158. You see how he avoids personal excuses, and takes shelter in Amphictyonic reasons. Who gave him his equipment of deceit? Who supplied him with these pretexts? Who above all others is to blame for all the ensuing mischief? Who but Aeschines? Then do not go about saying, men of Athens, that these disasters were brought upon Greece by Philip alone. I solemnly aver that it was not one man, but a gang of traitors in every state.
158. ὁρᾶθʼ ὅτι φεύγει μὲν τὰς ἰδίας προφάσεις, εἰς δὲ τὰς Ἀμφικτυονικὰς καταφεύγει. τίς οὖν ὁ ταῦτα συμπαρασκευάσας αὐτῷ; τίς ὁ τὰς προφάσες ταύτας ἐνδούς; τίς ὁ τῶν κακῶν τῶν γεγενημένων μάλιστʼ αἴτιος; οὐχ οὗτος; μὴ τοίνυν λέγετʼ, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, περιιόντες ὡς ὑφʼ ἑνὸς τοιαῦτα πέπονθεν ἡ Ἑλλὰς ἀνθρώπου. οὐχ ὑφʼ ἑνός, ἀλλʼ ὑπὸ πολλῶν καὶ πονηρῶν τῶν παρʼ ἑκάστοις, ὦ γῆ καὶ θεοί·
159. One of them was Aeschines; and, if I am to tell the whole truth without concealment, I will not flinch from declaring him the evil genius of all the men, all the districts, and all the cities that have perished. Let the man who sowed the seed bear the guilt of the harvest. I marvel that you did not avert your faces the moment you set eyes on him; only, as it seems, there is a cloud of darkness between you and the truth.
159. ὧν εἷς οὑτοσί, ὅν, εἰ μηδὲν εὐλαβηθέντα τἀληθὲς εἰπεῖν δέοι, οὐκ ἂν ὀκνήσαιμʼ ἔγωγε κοινὸν ἀλειτήριον τῶν μετὰ ταῦτʼ ἀπολωλότων ἁπάντων εἰπεῖν, ἀνθρώπων, τόπων, πόλεων· ὁ γὰρ τὸ σπέρμα παρασχών, οὗτος τῶν φύντων αἴτιος. ὃν ὅπως ποτʼ οὐκ εὐθὺς ἰδόντες ἀπεστράφητε θαυμάζω. πλὴν πολύ τι σκότος, ὡς ἔοικεν, ἐστὶν παρʼ ὑμῖν πρὸ τῆς ἀληθείας.
160. In dealing with his unpatriotic conduct I have approached the question of the very different policy pursued by myself. For many reasons you may fairly be asked to listen to my account of that policy, but chiefly because it would be discreditable, men of Athens, that you should be impatient of the mer e recital of those arduous labors on your behalf which I had patience to endure.
160. συμβέβηκε τοίνυν μοι τῶν κατὰ τῆς πατρίδος τούτῳ πεπραγμένων ἁψαμένῳ εἰς ἃ τούτοις ἐναντιούμενος αὐτὸς πεπολίτευμαι ἀφῖχθαι· ἃ πολλῶν μὲν εἵνεκʼ ἂν εἰκότως ἀκούσαιτέ μου, μάλιστα δʼ ὅτι αἰσχρόν ἐστιν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, εἰ ἐγὼ μὲν τὰ ἔργα τῶν ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν πόνων ὑπέμεινα, ὑμεῖς δὲ μηδὲ τοὺς λόγους αὐτῶν ἀνέξεσθε.
161. When I saw that the Thebans, and perhaps even the Athenians, under the influence of the adherents of Philip and the corrupt faction in the two states, were disregarding a real danger that called for earnest vigilance, the danger of permitting Philip’s aggrandizement, and were taking no single measure of precaution, but were ready to quarrel and attack each other, I persistently watched for opportunities of averting that danger, not merely because my own judgement warned me that such solicitude was necessary, but because I knew that Aristophon, and after him Eubulus, had always wished to promote a good understanding between Athens and Thebes.
161. ὁρῶν γὰρ ἐγὼ Θηβαίους, σχεδὸν δὲ καὶ ὑμᾶς ὑπὸ τῶν τὰ Φιλίππου φρονούντων καὶ διεφθαρμένων παρʼ ἑκατέροις, ὃ μὲν ἦν ἀμφοτέροις φοβερὸν καὶ φυλακῆς πολλῆς δεόμενον, τὸ τὸν Φίλιππον ἐᾶν αὐξάνεσθαι, παρορῶντας καὶ οὐδὲ καθʼ ἓν φυλαττομένους, εἰς ἔχθραν δὲ καὶ τὸ προσκρούειν ἀλλήλοις ἑτοίμως ἔχοντας, ὅπως τοῦτο μὴ γένοιτο παρατηρῶν διετέλουν, οὐκ ἀπὸ τῆς ἐμαυτοῦ γνώμης μόνον ταῦτα συμφέρειν ὑπολαμβάνων, ἀλλʼ εἰδὼς Ἀριστοφῶντα καὶ πάλιν Εὔβουλον πάντα τὸν χρόνον βουλομένους πρᾶξαι ταύτην τὴν φιλίαν, καὶ περὶ τῶν ἄλλων πολλάκις ἀντιλέγοντας ἑαυτοῖς τοῦθʼ ὁμογνωμονοῦντας ἀεί.
162. In that regard they were always of one mind, despite their constant disagreement on other points of policy. While those statesmen were alive, Aeschines, you pestered them with your flattery, like the sly fox you are; now they are dead, you denounce them, unaware that, when you reproach me with a Theban policy, your censure does not affect me so much as the men who approved of a Theban alliance before I did. But that is a digression.
