμισθώσατο, τὸν μιαρὸν καὶ λίαν εὐχερῆ, τὸν κονιορτὸν Εὐκτήμονα, ἐάσω. καὶ γὰρ οὔτʼ ἀνεκρίνατο ταύτην ὁ συκοφάντης ἐκεῖνος, οὔθʼ οὗτος οὐδενὸς εἵνεκʼ αὐτὸν ἐμισθώσατο πλὴν ἵνʼ ἐκκέοιτο πρὸ τῶν ἐπωνύμων καὶ πάντες ὁρῷεν Εὐκτήμων Λουσιεὺς ἐγράψατο Δημοσθένην Παιανιέα λιποταξίου· καί μοι δοκεῖ κἂν προσγράψαι τοῦθʼ ἡδέως, εἴ πως ἐνῆν, ὅτι Μειδίου μισθωσαμένου γέγραπται. ἀλλʼ ἐῶ τοῦτο· ἐφʼ ᾗ γὰρ ἐκεῖνος ἠτίμωκεν αὑτὸν οὐκ ἐπεξελθών, οὐδεμιᾶς ἔγωγʼ ἔτι προσδέομαι δίκης, ἀλλʼ ἱκανὴν ἔχω.

[¶13] 104. But I will now relate a serious act of cruelty committed by him, men of Athens, which I at least regard as not merely a personal wrong but a public sacrilege. For when a grave criminal charge was hanging over that unlucky wretch, Aristarchus, the son of Moschus, at first, Athenians, Meidias went round the Market-place and ventured to spread impious and atrocious statements about me to the effect that I was the author of the deed; next, when this device failed, he went to the relations of the dead man, who were bringing the charge of murder against Aristarchus, and offered them money if they would accuse me of the crime. He let neither religion nor piety nor any other consideration stand in the way of this wild proposal: he shrank from nothing.

> Greek: 104. ἀλλʼ ὃ καὶ δεινόν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, καὶ σχέτλιον καὶ κοινὸν ἔμοιγʼ ἀσέβημα, οὐκ ἀδίκημα μόνον, τούτῳ πεπρᾶχθαι δοκεῖ, τοῦτʼ ἐρῶ. τῷ γὰρ ἀθλίῳ καὶ ταλαιπώρῳ κακῆς καὶ χαλεπῆς συμβάσης αἰτίας Ἀριστάρχῳ τῷ Μόσχου, τὸ μὲν πρῶτον, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, κατὰ τὴν ἀγορὰν περιιὼν ἀσεβεῖς καὶ δεινοὺς λόγους ἐτόλμα περὶ ἐμοῦ λέγειν, ὡς ἐγὼ τὸ πρᾶγμʼ εἰμὶ τοῦτο δεδρακώς· ὡς δʼ οὐδὲν ἤνυε τούτοις, προσελθὼν τοῖς ἐπʼ ἐκεῖνον ἄγουσι τὴν αἰτίαν τοῦ φόνου, τοῖς τοῦ τετελευτηκότος οἰκείοις, χρήμαθʼ ὑπισχνεῖτο δώσειν εἰ τοῦ πράγματος αἰτιῷντʼ ἐμέ, καὶ οὔτε θεοὺς οὔθʼ ὁσίαν οὔτʼ ἄλλʼ οὐδὲν ἐποιήσατʼ ἐμποδὼν τοιούτῳ λόγῳ, οὐδʼ ὤκνησεν.

[¶14] 105. Nay, he was not ashamed to look even that audience in the face and bring such a terrible calamity upon an innocent man; but having set one goal before him, to ruin me by every means in his power, he thought himself bound to leave no stone unturned, as if it were only right that when any man, having been insulted by him, claimed redress and refused to keep silence, he should be removed by banishment without a chance of escape, should even find himself convicted of desertion, should defend himself on a capital charge, and should be in imminent danger of crucifixion. Yet when Meidias is proved guilty of all this, as well as of his insults when I was chorus-master, what leniency, what compassion shall he deserve at your hands?

> Greek: 105. ἀλλʼ οὐδὲ πρὸς οὓς ἔλεγεν αὐτοὺς ᾐσχύνθη, εἰ τοιοῦτο κακὸν καὶ τηλικοῦτον ἀδίκως ἐπάγει τῳ, ἀλλʼ ἕνʼ ὅρον θέμενος παντὶ τρόπῳ μʼ ἀνελεῖν, οὐδὲν ἐλλείπειν ᾤετο δεῖν, ὡς δέον, εἴ τις ὑβρισθεὶς ὑπὸ τούτου δίκης ἀξιοῖ τυχεῖν καὶ μὴ σιωπᾷ, τοῦτον ἐξόριστον ἀνῃρῆσθαι καὶ μηδαμῇ παρεθῆναι, ἀλλὰ καὶ λιποταξίου γραφὴν ἑαλωκέναι καὶ ἐφʼ αἵματι φεύγειν καὶ μόνον οὐ προσηλῶσθαι. καίτοι ταῦθʼ ὅταν ἐξελεγχθῇ ποιῶν πρὸς οἷς ὕβριζέν με χορηγοῦντα, τίνος συγγνώμης ἢ τίνος ἐλέου δικαίως τεύξεται παρʼ ὑμῶν;

[¶15] 106. My own opinion, men of Athens, is that these acts constitute him my murderer; that while at the Dionysia his outrages were confined to my equipment, my person, and my expenditure, his subsequent course of action shows that they were aimed at everything else that is mine, my citizenship, my family, my privileges, my hopes. Had a single one of his machinations succeeded, I should have been robbed of all that I had, even of the right to be buried in the homeland. What does this mean, gentlemen of the jury? It means that if treatment such as I have suffered is to be the fate of any man who tries to right himself when outraged by Meidias in defiance of all the laws, then it will be best for us, as is the way among barbarians, to grovel at the oppressor’s feet and make no attempt at self-defence.