162. οὓς σὺ ζῶντας μέν, ὦ κίναδος, κολακεύων παρηκολούθεις, τεθνεώτων δʼ οὐκ αἰσθάνει κατηγορῶν· ἃ γὰρ περὶ Θηβαίων ἐπιτιμᾷς ἐμοί, ἐκείνων πολὺ μᾶλλον ἢ ἐμοῦ κατηγορεῖς, τῶν πρότερον ἢ ἐγὼ ταύτην τὴν συμμαχίαν δοκιμασάντων.
163. I say that, when Aeschines had provoked the war in Amphissa, and when his associates had helped him to aggravate our enmity towards Thebes, the result was that Philip marched against us, in pursuance of the purpose for which they had embroiled the states, and that, if we had not roused ourselves a little just in time, we could never have retrieved our position; so far had these men carried the quarrel. You will better understand the state of feeling between the two cities, when you have heard the decrees and the answers sent thereto. Please take and read these papers.
163. ἀλλʼ ἐκεῖσʼ ἐπάνειμι, ὅτι τὸν ἐν Ἀμφίσσῃ πόλεμον τούτου μὲν ποιήσαντος, συμπεραναμένων δὲ τῶν ἄλλων τῶν συνεργῶν αὐτῷ τὴν πρὸς Θηβαίους ἔχθραν, συνέβη τὸν Φίλιππον ἐλθεῖν ἐφʼ ἡμᾶς, οὗπερ εἵνεκα τὰς πόλεις οὗτοι συνέκρουον, καὶ εἰ μὴ προεξανέστημεν μικρόν, οὐδʼ ἀναλαβεῖν ἂν ἠδυνήθημεν· οὕτω μέχρι πόρρω προήγαγον οὗτοι. ἐν οἷς δʼ ἦτʼ ἤδη τὰ πρὸς ἀλλήλους, τουτωνὶ τῶν ψηφισμάτων ἀκούσαντες καὶ τῶν ἀποκρίσεων εἴσεσθε. καί μοι λέγε ταῦτα λαβών.
164. (The Decrees are read) “In the archonship of Heropythus, on the twenty-fifth day of the month Elaphebolion, the tribe Erechtheis then holding the presidency, on the advice of the Council and the Generals: whereas Philip has captured so me of the cities of our neighbors and is besieging others, and finally is preparing to advance against Attica, ignoring our agreement with him, and is meditating a breach of his oaths and of the peace, violating all mutual pledges, be it resolved by the Council and People to send ambassadors to confer with him and to summon him to preserve in particular his agreement and compact with us, and, failing that, to give the City time for decision and to conclude an armistice until the month of Thargelion. The following members of Council were chosen: Simus of Anagyrus, Euthydemos of Phylae, Bulagoras of Alopece.”
164. ΨΗΦΙΣΜΑ. Ἐπʼ ἄρχοντος Ἡροπύθου, μηνὸς ἐλαφηβολιῶνος ἕκτῃ φθίνοντος, φυλῆς πρυτανευούσης Ἐρεχθῇδος, βουλῆς καὶ στρατηγῶν γνώμη· ἐπειδὴ Φίλιππος ἃς μὲν κατείληφε πόλεις τῶν ἀστυγειτόνων, τινὰς δὲ πορθεῖ, κεφαλαίῳ δʼ ἐπὶ τὴν Ἀττικὴν παρασκευάζεται παραγίγνεσθαι, παρʼ οὐδὲν ἡγούμενος τὰς ἡμετέρας συνθήκας, καὶ τοὺς ὅρκους λύειν ἐπιβάλλεται καὶ τὴν εἰρήνην, παραβαίνων τὰς κοινὰς πίστεις, δεδόχθαι τῇ βουλῇ καὶ τῷ δήμῳ πέμπειν πρὸς αὐτὸν πρέσβεις, οἵτινες αὐτῷ διαλέξονται καὶ παρακαλέσουσιν αὐτὸν μάλιστα μὲν τὴν πρὸς ἡμᾶς ὁμόνοιαν διατηρεῖν καὶ τὰς συνθήκας, εἰ δὲ μή, πρὸς τὸ βουλεύσασθαι δοῦναι χρόνον τῇ πόλει καὶ τὰς ἀνοχὰς ποιήσασθαι μέχρι τοῦ θαργηλιῶνος μηνός. ᾑρέθησαν ἐκ βουλῆς Σῖμος Ἀναγυράσιος, Εὐθύδημος Φυλάσιος, Βουλαγόρας Ἀλωπεκῆθεν.
165. “In the archonship of Heropythus, on the thirtieth of the month Munychion, on the advice of the Commander-in-chief: whereas Philip aims at setting the Thebans at variance with us, and has prepared to march with all his forces to the parts nearest to Attica, violating his existing arrangements with us, be it resolved by the Council and People to send a herald and ambassadors to request and exhort him to conclude an armistice, in order that the People may decide according to circumstances; for even now the People have not decided to send a force if they can obtain reasonable terms. The following were chosen from the Council: Nearchus, son of Sosinomus, Polycrates, son of Epiphron; and as herald from the People, Eunomus of Anaphlystus.”
165. ΕΤΕΡΟΝ ΨΗΦΙΣΜΑ. Ἐπʼ ἄρχοντος Ἡροπύθου, μηνὸς μουνυχιῶνος ἕνῃ καὶ νέᾳ, πολεμάρχου γνώμη· ἐπειδὴ Φίλιππος εἰς ἀλλοτριότητα Θηβαίους πρὸς ἡμᾶς ἐπιβάλλεται καταστῆσαι, παρεσκεύασται δὲ καὶ παντὶ τῷ στρατεύματι πρὸς τοὺς ἔγγιστα τῆς Ἀττικῆς παραγίγνεσθαι τόπους, παραβαίνων τὰς πρὸς ἡμᾶς ὑπαρχούσας αὐτῷ συνθήκας, δεδόχθαι τῇ βουλῇ καὶ τῷ δήμῳ πέμψαι πρὸς αὐτὸν κήρυκα καὶ πρέσβεις, οἵτινες ἀξιώσουσι καὶ παρακαλέσουσιν αὐτὸν ποιήσασθαι τὰς ἀνοχάς, ὅπως ἐνδεχομένως ὁ δῆμος βουλεύσηται· καὶ γὰρ νῦν οὐ κέκρικε βοηθεῖν ἐν οὐδενὶ τῶν μετρίων. ᾑρέθησαν ἐκ βουλῆς Νέαρχος Σωσινόμου, Πολυκράτης Ἐπίφρονος, καὶ κῆρυξ Εὔνομος Ἀναφλύστιος ἐκ τοῦ δήμου.