> Greek: 106. ἐγὼ μὲν γὰρ αὐτόν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, νομίζω αὐτόχειρά μου γεγενῆσθαι τούτοις τοῖς ἔργοις, καὶ τότε μὲν τοῖς Διονυσίοις τὴν παρασκευὴν καὶ τὸ σῶμα καὶ τἀναλώμαθʼ ὑβρίζειν, νῦν δὲ τούτοις οἷς ἐποίει καὶ διεπράττετʼ ἐκεῖνά τε καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ πάντα, τὴν πόλιν, τὸ γένος, τὴν ἐπιτιμίαν, τὰς ἐλπίδας· εἰ γὰρ ἓν ὧν ἐπεβούλευσε κατώρθωσεν, ἁπάντων ἂν ἀπεστερήμην ἐγὼ καὶ μηδὲ ταφῆναι προσυπῆρχεν οἴκοι μοι. διὰ τί, ἄνδρες δικασταί; εἰ γάρ, ἐάν τις παρὰ πάντας τοὺς νόμους ὑβρισθεὶς ὑπὸ Μειδίου βοηθεῖν αὑτῷ πειρᾶται, ταῦτα καὶ τοιαῦθʼ ἕτερʼ αὐτῷ παθεῖν ὑπάρξει, προσκυνεῖν τοὺς ὑβρίζοντας ὥσπερ ἐν τοῖς βαρβάροις, οὐκ ἀμύνεσθαι κράτιστον ἔσται.

[¶16] 107. However, to prove that my statements are true and that these things have actually been perpetrated by this shameless ruffian, please call the witnesses. The Witnesses “We, Dionysius of Aphidna and Antiphilus of Paeania, when our kinsman Nicodemus had met with a violent death at the hands of Aristarchus, the son of Moschus, prosecuted Aristarchus for murder. Learning this, Meidias, who is now being brought to trial by Demosthenes, for whom we appear, offered us small sums of money to let Aristarchus go unharmed, and to substitute the name of Demosthenes in the indictment for murder.” Now let me have the law concerning bribery.

> Greek: 107. ἀλλὰ μὴν ὡς ἀληθῆ λέγω καὶ προσεξείργασται ταῦτα τῷ βδελυρῷ τούτῳ καὶ ἀναιδεῖ, κάλει μοι καὶ τούτων τοὺς μάρτυρας. ΜΑΡΤΥΡΕΣ Διονύσιος Ἀφιδναῖος, Ἀντίφιλος Παιανιεὺς διαφθαρέντος Νικοδήμου τοῦ οἰκείου ἡμῶν βιαίῳ θανάτῳ ὑπὸ Ἀριστάρχου τοῦ Μόσχου ἐπεξῇμεν τοῦ φόνου τὸν Ἀρίσταρχον. αἰσθόμενος δὲ ταῦτα Μειδίας ὁ νῦν κρινόμενος ὑπὸ Δημοσθένους, ᾧ μαρτυροῦμεν, ἔπειθεν ἡμᾶς διδοὺς κέρματα τὸν μὲν Ἀρίσταρχον ἀθῷον ἀφεῖναι, Δημοσθένει δὲ τὴν γραφὴν τοῦ φόνου παραγράψασθαι. λαβὲ δή μοι τὸν περὶ τῶν δώρων νόμον.

[¶17] 108. While the clerk is finding the statute, men of Athens, I wish to address a few words to you. I appeal to all of you jurymen, in the name of Zeus and all the gods, that whatever you hear in court, you may listen to it with this in your minds: What would one of you do, if he were the victim of this treatment, and what anger would he feel on his own account against the author of it? Seriously distressed as I was at the insults that I endured in the discharge of my public service, I am far more seriously distressed and indignant at what ensued.

> Greek: 108. ἐν ὅσῳ δὲ τὸν νόμον, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, λαμβάνει, βούλομαι μικρὰ πρὸς ὑμᾶς εἰπεῖν, δεηθεὶς ὑμῶν ἁπάντων πρὸς Διὸς καὶ θεῶν, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί· περὶ πάντων ὧν ἂν ἀκούητε, τοῦθʼ ὑποθέντες ἀκούετε τῇ γνώμῃ, τί ἄν, εἴ τις ἔπασχε ταῦθʼ ὑμῶν, ἐποίει, καὶ τίνʼ ἂν εἶχεν ὀργὴν ὑπὲρ αὑτοῦ πρὸς τὸν ποιοῦντα. ἐγὼ γὰρ ἐνηνοχὼς χαλεπῶς ἐφʼ οἷς περὶ τὴν λῃτουργίαν ὑβρίσθην, ἔτι πολλῷ χαλεπώτερον, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, τούτοις τοῖς μετὰ ταῦτʼ ἐνήνοχα καὶ μᾶλλον ἠγανάκτηκα.

[¶18] 109. For in truth, what bounds can be set to wickedness, and how can shamelessness, brutality and insolence go farther, if a man who has committed grave-yes, grave and repeated wrongs against another, instead of making amends and repenting of the evil, should afterwards add more serious outrages and should employ his riches, not to further his own interests without prejudice to others, but for the opposite purpose of driving his victim into exile unjustly and covering him with ignominy, while he gloats over his own superabundance of wealth?

> Greek: 109. τί γὰρ ὡς ἀληθῶς πέρας ἂν φήσειέ τις εἶναι κακίας καὶ τίνʼ ὑπερβολὴν ἀναιδείας καὶ ὠμότητος καὶ ὕβρεως, ἄνθρωπος εἰ ποιήσας δεινὰ νὴ Δία καὶ πόλλʼ ἀδίκως τινά, ἀντὶ τοῦ ταῦτʼ ἀναλαμβάνειν καὶ μεταγιγνώσκειν, πολλῷ δεινότερʼ ὕστερον ἄλλα προσεξεργάζοιτο, καὶ χρῷτο τῷ πλουτεῖν μὴ ἐπὶ ταῦτʼ ἐν οἷς μηδένα βλάπτων αὐτὸς ἄμεινόν τι τῶν ἰδίων θήσεται, ἀλλʼ ἐπὶ τἀναντία, ἐν οἷς ἀδίκως ἐκβάλλων τινὰ καὶ προπηλακίσας αὑτὸν εὐδαιμονιεῖ τῆς περιουσίας;

[¶19] 110. All that, men of Athens, is just what has been done by Meidias. He brought against me a false charge of murder, in which, as the facts proved, I was in no way concerned; he indicted me for desertion, having himself on three occasions deserted his post; and as for the troubles in Euboea—why, I nearly forgot to mention them!-troubles for which his bosom-friend Plutarchus was responsible, he contrived to have the blame laid at my door, before it became plain to everyone that Plutarchus was at the bottom of the whole business.

> Greek: 110. ταῦτα τοίνυν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, πάντα τούτῳ πέπρακται κατʼ ἐμοῦ. καὶ γὰρ αἰτίαν ἐπήγαγέ μοι φόνου ψευδῆ καὶ οὐδὲν ἐμοὶ προσήκουσαν, ὡς τὸ πρᾶγμʼ αὔτʼ ἐδήλωσεν, καὶ γραφὴν λιποταξίου μʼ ἐγράψατο τρεῖς αὐτὸς τάξεις λελοιπώς, καὶ τῶν ἐν Εὐβοίᾳ πραγμάτων (τουτὶ γὰρ αὖ μικροῦ παρῆλθέ μʼ εἰπεῖν), ἃ Πλούταρχος ὁ τούτου ξένος καὶ φίλος διεπράξατο, ὡς ἐγὼ αἴτιός εἰμι, κατεσκεύαζε πρὸ τοῦ τὸ πρᾶγμα γενέσθαι πᾶσιν φανερὸν διὰ Πλουτάρχου γεγονός.

[¶20] 111. Lastly, when I was made senator by lot, he denounced me at the scrutiny, and the business proved a very real danger for me; for instead of getting compensation for the injuries I had suffered, I was in danger of being punished for acts with which I had no concern. Having such grievances and being persecuted in the way that I have just described to you, but at the same time being neither quite friendless nor exactly a poor man, I am uncertain, men of Athens, what I ought to do.

> Greek: 111. καὶ τελευτῶν βουλεύειν μου λαχόντος δοκιμαζομένου κατηγόρει, καὶ τὸ πρᾶγμʼ εἰς ὑπέρδεινόν μοι περιέστη· ἀντὶ γὰρ τοῦ δίκην ὑπὲρ ὧν ἐπεπόνθειν λαβεῖν, δοῦναι πραγμάτων ὧν οὐδὲν ἐμοὶ προσῆκεν ἐκινδύνευον. καὶ ταῦτα πάσχων ἐγὼ καὶ τοῦτον τὸν τρόπον ὃν διεξέρχομαι νυνὶ πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἐλαυνόμενος, οὐκ ὢν οὔτε τῶν ἐρημοτάτων οὔτε τῶν ἀπόρων κομιδῇ, οὐκ ἔχω, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, τί χρὴ ποιῆσαι.

[¶21] 112. For, if I may add a word on this subject also, where the rich are concerned, Athenians, the rest of us have no share in our just and equal rights. Indeed we have not. The rich can choose their own time for facing a jury, and their crimes are stale and cold when they are dished up before you, but if any of the rest of us is in trouble, he is brought into court while all is fresh. The rich have witnesses and counsel in readiness, all primed against us; but, as you see, my witnesses are some of them unwilling even to bear testimony to the truth.

> Greek: 112. εἰ γὰρ εἰπεῖν τι καὶ περὶ τούτων ἤδη δεῖ, οὐ μέτεστι τῶν ἴσων οὐδὲ τῶν ὁμοίων, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, πρὸς τοὺς πλουσίους τοῖς λοιποῖς ἡμῖν, οὐ μέτεστιν, οὔ· ἀλλὰ καὶ χρόνοι τούτοις τοῦ τὴν δίκην ὑποσχεῖν, οὓς ἂν αὐτοὶ βούλωνται, δίδονται, καὶ τἀδικήμαθʼ ἕωλα τὰ τούτων ὡς ὑμᾶς καὶ ψύχρʼ ἀφικνεῖται, τῶν δʼ ἄλλων ἡμῶν ἕκαστος, ἄν τι συμβῇ, πρόσφατος κρίνεται. καὶ μάρτυρές εἰσιν ἕτοιμοι τούτοις καὶ συνήγοροι πάντες καθʼ ἡμῶν εὐτρεπεῖς· ἐμοὶ δʼ οὐδὲ τἀληθῆ μαρτυρεῖν ἐθέλοντας ὁρᾶτʼ ἐνίους.

[¶22] 113. One might harp on these grievances till one was weary, I suppose; but now recite in full the law which I began to quote. Read. The Law “If any Athenian accepts a bribe from another, or himself offers it to another, or corrupts anyone by promises, to the detriment of the people in general, or of any individual citizen, by any means or device whatsoever, he shall be disfranchised together with his children, and his property shall be confiscated.”

> Greek: 113. ταῦτα μὲν οὖν ἀπείποι τις ἄν, οἶμαι, θρηνῶν. τὸν δὲ νόμον μοι λέγʼ ἐφεξῆς, ὥσπερ ἠρξάμην. λέγε. ΝΟΜΟΣ ἐάν τις Ἀθηναίων λαμβάνῃ παρά τινος, ἢ αὐτὸς διδῷ ἑτέρῳ, ἢ διαφθείρῃ τινὰς ἐπαγγελλόμενος, ἐπὶ βλάβῃ τοῦ δήμου ἢ ἰδίᾳ τινὸς τῶν πολιτῶν, τρόπῳ ἢ μηχανῇ ᾑτινιοῦν, ἄτιμος ἔστω καὶ παῖδες καὶ τὰ ἐκείνου.