166. Now read the replies. (The Reply to the Athenians is read) “Philip, King of Macedonia, to the Council and People of Athens, greeting.—I am not ignorant of the policy which you have adopted towards us from the first, nor of your efforts to win over the Thessalians and Thebans, and the Boeotians as well. They, however, are wiser, and will not submit their policy to your dictation, but take their stand upon self-interest. And now you change your tactics, and send ambassadors with a herald to me, reminding me of our compact and asking for an armistice, though we have done you no wrong. However, after hearing your ambassadors, I accede to your request, and am ready to conclude an armistice, if you will dismiss your evil counsellors, and punish them with suitable degradation. Farewell.”
166. λέγε δὴ καὶ τὰς ἀποκρίσεις. ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ ΑΘΗΝΑΙΟΙΣ. Βασιλεὺς Μακεδόνων Φίλιππος Ἀθηναίων τῇ βουλῇ καὶ τῷ δήμῳ χαίρειν. ἣν μὲν ἀπʼ ἀρχῆς εἴχετε πρὸς ἡμᾶς αἵρεσιν, οὐκ ἀγνοῶ, καὶ τίνα σπουδὴν ἐποιεῖσθε προσκαλέσασθαι βουλόμενοι Θετταλοὺς καὶ Θηβαίους, ἔτι δὲ καὶ Βοιωτούς· βέλτιον δʼ αὐτῶν φρονούντων καὶ μὴ βουλομένων ἐφʼ ὑμῖν ποιήσασθαι τὴν ἑαυτῶν αἵρεσιν, ἀλλὰ κατὰ τὸ συμφέρον ἱσταμένων, νῦν ἐξ ὑποστροφῆς ἀποστείλαντες ὑμεῖς πρός με πρέσβεις καὶ κήρυκα συνθηκῶν μνημονεύετε καὶ τὰς ἀνοχὰς αἰτεῖσθε, κατʼ οὐδὲν ὑφʼ ἡμῶν πεπλημμελημένοι. ἐγὼ μέντοι ἀκούσας τῶν πρεσβευτῶν συγκατατίθεμαι τοῖς παρακαλουμένοις καὶ ἕτοιμός εἰμι ποιεῖσθαι τὰς ἀνοχάς, ἄν περ τοὺς οὐκ ὀρθῶς συμβουλεύοντας ὑμῖν παραπέμψαντες τῆς προσηκούσης ἀτιμίας ἀξιώσητε. ἔρρωσθε.
167. (The Reply to the Thebans is read) “Philip, King of Macedonia, to the Council and People of Thebes, greeting.—I have received your letter, in which you renew goodwill and peace with me. I understand, however, that the Athenians are displaying the utmost eagerness in their desire to win your acceptance of their overtures. Now formerly I used to blame you for a tendency to put faith in their hopes and to adopt their policy; but now I am glad to learn that you have preferred to be at peace with me rather than to adopt the opinions of others. Especially do I commend you for forming a safer judgement on these matters and for retaining your goodwill toward us, which I expect will be of no small advantage to you, if you adhere to this purpose. Farewell.”
167. ΑΠΟΚΡΙΣΙΣ ΘΗΒΑΙΟΙΣ. Βασιλεὺς Μακεδόνων Φίλιππος Θηβαίων τῇ βουλῇ καὶ τῷ δήμῳ χαίρειν. ἐκομισάμην τὴν παρʼ ὑμῶν ἐπιστολήν, διʼ ἧς μοι τὴν ὁμόνοιαν καὶ τὴν εἰρήνην ἀνανεοῦσθε. πυνθάνομαι μέντοι διότι πᾶσαν ὑμῖν Ἀθηναῖοι προσφέρονται φιλοτιμίαν βουλόμενοι ὑμᾶς συγκαταίνους γενέσθαι τοῖς ὑπʼ αὐτῶν παρακαλουμένοις. πρότερον μὲν οὖν ὑμῶν κατεγίγνωσκον ἐπὶ τῷ μέλλειν πείθεσθαι ταῖς ἐκείνων ἐλπίσι καὶ ἐπακολουθεῖν αὐτῶν τῇ προαιρέσει. νῦν δʼ ἐπιγνοὺς ὑμᾶς τὰ πρὸς ἡμᾶς ἐζητηκότας ἔχειν εἰρήνην μᾶλλον ἢ ταῖς ἑτέρων ἐπακολουθεῖν γνώμαις, ἥσθην καὶ μᾶλλον ὑμᾶς ἐπαινῶ κατὰ πολλά, μάλιστα δʼ ἐπὶ τῷ βουλεύσασθαι περὶ τούτων ἀσφαλέστερον καὶ τὰ πρὸς ἡμᾶς ἔχειν ἐν εὐνοίᾳ· ὅπερ οὐ μικρὰν ὑμῖν οἴσειν ἐλπίζω ῥοπήν, ἐάν περ ἐπὶ ταύτης μένητε τῆς προθέσεως. ἔρρωσθε.
168. Having, through the agency of these men, promoted such relations between the two cities, and being encouraged by these decrees and these replies, Philip came with his forces and occupied Elatea, imagining that, whatever might happen, you and the Thebans would never come to agreement. You all remember the commotion that ensued at Athens; nevertheless let me recount some small but essential details.
168. οὕτω διαθεὶς ὁ Φίλιππος τὰς πόλεις πρὸς ἀλλήλας διὰ τούτων καὶ τούτοις ἐπαρθεὶς τοῖς ψηφίσμασιν καὶ ταῖς ἀποκρίσεσιν, ἧκεν ἔχων τὴν δύναμιν καὶ τὴν Ἐλάτειαν κατέλαβεν, ὡς οὐδʼ ἂν εἴ τι γένοιτʼ ἔτι συμπνευσάντων ἂν ἡμῶν καὶ τῶν Θηβαίων. ἀλλὰ μὴν τὸν τότε συμβάντʼ ἐν τῇ πόλει θόρυβον ἴστε μὲν ἅπαντες· μικρὰ δʼ ἀκούσαθʼ ὅμως αὐτὰ τἀναγκαιότατα.
169. Evening had already fallen when a messenger arrived bringing to the presiding councillors the news that Elatea had been taken. They were sitting at supper, but they instantly rose from table, cleared the booths in the marketplace of their occupants, and unfolded the hurdles, while others summoned the commanders and ordered the attendance of the trumpeter. The commotion spread through the whole city. At daybreak on the morrow the presidents summoned the Council to the Council House, and the citizens flocked to the place of assembly. Before the Council could introduce the business and prepare the agenda, the whole body of citizens had taken their places on the hill.
169. ἑσπέρα μὲν γὰρ ἦν, ἧκε δʼ ἀγγέλλων τις ὡς τοὺς πρυτάνεις ὡς Ἐλάτεια κατείληπται. καὶ μετὰ ταῦθʼ οἱ μὲν εὐθὺς ἐξαναστάντες μεταξὺ δειπνοῦντες τούς τʼ ἐκ τῶν σκηνῶν τῶν κατὰ τὴν ἀγορὰν ἐξεῖργον καὶ τὰ γέρρʼ ἐνεπίμπρασαν, οἱ δὲ τοὺς στρατηγοὺς μετεπέμποντο καὶ τὸν σαλπικτὴν ἐκάλουν· καὶ θορύβου πλήρης ἦν ἡ πόλις. τῇ δʼ ὑστεραίᾳ, ἅμα τῇ ἡμέρᾳ, οἱ μὲν πρυτάνεις τὴν βουλὴν ἐκάλουν εἰς τὸ βουλευτήριον, ὑμεῖς δʼ εἰς τὴν ἐκκλησίαν ἐπορεύεσθε, καὶ πρὶν ἐκείνην χρηματίσαι καὶ προβουλεῦσαι πᾶς ὁ δῆμος ἄνω καθῆτο.
170. The Council arrived, the presiding Councillors formally reported the intelligence they had received, and the courier was introduced. As soon as he had told his tale, the marshal put the question, Who wishes to speak? No one came forward. The marshal repeated his question again and again, but still no one rose to speak, although all the commanders were there, and all the orators, and although the country with her civic voice was calling for the man who should speak for her salvation; for we may justly regard the voice, which the crier raises as the laws direct, as the civic voice of our country.
170. καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα ὡς ἦλθεν ἡ βουλὴ καὶ ἀπήγγειλαν οἱ πρυτάνεις τὰ προσηγγελμένʼ ἑαυτοῖς καὶ τὸν ἥκοντα παρήγαγον κἀκεῖνος εἶπεν, ἠρώτα μὲν ὁ κῆρυξ τίς ἀγορεύειν βούλεται παρῄει δʼ οὐδείς. πολλάκις δὲ τοῦ κήρυκος ἐρωτῶντος οὐδὲν μᾶλλον ἀνίστατʼ οὐδείς, ἁπάντων μὲν τῶν στρατηγῶν παρόντων, ἁπάντων δὲ τῶν ῥητόρων, καλούσης δὲ [τῆς κοινῆς] τῆς πατρίδος [φωνῆς] τὸν ἐροῦνθʼ ὑπὲρ σωτηρίας· ἣν γὰρ ὁ κῆρυξ κατὰ τοὺς νόμους φωνὴν ἀφίησι, ταύτην κοινὴν τῆς πατρίδος δίκαιον ἡγεῖσθαι.
171. Now had it been the duty of every man who desired the salvation of Athens to come forward, all of you, aye, every Athenian citizen, would have risen in your places and made your way to the tribune, for that salvation, I am well assured, was the desire of every heart. If that duty had fallen upon the wealthy, the Three Hundred would have risen; if upon those who were alike wealthy and patriotic, the men who thereafter gave those generous donations which signalized at once their wealth and their patriotism.
171. καίτοι εἰ μὲν τοὺς σωθῆναι τὴν πόλιν βουλομένους παρελθεῖν ἔδει, πάντες ἂν ὑμεῖς καὶ οἱ ἄλλοι Ἀθηναῖοι ἀναστάντες ἐπὶ τὸ βῆμʼ ἐβαδίζετε· πάντες γὰρ οἶδʼ ὅτι σωθῆναι αὐτὴν ἐβούλεσθε· εἰ δὲ τοὺς πλουσιωτάτους, οἱ τριακόσιοι· εἰ δὲ τοὺς ἀμφότερα ταῦτα, καὶ εὔνους τῇ πόλει καὶ πλουσίους, οἱ μετὰ ταῦτα τὰς μεγάλας ἐπιδόσεις ἐπιδόντες· καὶ γὰρ εὐνοίᾳ καὶ πλούτῳ τοῦτʼ ἐποίησαν.
172. But, it seems, the call of the crisis on that momentous day was not only for the wealthy patriot but for the man who from first to last had closely watched the sequence of events, and had rightly fathomed the purposes and the desires of Philip; for anyone who had not grasped those purposes, or had not studied them long beforehand, however patriotic and however wealthy he might be, was not the man to appreciate the needs of the hour, or to find any counsel to offer to the people.