[¶23] 114. This man, then, is so impious, so abandoned, so ready to say or do anything, without stopping for a moment to ask whether it is true or false, whether it touches an enemy or a friend, or any such question, that after accusing me of murder and bringing that grave charge against me, he suffered me to conduct initiatory rites and sacrifices for the Council, and to inaugurate the victims on behalf of you and all the State;

> Greek: 114. οὕτω τοίνυν οὗτός ἐστʼ ἀσεβὴς καὶ μιαρὸς καὶ πᾶν ἂν ὑποστὰς εἰπεῖν καὶ πρᾶξαι, εἰ δʼ ἀληθὲς ἢ ψεῦδος ἢ πρὸς ἐχθρὸν ἢ φίλον ἢ τὰ τοιαῦτα, ἀλλʼ οὐδʼ ὁτιοῦν διορίζων, ὥστʼ ἐπαιτιασάμενός με φόνου καὶ τοιοῦτο πρᾶγμʼ ἐπαγαγών, εἴασε μέν μʼ εἰσιτητήριʼ ὑπὲρ τῆς βουλῆς ἱεροποιῆσαι καὶ θῦσαι καὶ κατάρξασθαι τῶν ἱερῶν ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν καὶ ὅλης τῆς πόλεως, εἴασε δʼ ἀρχεθεωροῦντʼ ἀγαγεῖν τῷ Διὶ τῷ Νεμείῳ τὴν κοινὴν ὑπὲρ τῆς πόλεως θεωρίαν, περιεῖδε δὲ ταῖς σεμναῖς θεαῖς ἱεροποιὸν αἱρεθέντʼ ἐξ Ἀθηναίων ἁπάντων τρίτον αὐτὸν καὶ καταρξάμενον τῶν ἱερῶν.

[¶24] 115. he suffered me as head of the Sacred Embassy to lead it in the name of the city to the Nemean shrine of Zeus; he raised no objection when I was chosen with two colleagues to inaugurate the sacrifice to the Dread Goddesses. Would he have allowed all this, if he had had one jot or tittle of proof for the charges that he was trumping up against me? I cannot believe it. So then this is conclusive proof that he was seeking in mere wanton spite to drive me from my native land.

> Greek: 115. ἆρʼ ἄν, εἴ γʼ εἶχε στιγμὴν ἢ σκιὰν τούτων ὧν κατεσκεύαζεν κατʼ ἐμοῦ, ταῦτʼ ἂν εἴασεν; ἐγὼ μὲν οὐκ οἶμαι. οὐκοῦν ἐξελέγχεται τούτοις ἐναργῶς ὕβρει ζητῶν μʼ ἐκβάλλειν ἐκ τῆς πατρίδος.

[¶25] 116. Then, when for all his desperate shifts he could bring none of these charges home to me, he turned informer against Aristarchus, aiming evidently at me. To pass over other incidents, when the Council was in session and was investigating the murder, Meidias came in and cried, “Don’t you know the facts of the case, Councillors? Are you wasting time and groping blindly for the murderer, when you have him already in your hands?”-meaning Aristarchus. “Won’t you put him to death? Won’t you go to his house and arrest him?”

> Greek: 116. ἐπειδὴ τοίνυν τοῦτο τὸ πρᾶγμʼ οὐδὲ καθʼ ἕν, πανταχῇ στρέφων, οἷός τʼ ἦν ἀγαγεῖν ἐπʼ ἐμέ, φανερῶς ἤδη διʼ ἐμὲ τὸν Ἀρίσταρχον ἐσυκοφάντει. καὶ τὰ μὲν ἄλλα σιωπῶ· τῆς δὲ βουλῆς περὶ τούτων καθημένης καὶ σκοπουμένης, παρελθὼν οὗτος ἀγνοεῖτʼ ἔφη ὦ βουλή, τὸ πρᾶγμα; καὶ τὸν αὐτόχειρʼ ἔχοντες λέγων τὸν Ἀρίσταρχον μέλλετε καὶ ζητεῖτε καὶ τετύφωσθε; οὐκ ἀποκτενεῖτε; οὐκ ἐπὶ τὴν οἰκίαν βαδιεῖσθε;

[¶26] 117. Such was the language of this shameless and abandoned reptile, though only the day before he had stepped out of Aristarchus’s house, though up till then he had been as intimate with him as anyone could be, and though Aristarchus in the day of his prosperity had often importuned me to settle my suit with Meidias out of court. Now if he said this to the Council, believing that Aristarchus had actually committed the crime which has since proved his ruin, and trusting to the tale told by his accusers, yet even so the speech was unpardonable.

> Greek: 117. οὐχὶ συλλήψεσθε; καὶ ταῦτʼ ἔλεγʼ ἡ μιαρὰ καὶ ἀναιδὴς αὕτη κεφαλή, ἐξεληλυθὼς τῇ προτεραίᾳ παρʼ Ἀριστάρχου, καὶ χρώμενος ὥσπερ ἂν ἄλλος τις τὰ πρὸ τούτου, καί, ὅτʼ ηὐτύχει, πλεῖστα παρεσχηκότος ἐκείνου πράγματά μοι περὶ τῶν πρὸς τοῦτον ἀπαλλαγῶν. εἰ μὲν οὖν εἰργάσθαι τι τούτων ἐφʼ οἷς ἀπόλωλεν ἡγούμενος τὸν Ἀρίσταρχον καὶ πεπιστευκὼς τοῖς τῶν αἰτιασαμένων λόγοις ταῦτʼ ἔλεγεν, χρῆν μὲν οὐδʼ οὕτω (μετρία γὰρ δίκη παρὰ τῶν φίλων ἐστίν, ἄν τι δοκῶσι πεποιηκέναι δεινόν, μηκέτι τῆς λοιπῆς φιλίας κοινωνεῖν, τὸ δὲ τιμωρεῖσθαι καὶ ἐπεξιέναι τοῖς πεπονθόσι καὶ τοῖς ἐχθροῖς παραλείπεται)·

[¶27] 118. Upon friends, if they seem to have done something serious, one should impose the moderate penalty of withdrawing from their friendship; vengeance and prosecution should be left to their victims or their enemies. Yet in a man like Meidias this may be condoned. But if it shall appear that he chatted familiarly under the same roof with Aristarchus, as if he were perfectly innocent, and then uttered those damning charges against him in order to involve me in a false accusation, does he not deserve to be put to death ten times—no! ten thousand times over?