172. ἀλλʼ, ὡς ἔοικεν, ἐκεῖνος ὁ καιρὸς καὶ ἡ ἡμέρα ʼκείνη οὐ μόνον εὔνουν καὶ πλούσιον ἄνδρʼ ἐκάλει, ἀλλὰ καὶ παρηκολουθηκότα τοῖς πράγμασιν ἐξ ἀρχῆς, καὶ συλλελογισμένον ὀρθῶς τίνος εἵνεκα ταῦτʼ ἔπραττεν ὁ Φίλιππος καὶ τί βουλόμενος· ὁ γὰρ μὴ ταῦτʼ εἰδὼς μηδʼ ἐξητακὼς πόρρωθεν, οὔτʼ εἰ εὔνους ἦν οὔτʼ εἰ πλούσιος, οὐδὲν μᾶλλον ἔμελλʼ ὅ τι χρὴ ποιεῖν εἴσεσθαι οὐδʼ ὑμῖν ἕξειν συμβουλεύειν.
173. On that day, then, the call was manifestly for me. I came forward and addressed you; and I will now ask your careful attention to the speech I then made, for two reasons: first, that you may understand that I, alone among your orators and politicians, did not desert the post of patriotism in the hour of peril, but approved myself as one who in the midst of panic could, both in speech and in suggestion, do what duty bade on your behalf; and secondly, because at the cost of a few minutes of study you may gain experience which will stand you in good stead for your policy in times to come.
173. ἐφάνην τοίνυν οὗτος ἐν ἐκείνῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐγὼ καὶ παρελθὼν εἶπον εἰς ὑμᾶς, ἅ μου δυοῖν εἵνεκʼ ἀκούσατε προσσχόντες τὸν νοῦν, ἑνὸς μέν, ἵνʼ εἰδῆθʼ ὅτι μόνος τῶν λεγόντων καὶ πολιτευομένων ἐγὼ τὴν τῆς εὐνοίας τάξιν ἐν τοῖς δεινοῖς οὐκ ἔλιπον, ἀλλὰ καὶ λέγων καὶ γράφων ἐξηταζόμην τὰ δέονθʼ ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν ἐν αὐτοῖς τοῖς φοβεροῖς, ἑτέρου δέ, ὅτι μικρὸν ἀναλώσαντες χρόνον πολλῷ πρὸς τὰ λοιπὰ τῆς πάσης πολιτείας ἔσεσθʼ ἐμπειρότεροι.
174. What I said was this. “In my judgement the present position of affairs is misunderstood by those who are so much alarmed by the apprehension that all Thebes is at the disposal of Philip. If that were true, I am quite certain that we should have heard of him not at Elatea but on our own frontiers. But I know with certainty that he has come to complete his preparations at Thebes. Let me tell you how he is situated.”
174. εἶπον τοίνυν ὅτι τοὺς μὲν ὡς ὑπαρχόντων Θηβαίων Φιλίππῳ λίαν θορυβουμένους ἀγνοεῖν τὰ παρόντα πράγμαθʼ ἡγοῦμαι· εὖ γὰρ οἶδʼ ὅτι, εἰ τοῦθʼ οὕτως ἐτύγχανεν ἔχον, οὐκ ἂν αὐτὸν ἠκούομεν ἐν Ἐλατείᾳ ὄντα, ἀλλʼ ἐπὶ τοῖς ἡμετέροις ὁρίοις. ὅτι μέντοι ἵνʼ ἕτοιμα ποιήσηται τἀν Θήβαις ἥκει, σαφῶς ἐπίσταμαι. ὡς δʼ ἔχε ἔφην ταῦτα, ἀκούσατέ μου.
175. “He has at his command all those Thebans whom he was able to win by fraud or corruption; but he cannot by any means prevail upon those who have resisted him from the first and who are still his opponents. His present object, and the purpose for which he has occupied Elatea, is that, by an exhibit ion of his power in the neighborhood of Thebes, and by bringing up armed forces, he may encourage and embolden his friends, and overawe his adversaries, hoping that the latter will yield to intimidation or to compulsion and will so concede what at present they refuse.”
175. ἐκεῖνος ὅσους ἢ πεῖσαι χρήμασιν Θηβαίων ἢ ἐξαπατῆσαι ἐνῆν ἅπαντας ηὐτρέπισται· τοὺς δʼ ἀπʼ ἀρχῆς ἀνθεστηκότας αὐτῷ καὶ νῦν ἐναντιουμένους οὐδαμῶς πεῖσαι δύναται. τί οὖν βούλεται, καὶ τίνος εἵνεκα τὴν Ἐλάτειαν κατείληφεν; πλησίον δύναμιν δείξας καὶ παραστήσας τὰ ὅπλα τοὺς μὲν ἑαυτοῦ φίλους ἐπᾶραι καὶ θρασεῖς ποιῆσαι, τοὺς δʼ ἐναντιουμένους καταπλῆξαι, ἵνʼ ἢ συγχωρήσωσι φοβηθέντες ἃ νῦν οὐκ ἐθέλουσιν, ἢ βιασθῶσιν.
176. “If,” I added, “at this crisis we are determined to remember all the provocative dealings of the Thebans with us in past time, and to distrust them still on the score of enmity, in the first place, we shall be acting exactly as Philip would beg us to act; and secondly, I am afraid that, if his present opponents give him a favorable reception, and unanimously become Philip’s men, both parties will join in an invasion of Attica. If, however, you will listen to my advice, and apply your minds to consideration, but not to captious criticism, of what I lay before you, I believe that you will find my proposals acceptable, and that I shall disperse the perils that overhang our city.”
176. εἰ μὲν τοίνυν προαιρησόμεθʼ ἡμεῖς ἔφην ἐν τῷ παρόντι, εἴ τι δύσκολον πέπρακται Θηβαίοις πρὸς ἡμᾶς, τούτου μεμνῆσθαι καὶ ἀπιστεῖν αὐτοῖς ὡς ἐν τῇ τῶν ἐχθρῶν οὖσιν μερίδι, πρῶτον μὲν ἃν εὔξαιτο Φίλιππος ποιήσομεν, εἶτα φοβοῦμαι μὴ προσδεξαμένων τῶν νῦν ἀνθεστηκότων αὐτῷ καὶ μιᾷ γνώμῃ πάντων φιλιππισάντων, εἰς τὴν Ἀττικὴν ἔλθωσιν ἀμφότεροι. ἂν μέντοι πεισθῆτʼ ἐμοὶ καὶ πρὸς τῷ σκοπεῖν, ἀλλὰ μὴ φιλονικεῖν περὶ ὧν ἂν λέγω γένησθε, οἶμαι καὶ τὰ δέοντα λέγειν δόξειν καὶ τὸν ἐφεστηκότα κίνδυνον τῇ πόλει διαλύσειν.
177. “Let me then tell you what to do. In the first place, get rid of your present terror; or rather direct it elsewhere, and be as frightened as you will for the Thebans. They lie nearer to peril; the danger threatens them first. Next, let all men of military age, and all the cavalry, march out to Eleusis, and show the world that you are under arms. Then your partisans at Thebes will have equal freedom to speak their minds for righteousness’ sake, knowing that, just as the men who have sold their country to Philip are supported by a force at Elatea ready to come to their aid, so also you are in readiness to help men who are willing to fight for independence, and will come to their aid, if they are attacked.”
177. τί οὖν φημὶ δεῖν; πρῶτον μὲν τὸν παρόντʼ ἐπανεῖναι φόβον, εἶτα μεταθέσθαι καὶ φοβεῖσθαι πάντας ὑπὲρ Θηβαίων· πολὺ γὰρ τῶν δεινῶν εἰσιν ἡμῶν ἐγγυτέρω, καὶ προτέροις αὐτοῖς ἐστιν ὁ κίνδυνος· ἔπειτʼ ἐξελθόντας Ἐλευσῖνάδε τοὺς ἐν ἡλικίᾳ καὶ τοὺς ἱππέας δεῖξαι πᾶσιν ὑμᾶς αὐτοὺς ἐν τοῖς ὅπλοις ὄντας, ἵνα τοῖς ἐν Θήβαις φρονοῦσι τὰ ὑμέτερα ἐξ ἴσου γένηται τὸ παρρησιάζεσθαι περὶ τῶν δικαίων, ἰδοῦσιν ὅτι, ὥσπερ τοῖς πωλοῦσι Φιλίππῳ τὴν πατρίδα πάρεσθʼ ἡ βοηθήσουσα δύναμις ἐν Ἐλατείᾳ, οὕτω τοῖς ὑπὲρ τῆς ἐλευθερίας ἀγωνίζεσθαι βουλομένοις ὑπάρχεθʼ ὑμεῖς ἕτοιμοι καὶ βοηθήσετε, ἐάν τις ἐπʼ αὐτοὺς ἴῃ.
178. “In the next place, I would have you appoint ten ambassadors, and give them authority, in consultation with the military commanders, to determine the time of the march to Thebes and the conduct of the campaign. Now for my advice on the treatment of the difficulty after the arrival of the ambassadors at Thebes. I beg your careful attention to this. Do not ask any favor of the Thebans: for that the occasion is not creditable. Pledge yourselves to come to their aid at their call, on the ground that they are in extremities, and that we have a clearer foresight of the future than they. And so, if they accept our overtures and take our advice, we shall have accomplished our desires and have acted on a principle worthy of our traditions; while, if success does not fall to our lot, they will have themselves to blame for their immediate blunder, and we shall have done nothing mean or discreditable.”
178. μετὰ ταῦτα χειροτονῆσαι κελεύω δέκα πρέσβεις, καὶ ποιῆσαι τούτους κυρίους μετὰ τῶν στρατηγῶν καὶ τοῦ πότε δεῖ βαδίζειν ἐκεῖσε καὶ τῆς ἐξόδου. ἐπειδὰν δʼ ἔλθωσιν οἱ πρέσβεις εἰς Θήβας, πῶς χρήσασθαι τῷ πράγματι παραινῶ; τούτῳ πάνυ μοι προσέχετε τὸν νοῦν. μὴ δεῖσθαι Θηβαίων μηδέν (αἰσχρὸς γὰρ ὁ καιρός), ἀλλʼ ἐπαγγέλλεσθαι βοηθήσειν, ἂν κελεύωσιν, ὡς ἐκείνων ὄντων ἐν τοῖς ἐσχάτοις, ἡμῶν δʼ ἄμεινον ἢ ʼκεῖνοι προορωμένων· ἵνʼ ἐὰν μὲν δέξωνται ταῦτα καὶ πεισθῶσιν ἡμῖν, καὶ ἃ βουλόμεθʼ ὦμεν διῳκημένοι καὶ μετὰ προσχήματος ἀξίου τῆς πόλεως ταῦτα πράξωμεν, ἂν δʼ ἄρα μὴ συμβῇ κατατυχεῖν, ἐκεῖνοι μὲν αὑτοῖς ἐγκαλῶσιν ἄν τι νῦν ἐξαμαρτάνωσιν, ἡμῖν δὲ μηδὲν αἰσχρὸν μηδὲ ταπεινὸν ᾖ πεπραγμένον.
179. In those words, or to that effect, I spoke, and left the tribune. My speech was universally applauded, and there was no opposition. I did not speak without moving, nor move without serving as ambassador, nor serve without convincing the Thebans. I went through the whole business from beginning to end, devoting myself ungrudgingly to your service in face of the perils that encompassed our city. Please produce the decree made at that time.
179. ταῦτα καὶ παραπλήσια τούτοις εἰπὼν κατέβην. συνεπαινεσάντων δὲ πάντων καὶ οὐδενὸς εἰπόντος ἐναντίον οὐδέν, οὐκ εἶπον μὲν ταῦτα, οὐκ ἔγραψα δέ, οὐδʼ ἔγραψα μέν, οὐκ ἐπρέσβευσα δέ, οὐδʼ ἐπρέσβευσα μέν, οὐκ ἔπεισα δὲ Θηβαίους, ἀλλʼ ἀπὸ τῆς ἀρχῆς ἄχρι τῆς τελευτῆς διεξῆλθον, καὶ ἔδωκʼ ἐμαυτὸν ὑμῖν ἁπλῶς εἰς τοὺς περιεστηκότας τῇ πόλει κινδύνους. καί μοι φέρε τὸ ψήφισμα τὸ τότε γενόμενον.