> Greek: 118. ὅμως δʼ ἔστω τούτῳ γε συγγνώμη. εἰ δὲ λαλῶν μὲν καὶ ὁμωρόφιος γιγνόμενος ὡς οὐδὲν εἰργασμένῳ φανήσεται, λέγων δὲ καὶ καταιτιώμενος ταῦθʼ εἵνεκα τοῦ συκοφαντεῖν ἐμέ, πῶς οὐ δεκάκις, μᾶλλον δὲ μυριάκις δίκαιός ἐστʼ ἀπολωλέναι;

[¶28] 119. I am going to call the witnesses now present in court to prove that my version of the facts is correct; that on the day before he told that tale to the Council, he had entered Aristarchus’s house and had a conversation with him; that on the next day-and this, men of Athens, this for vileness is impossible to beat—he went into his house and sat as close to him as this, and put his hand in his, in the presence of many witnesses, after that speech in the Council in which he had called Aristarchus a murderer and said the most terrible things of him; that he invoked utter destruction on himself if he had said a word in his disparagement; that he never thought twice about his perjury, though there were people present who knew the truth, and he actually begged him to use his influence to bring about a reconciliation with me.

> Greek: 119. ἀλλὰ μὴν ὡς ἀληθῆ λέγω καὶ τῇ μὲν προτεραίᾳ ὅτε ταῦτʼ ἔλεγεν, εἰσεληλύθει καὶ διείλεκτʼ ἐκείνῳ, τῇ δʼ ὑστεραίᾳ πάλιν (τοῦτο γάρ, τοῦτʼ οὐκ ἔχον ἐστὶν ὑπερβολὴν ἀκαθαρσίας, ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι) εἰσελθὼν οἴκαδʼ ὡς ἐκεῖνον καὶ ἐφεξῆς οὑτωσὶ καθεζόμενος, τὴν δεξιὰν ἐμβαλών, παρόντων πολλῶν, μετὰ τοὺς ἐν τῇ βουλῇ τούτους λόγους, ἐν οἷς αὐτόχειρα καὶ τὰ δεινότατʼ εἰρήκει τὸν Ἀρίσταρχον, ὤμνυε μὲν κατʼ ἐξωλείας μηδὲν εἰρηκέναι κατʼ αὐτοῦ φλαῦρον, καὶ οὐδὲν ἐφρόντιζʼ ἐπιορκῶν, καὶ ταῦτα παρόντων τῶν συνειδότων, ἠξίου δὲ καὶ πρὸς ἔμʼ αὑτῷ διʼ ἐκείνου γίγνεσθαι τὰς διαλύσεις, τούτων τοὺς παρόντας ὑμῖν καλῶ μάρτυρας.

[¶29] 120. And yet, Athenians, must we not call it a crime, or rather an impiety, to say that a man is a murderer and then swear that one has never said this to reproach a man with murder and then sit in the same room with him? And if I let him off now and so stultify your vote of condemnation, I am an innocent man apparently; but if I proceed with my case, I am a deserter, I am accessory to a murder, I deserve extermination. I am quite of the contrary opinion, men of Athens. If I had let Meidias off, then I should have been a deserter from the cause of justice, and I might reasonably have charged myself with murder, for life would have been impossible for me, had I acted thus.

> Greek: 120. καίτοι πῶς οὐ δεινόν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, μᾶλλον δʼ ἀσεβές, λέγειν ὡς φονεύς, καὶ πάλιν ὡς οὐκ εἴρηκε ταῦτʼ ἀπομνύναι, καὶ φόνον μὲν ὀνειδίζειν, τούτῳ δʼ ὁμωρόφιον γίγνεσθαι; κἂν μὲν ἀφῶ τοῦτον ἐγὼ καὶ προδῶ τὴν ὑμετέραν καταχειροτονίαν, οὐδέν, ὡς ἔοικʼ, ἀδικῶ· ἂν δʼ ἐπεξίω, λέλοιπα τὴν τάξιν, φόνον κοινωνῶ, δεῖ μʼ ἀνηρπάσθαι. ἐγὼ δʼ αὐτὸ τοὐναντίον οἶμαι, εἰ τοῦτον ἀφῆκα, λελοιπέναι μέν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, τὴν τοῦ δικαίου τάξιν, φόνου δʼ ἂν εἰκότως ἐμαυτῷ λαχεῖν· οὐ γὰρ ἦν μοι δήπου βιωτὸν τοῦτο ποιήσαντι.

[¶30] 121. And now please call the witnesses to attest the truth of these statements also. The Witnesses “We, Lysimachus of Alopece, Demeas of Sunium, Chares of Thoricus, Philemon of Sphetta, Moschus of Paeania, know that at the date when the indictment was presented to the Council charging Aristarchus, the son of Moschus, with the murder of Nicodemus, Meidias, who is now being tried at the suit of Demosthenes, for whom we appear, came before the Council and stated that Aristarchus, and no one else, was the murderer of Nicodemus, and he advised the Council to go to the house of Aristarchus and arrest him. This he said to the Council, having dined on the previous day with Aristarchus in our company. We also know that Meidias, when he came from the Council after making this statement, again entered the house of Aristarchus and shook hands with him and, invoking destruction on his own head, swore that he had said nothing in his disparagement before the Council, and he asked Aristarchus to reconcile Demosthenes to him.”