180. What part do you wish me to assign to you, Aeschines, and what to myself, in the drama of that great day? Am I to be cast for the part of Battalus, as you dub me when you scold me so scornfully, and you for no vulgar role but to play some hero of legendary tragedy, Cresphontes, or Creon, or, shall we say, Oenomaus, whom you once murdered by your bad acting at Collytus? Anyhow, on that occasion Battalus of Paeania deserved better of his country than Oenomaus of Cothocidae. You were utterly useless; I did everything that became a good citizen. Please read the decree.
180. καίτοι τίνα βούλει σέ, Αἰσχίνη, καὶ τίνʼ ἐμαυτὸν ἐκείνην τὴν ἡμέραν εἶναι θῶ; βούλει ἐμαυτὸν μέν, ὃν ἂν σὺ λοιδορούμενος καὶ διασύρων καλέσαις, Βάτταλον, σὲ δὲ μηδʼ ἥρω τὸν τυχόντα, ἀλλὰ τούτων τινὰ τῶν ἀπὸ τῆς σκηνῆς, Κρεσφόντην ἢ Κρέοντα ἢ ὃν ἐν Κολλυτῷ ποτʼ Οἰνόμαον κακῶς ἐπέτριψας; τότε τοίνυν κατʼ ἐκεῖνον τὸν καιρὸν ὁ Παιανιεὺς ἐγὼ Βάτταλος Οἰνομάου τοῦ Κοθωκίδου σοῦ πλείονος ἄξιος ὢν ἐφάνην τῇ πατρίδι. σὺ μέν γʼ οὐδὲν οὐδαμοῦ χρήσιμος ἦσθα· ἐγὼ δὲ πάνθʼ ὅσα προσῆκε τὸν ἀγαθὸν πολίτην ἔπραττον. λέγε τὸ ψήφισμά μοι. ΨΗΦΙΣΜΑ ΔΗΜΟΣΘΕΝΟΥΣ.
181. (The Decree of Demosthenes is read “In the archonship of Nausicles, the tribe Aeantis then holding the presidency, on the sixteenth day of Scirophorion, Demosthenes, son of Demosthenes, of Paeania, proposed that, whereas Philip of Macedon is proved in the past to have violated the terms of peace agreed to between him and the People of Athens, disregarding his oaths and the principles of equity as recognized among all the Greeks: and whereas he appropriates cities not belonging to him, and has captured in war some that actually belonged to the Athenians without provocation from the Athenian people, and is today making great advances in violence and cruelty,” “for of some Greek cities he overthrows the constitution, putting a garrison in them, others he razes to the ground, selling the inhabitants into slavery, others he colonizes with barbarians instead of Greeks, handing over to them the temples and the sepulchres, acting as might be expected from his nationality and his character and making insolent use of his present fortune, forgetful of how he rose to greatness unexpectedly from a small and ordinary beginning;”
181. ἐπὶ ἄρχοντος Ναυσικλέους, φυλῆς πρυτανευούσης Αἰαντίδος, σκιροφοριῶνος ἕκτῃ ἐπὶ δέκα, Δημοσθένης Δημοσθένους Παιανιεὺς εἶπεν· ἐπειδὴ Φίλιππος ὁ Μακεδὼν ἔν τε τῷ παρεληλυθότι χρόνῳ παραβαίνων φαίνεται τὰς γεγενημένας αὐτῷ συνθήκας πρὸς τὸν Ἀθηναίων δῆμον περὶ τῆς εἰρήνης, ὑπεριδὼν τοὺς ὅρκους καὶ τὰ παρὰ πᾶσι τοῖς Ἕλλησι νομιζόμενα εἶναι δίκαια, καὶ πόλεις παραιρεῖται οὐδὲν αὐτῷ προσηκούσας, τινὰς δὲ καὶ Ἀθηναίων οὔσας δοριαλώτους πεποίηκεν οὐδὲν προαδικηθεὶς ὑπὸ τοῦ δήμου τοῦ Ἀθηναίων, ἔν τε τῷ παρόντι ἐπὶ πολὺ προάγει τῇ τε βίᾳ καὶ τῇ ὠμότητι· καὶ γὰρ Ἑλληνίδας πόλεις ἃς μὲν ἐμφρούρους ποιεῖ καὶ τὰς πολιτείας καταλύει, τινὰς δὲ καὶ ἐξανδραποδιζόμενος κατασκάπτει, εἰς ἐνίας δὲ καὶ ἀντὶ Ἑλλήνων βαρβάρους κατοικίζει ἐπὶ τὰ ἱερὰ καὶ τοὺς τάφους ἐπάγων, οὐδὲν ἀλλότριον ποιῶν οὔτε τῆς ἑαυτοῦ πατρίδος οὔτε τοῦ τρόπου, καὶ τῇ νῦν αὐτῷ παρούσῃ τύχῃ κατακόρως χρώμενος, ἐπιλελησμένος ἑαυτοῦ ὅτι ἐκ μικροῦ καὶ τοῦ τυχόντος γέγονεν ἀνελπίστως μέγας·
183. “and whereas, so long as the People of Athens saw him seizing barbarian states, belonging to themselves alone, they conceived that their own wrongs were of less account, but now, seeing Greek states outraged or wiped out, they consider it a scandal and unworthy of the reputation of their ancestors to suffer the Greeks to he enslaved;”
183. καὶ ἕως μὲν πόλεις ἑώρα παραιρούμενον αὐτὸν βαρβάρους καὶ ἰδίας, ὑπελάμβανεν ἔλαττον εἶναι ὁ δῆμος ὁ Ἀθηναίων τὸ εἰς αὑτὸν πλημμελεῖσθαι· νῦν δὲ ὁρῶν Ἑλληνίδας πόλεις τὰς μὲν ὑβριζομένας, τὰς δὲ ἀναστάτους γιγνομένας, δεινὸν ἡγεῖται εἶναι καὶ ἀνάξιον τῆς τῶν προγόνων δόξης τὸ περιορᾶν τοὺς Ἕλληνας καταδουλουμένους·
184. “therefore be it resolved by the Council and People of Athens, after offering prayers and sacrifices to the gods and heroes who guard the city and country of the Athenians, and after taking into consideration their ancestors’ merits, in that they ranked the preservation of the liberties of Greece above the claims of their own state, that two hundred ships be launched, and that the Admiral sail into the Straits of Thermopylae, and that the General and commander of the cavalry march out with the infantry and cavalry to Eleusis; also that ambassadors be sent to the other Greeks, but first of all to the Thebans, because Philip is nearest to their territory,” “and exhort them not to be dismayed at Philip, but to hold fast to their own liberty and the liberty of the other Greeks, assuring them t hat the people of Athens, harboring no ill will for previous mutual differences between the states, will help them with troops, money, ammunition, and arms, knowing that, while it is an honor able ambition for Greeks to dispute with each other for the hegemony, yet to be ruled by a man of alien race and to be robbed by him of that hegemony is unworthy both of the reputation of the Greeks and of the merits of their ancestors.”