> Greek: 121. ὅτι τοίνυν καὶ ταῦτʼ ἀληθῆ λέγω, κάλει μοι καὶ τούτων τοὺς μάρτυρας. ΜΑΡΤΥΡΕΣ Λυσίμαχος Ἀλωπεκῆθεν, Δημέας Σουνιεύς, Χάρης Θορίκιος, Φιλήμων Σφήττιος, Μόσχος Παιανιεύς, καθʼ οὓς καιροὺς ἡ εἰσαγγελία ἐδόθη εἰς τὴν βουλὴν ὑπὲρ Ἀριστάρχου τοῦ Μόσχου, ὅτι εἴη Νικόδημον ἀπεκτονώς, οἴδαμεν Μειδίαν τὸν κρινόμενον ὑπὸ Δημοσθένους, ᾧ μαρτυροῦμεν, ἐλθόντα πρὸς τὴν βουλὴν καὶ λέγοντα μηδένα ἕτερον εἶναι τὸν Νικοδήμου φονέα, ἀλλʼ Ἀρίσταρχον, καὶ τοῦτον αὐτοῦ γεγονέναι αὐτόχειρα, καὶ συμβουλεύοντα τῇ βουλῇ βαδίζειν ἐπὶ τὴν οἰκίαν τὴν Ἀριστάρχου καὶ συλλαμβάνειν αὐτόν. ταῦτα δʼ ἔλεγε πρὸς τὴν βουλὴν τῇ προτεραίᾳ μετʼ Ἀριστάρχου καὶ μεθʼ ἡμῶν συνδεδειπνηκώς. οἴδαμεν δὲ καὶ Μειδίαν, ὡς ἀπῆλθεν ἀπὸ τῆς βουλῆς τούτους τοὺς λόγους εἰρηκώς, εἰσεληλυθότα πάλιν ὡς Ἀρίσταρχον καὶ τὴν δεξιὰν [ὡς] ἐμβεβληκότα καὶ ὀμνύοντα κατʼ ἐξωλείας μηδὲν κατʼ αὐτοῦ πρὸς τὴν βουλὴν εἰρηκέναι φαῦλον, καὶ ἀξιοῦντα Ἀρίσταρχον ὅπως ἂν διαλλάξῃ αὐτῷ Δημοσθένην.

[¶31] 122. Can anything go beyond that? Has there ever been, or could there ever be, baseness to compare with this of Meidias? He felt justified in informing against that unfortunate man, who had done him no wrong—I waive the fact that he was his friend—and at the same time he was begging him to bring about a reconciliation between himself and me; and not content with this, he spent money on an iniquitous attempt to procure my banishment as well as that of Aristarchus.

> Greek: 122. τίς οὖν ὑπερβολή, τίς ὁμοία τῇ τούτου γέγονʼ ἢ γένοιτʼ ἂν πονηρία; ὃς ἄνδρʼ ἀτυχοῦντα, οὐδὲν αὐτὸν ἠδικηκότα (ἐῶ γὰρ εἰ φίλον), ἅμα συκοφαντεῖν ᾤετο δεῖν καὶ πρὸς ἔμʼ αὑτὸν διαλύειν ἠξίου, καὶ ταῦτʼ ἔπραττε καὶ χρήματʼ ἀνήλισκεν ἐπὶ τῷ μετʼ ἐκείνου κἀμὲ προσεκβαλεῖν ἀδίκως.

[¶32] 123. Yet this habit of his, Athenians, this scheme of involving in yet greater calamities all who stand up against him in just defence, is not something that might well rouse indignation and resentment in me, but that the rest of you should overlook. Far from it. All citizens alike should be stirred to anger, when they reflect and observe that it is exactly the poorest and weakest of you that run the greatest risk of being thus wantonly wronged, while it is the rich blackguards that find it easiest to oppress others and escape punishment, and even to hire agents to put obstacles in the path of justice.

> Greek: 123. τοῦτο μέντοι τὸ τοιοῦτον ἔθος καὶ τὸ κατασκεύασμʼ, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, τὸ τοῖς ὑπὲρ αὑτῶν ἐπεξιοῦσι δικαίως ἔτι πλείω περιιστάναι κακά, οὐκ ἐμοὶ μὲν ἄξιόν ἐστʼ ἀγανακτεῖν καὶ βαρέως φέρειν, ὑμῖν δὲ τοῖς ἄλλοις παριδεῖν, πολλοῦ γε καὶ δεῖ, ἀλλὰ πᾶσιν ὁμοίως ὀργιστέον, ἐκλογιζομένοις καὶ θεωροῦσιν ὅτι τοῦ μέν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, ῥᾳδίως κακῶς παθεῖν ἐγγύταθʼ ὑμῶν εἰσιν οἱ πενέστατοι καὶ ἀσθενέστατοι, τοῦ δʼ ὑβρίσαι καὶ τοῦ ποιήσαντας μὴ δοῦναι δίκην, ἀλλὰ τοὺς ἀντιπαρέξοντας πράγματα μισθώσασθαι, οἱ βδελυροὶ καὶ χρήματʼ ἔχοντές [εἰσιν ἐγγυτάτω].

[¶33] 124. Such conduct must not be overlooked. It must not be supposed that the man who by intimidation tries to debar any citizen from obtaining reparation for his wrongs is doing less than robbing us of our liberties and of our right of free speech. Perhaps I and one or two others may have managed to repel a false and calamitous charge and so have escaped destruction; but what will the vast majority of you do, if you do not by a public example make it a dangerous game for anyone to abuse his wealth for such a purpose?

> Greek: 124. οὐ δὴ δεῖ παρορᾶν τὰ τοιαῦτα, οὐδὲ τὸν ἐξείργοντα δέει καὶ φόβῳ τὸ δίκην ὧν ἂν ἡμῶν ἀδικηθῇ τις λαμβάνειν παρʼ αὐτοῦ ἄλλο τι χρὴ νομίζειν ποιεῖν ἢ τὰς τῆς ἰσηγορίας καὶ τὰς τῆς ἐλευθερίας ἡμῶν μετουσίας ἀφαιρεῖσθαι. ἐγὼ μὲν γὰρ ἴσως διεωσάμην, καὶ ἄλλος τις ἄν, ψευδῆ λόγον καὶ συκοφαντίαν, καὶ οὐκ ἀνήρπασμαι· οἱ δὲ πολλοὶ τί ποιήσετε, ἂν μὴ δημοσίᾳ πᾶσιν φοβερὸν καταστήσητε τὸ εἰς ταῦτʼ ἀποχρῆσθαι τῷ πλουτεῖν;

[¶34] 125. When the accused man has rendered an account of his actions and has stood his trial on the charges brought against him, then he may retaliate upon unjust assailants; but even then he must not try to spirit away some witness of his ill deeds, nor to escape a trial by bringing false charges; he must not count it a grievance to submit to justice, but must avoid all outrageous conduct from the first.

> Greek: 125. δόντα λόγον καὶ ὑποσχόντα κρίσιν περὶ ὧν ἄν τις ἐγκαλῇ, τότʼ ἀμύνεσθαι τοὺς [ἀδίκως] ἐφʼ αὑτὸν ἐλθόντας χρή, καὶ τότʼ, ἂν ἀδικοῦντας ὁρᾷ τις, οὐ προαναρπάζειν, οὐδʼ ἐπάγοντʼ αἰτίας ψευδεῖς ἄκριτον ζητεῖν ἀποφεύγειν, οὐδʼ ἐπὶ τῷ διδόναι δίκην ἀσχάλλειν, ἀλλὰ μὴ ποιεῖν ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἀσελγὲς μηδέν.

[¶35] 126. Men of Athens, you have now heard how many outrages I endured, both in my own person and in the performance of my public service, and how many escapes I have had from plots and ill-treatment of every kind. Yet I have omitted much, for it was not easy perhaps to mention everything. But the case is this. By none of his acts was I alone wronged, but in the wrongs inflicted on the chorus my whole tribe, the tenth part of the citizens, shared; by his plots and attacks against me he wronged the laws, to which each of you looks for protection; lastly by all these acts he wronged the god to whose service I had been dedicated and that divine and awful power beyond our ken—the power of Holiness.

> Greek: 126. ὅσα μὲν τοίνυν εἴς τε τὴν λῃτουργίαν καὶ τὸ σῶμʼ ὑβρίσθην, καὶ πάντʼ ἐπιβουλευόμενος τρόπον καὶ πάσχων κακῶς ἐκπέφευγα, ἀκηκόατʼ, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι. καὶ παραλείπω δὲ πολλά· οὐ γὰρ ἴσως ῥᾴδιον πάντʼ εἰπεῖν. ἔχει δʼ οὕτως. οὐκ ἔστʼ ἐφʼ ὅτῳ τῶν πεπραγμένων ἐγὼ μόνος ἠδίκημαι, ἀλλʼ ἐπὶ μὲν τοῖς εἰς τὸν χορὸν γεγενημένοις ἀδικήμασιν ἡ φυλή, δέκατον μέρος ὑμῶν, συνηδίκηται, ἐπὶ δʼ οἷς ἔμʼ ὕβρισε καὶ ἐπεβούλευσεν οἱ νόμοι, διʼ οὓς εἷς ἕκαστος ὑμῶν σῶς ἐστιν· ἐφʼ ἅπασι δὲ τούτοις ὁ θεός, ᾧ χορηγὸς ἐγὼ καθειστήκειν, καὶ τὸ τῆς ὁσίας, ὁτιδήποτʼ ἐστί, τὸ σεμνὸν καὶ τὸ δαιμόνιον [συνηδίκηται].

[¶36] 127. Those who would exact from him an adequate punishment for his misdeeds must not let their indignation be checked by the reflection that I alone am concerned, but must base the penalty on the ground that all alike are victims of the same wrong—the laws, the gods, the city of Athens; and they must look upon those who support him and are marshalled in his defence as something more than mere advocates, as men who set the seal of their approval to his acts.

> Greek: 127. δεῖ δὴ τούς γε βουλομένους ὀρθῶς τὴν κατʼ ἀξίαν τῶν πεπραγμένων παρὰ τούτου δίκην λαμβάνειν, οὐχ ὡς ὑπὲρ ἐμοῦ μόνον ὄντος τοῦ λόγου τὴν ὀργὴν ἔχειν, ἀλλʼ ὡς ἐν ταὐτῷ τῶν νόμων, τοῦ θεοῦ, τῆς πόλεως, ὁμοῦ πάντων ἠδικημένων, οὕτω ποιεῖσθαι τὴν τιμωρίαν, καὶ τοὺς βοηθοῦντας καὶ τοὺς συνεξεταζομένους μετὰ τούτου μὴ συνηγόρους μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ δοκιμαστὰς τῶν τούτῳ πεπραγμένων ὑπολαμβάνετʼ εἶναι.

[¶37] 128. Now if, men of Athens, Meidias had in other respects behaved with decency and moderation, if he had never injured any other citizen, but had confined his brutality and violence to me, I might, in the first place, consider this a piece of my own bad luck, and, in the second place, I should be afraid lest, by pointing to the moderation and humanity of the rest of his life, he might so evade punishment for his outrage on me.

> Greek: 128. εἰ μὲν τοίνυν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, σώφρονα καὶ μέτριον πρὸς τἄλλα παρεσχηκὼς αὑτὸν Μειδίας καὶ μηδένα τῶν ἄλλων πολιτῶν ἠδικηκὼς εἰς ἔμʼ ἀσελγὴς μόνον οὕτω καὶ βίαιος ἐγεγόνει, πρῶτον μὲν ἔγωγʼ ἀτύχημʼ ἂν ἐμαυτοῦ τοῦθʼ ἡγούμην, ἔπειτʼ ἐφοβούμην ἂν μὴ τὸν ἄλλον ἑαυτοῦ βίον οὗτος μέτριον δεικνύων καὶ φιλάνθρωπον διακρούσηται τούτῳ τὸ δίκην ὧν ἔμʼ ὕβρικεν δοῦναι.

[¶38] 129. But as it is, the wrongs that he has done to many of you are so many and so great that I am relieved of this apprehension; my fear is now, on the contrary, that when you hear of the terrible wrongs that others have suffered at his hands, some such argument as this may occur to you. “What have you to complain of? Have you suffered more than each of his other victims?” Now all that he has done, I could not relate to you, nor would you have the patience to listen, even if I were allowed for the rest of my speech all the time assigned to both of us: all my time and all his in addition would not suffice. I will confine myself to the most important and clearest examples.

> Greek: 129. νυνὶ δὲ τοσαῦτʼ ἐστὶ τἄλλʼ ἃ πολλοὺς ὑμῶν ἠδίκησεν καὶ τοιαῦτα, ὥστε τούτου μὲν τοῦ δέους ἀπήλλαγμαι, φοβοῦμαι δὲ πάλιν τοὐναντίον μή, ἐπειδὰν πολλὰ καὶ δείνʼ ἑτέρους ἀκούηθʼ ὑπʼ αὐτοῦ πεπονθότας, τοιοῦτός τις ὑμῖν λογισμὸς ἐμπέσῃ τί οὖν; σὺ δεινότερʼ ἢ τῶν ἄλλων εἷς ἕκαστος πεπονθὼς ἀγανακτεῖς; πάντα μὲν δὴ τὰ τούτῳ πεπραγμένα οὔτʼ ἂν ἐγὼ δυναίμην πρὸς ὑμᾶς εἰπεῖν, οὔτʼ ἂν ὑμεῖς ὑπομείναιτʼ ἀκούειν, οὐδʼ, εἰ τὸ παρʼ ἀμφοτέρων ἡμῶν ὕδωρ ὑπάρξειε πρὸς τὸ λοιπόν, πᾶν τό τʼ ἐμὸν καὶ τὸ τούτου προστεθέν, οὐκ ἂν ἐξαρκέσειεν· ἃ δʼ ἐστὶ μέγιστα καὶ φανερώτατα, ταῦτʼ ἐρῶ.

[¶39] 130. Or rather, this is what I propose to do. I will read you all my memoranda, just as I wrote them out for my own use. I will take first whatever incident you would like to hear first; next your second choice, and so on, as long as you care to listen. There is no lack of variety; plenty of examples of assault, of kinsmen swindled, and of sacrilege. There is not a single passage where you will not find that he has committed many crimes worthy of death. [
Memoranda of the Crimes of Meidias] That, gentlemen of the jury, is how he has treated everyone that comes across his path.

> Greek: 130. μᾶλλον δʼ ἐκεῖνο ποιήσω· ἀναγνώσομαι μὲν ὑμῖν, ὡς ἐμαυτῷ γέγραμμαι, πάντα τὰ ὑπομνήματα, λέξω δʼ ὅ τι ἂν πρῶτον ἀκούειν βουλομένοις ὑμῖν ᾖ, τοῦτο πρῶτον, εἶθʼ ἕτερον, καὶ τἄλλα τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον, ἕως ἂν ἀκούειν βούλησθε. ἔστι δὲ ταῦτα παντοδαπά, καὶ ὕβρεις πολλαὶ καὶ περὶ τοὺς οἰκείους κακουργήματα καὶ περὶ τοὺς θεοὺς ἀσεβήματα, καὶ τόπος οὐδείς ἐστιν ἐν ᾧ τοῦτον οὐ θανάτου πεποιηκότʼ ἄξια πόλλʼ εὑρήσετε. ΥΠΟΜΝΗΜΑΤΑ ΤΩ͂Ν ΜΕΙΔΙΟΥ ΑΔΙΚΗΜΑΤΩΝ ὅσα μὲν τοίνυν, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, τὸν ἀεὶ προστυχόντʼ αὐτῷ πεποίηκεν, ταῦτʼ ἐστίν.

[¶40] 131. I have omitted other instances, for no one could compress into a single narrative the violent acts that he has spent a lifetime in committing. But it is worth while noticing to what a height of audacity he has advanced in consequence of his never having been punished for any of these acts. He seems to have thought that no act that one man can commit against an individual was brilliant or dashing enough or worth risking his life for, and unless he could affront a whole tribe or the Council or some class of citizens and harass vast multitudes of you at once, he felt that life was really not worth living.

> Greek: 131. καὶ παραλέλοιφʼ ἕτερα· οὐ γὰρ ἂν δύναιτʼ οὐδεὶς εἰσάπαξ εἰπεῖν ἃ πολὺν χρόνον οὗτος ὑβρίζων συνεχῶς ἅπαντα τὸν βίον εἴργασται. ἄξιον δʼ ἰδεῖν ἐφʼ ὅσον φρονήματος ἤδη προελήλυθε τῷ τούτων δίκην μηδενὸς δεδωκέναι. οὐ γὰρ ἡγεῖθʼ, ὡς ἐμοὶ δοκεῖ, λαμπρὸν οὐδὲ νεανικὸν οὐδʼ ἄξιον ἑαυτοῦ ὅ τι ἄν τις πρὸς ἕνʼ εἷς διαπράττηται, ἀλλʼ εἰ μὴ φυλὴν ὅλην καὶ βουλὴν καὶ ἔθνος προπηλακιεῖ καὶ πολλοὺς ἁθρόους ὑμῶν ἅμʼ ἐλᾷ, ἀβίωτον ᾤετʼ ἔσεσθαι τὸν βίον αὑτῷ.

[¶41] 132. And as to other instances, innumerable as they are, I say nothing, but as regards the cavalry which was dispatched to Argura, and of which he was one, you all know of course how he harangued you on his return from Chalcis, blaming the troop and saying that its dispatch was a scandal to the city. In connection with that, you remember too the abuse that he heaped on Cratinus, who is, I understand, going to support him in the present case. Now if he provoked such serious but groundless quarrels with so many citizens at once, what degree of wickedness and recklessness may we expect from him now?

> Greek: 132. καὶ τὰ μὲν ἄλλα σιωπῶ, μυρίʼ εἰπεῖν ἔχων, περὶ δὲ τῶν συστρατευσαμένων ἱππέων εἰς Ἄργουραν ἴστε δήπου πάντες οἷʼ ἐδημηγόρησε παρʼ ὑμῖν, ὅθʼ ἧκεν ἐκ Χαλκίδος, κατηγορῶν καὶ φάσκων ὄνειδος ἐξελθεῖν τὴν στρατιὰν ταύτην τῇ πόλει· καὶ τὴν λοιδορίαν ἣν ἐλοιδορήθη Κρατίνῳ περὶ τούτων, τῷ νῦν, ὡς ἐγὼ πυνθάνομαι, μέλλοντι βοηθεῖν αὐτῷ, μέμνησθε. τὸν δὴ τοσούτοις ἁθρόοις τῶν πολιτῶν ἔχθραν ἐπʼ οὐδενὶ τηλικαύτην ἀράμενον πόσῃ πονηρίᾳ καὶ θρασύτητι ταῦτα χρὴ νομίζειν πράττειν;