184. διὸ δεδόχθαι τῇ βουλῇ καὶ τῷ δήμῳ τῷ Ἀθηναίων, εὐξαμένους καὶ θύσαντας τοῖς θεοῖς καὶ ἥρωσι τοῖς κατέχουσι τὴν πόλιν καὶ τὴν χώραν τὴν Ἀθηναίων, καὶ ἐνθυμηθέντας τῆς τῶν προγόνων ἀρετῆς, διότι περὶ πλείονος ἐποιοῦντο τὴν τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἐλευθερίαν διατηρεῖν ἢ τὴν ἰδίαν πατρίδα, διακοσίας ναῦς καθέλκειν εἰς τὴν θάλατταν καὶ τὸν ναύαρχον ἀναπλεῖν ἐντὸς Πυλῶν, καὶ τὸν στρατηγὸν καὶ τὸν ἵππαρχον τὰς πεζὰς καὶ τὰς ἱππικὰς δυνάμεις Ἐλευσῖνάδε ἐξάγειν, πέμψαι δὲ καὶ πρέσβεις πρὸς τοὺς ἄλλους Ἕλληνας, πρῶτον δὲ πάντων πρὸς Θηβαίους διὰ τὸ ἐγγυτάτω εἶναι τὸν Φίλιππον τῆς ἐκείνων χώρας, παρακαλεῖν δὲ αὐτοὺς μηδὲν καταπλαγέντας τὸν Φίλιππον ἀντέχεσθαι τῆς ἑαυτῶν καὶ τῆς τῶν ἄλλων Ἑλλήνων ἐλευθερίας, καὶ ὅτι ὁ Ἀθηναίων δῆμος, οὐδὲν μνησικακῶν εἴ τι πρότερον γέγονεν ἀλλότριον ταῖς πόλεσι πρὸς ἀλλήλας, βοηθήσει καὶ δυνάμεσι καὶ χρήμασι καὶ βέλεσι καὶ ὅπλοις, εἰδὼς ὅτι αὐτοῖς μὲν πρὸς ἀλλήλους διαμφισβητεῖν περὶ τῆς ἡγεμονίας οὖσιν Ἕλλησι καλόν, ὑπὸ δὲ ἀλλοφύλου ἀνθρώπου ἄρχεσθαι καὶ τῆς ἡγεμονίας ἀποστερεῖσθαι ἀνάξιον εἶναι καὶ τῆς τῶν Ἑλλήνων δόξης καὶ τῆς τῶν προγόνων ἀρετῆς.
186. “Furthermore, the People of Athens regard the people of Thebes as in no way alien either in race or in nationality. They remember the services rendered by their own ancestors to the ancestors of the Thebans, for, when the sons of Heracles were dispossessed by the Peloponnesians of their paternal dominion, they restored them, overcoming in battle those who were trying to oppose the descendants of Heracles; and we harbored Oedipus and his family when they were banished; and many other notable acts of kindness have we done to the Thebans.”
186. ἔτι δὲ οὐδὲ ἀλλότριον ἡγεῖται εἶναι ὁ Ἀθηναίων δῆμος τὸν Θηβαίων δῆμον οὔτε τῇ συγγενείᾳ οὔτε τῷ ὁμοφύλῳ. ἀναμιμνῄσκεται δὲ καὶ τὰς τῶν προγόνων τῶν ἑαυτοῦ εἰς τοὺς Θηβαίων προγόνους εὐεργεσίας· καὶ γὰρ τοὺς Ἡρακλέους παῖδας ἀποστερουμένους ὑπὸ Πελοποννησίων τῆς πατρῴας ἀρχῆς κατήγαγον, τοῖς ὅπλοις κρατήσαντες τοὺς ἀντιβαίνειν πειρωμένους τοῖς Ἡρακλέους ἐγγόνοις, καὶ τὸν Οἰδίπουν καὶ τοὺς μετʼ ἐκείνου ἐκπεσόντας ὑπεδεξάμεθα, καὶ ἕτερα πολλὰ ἡμῖν ὑπάρχει φιλάνθρωπα καὶ ἔνδοξα πρὸς Θηβαίους·
187. “Therefore now also the people of Athens will not desert the cause of Thebes and the other Greeks. An alliance shall be arranged with them, and rights of intermarriage established, and oaths exchanged. —Ambassadors appointed: Demosthenes, son of Demosthenes, of Paeania, Hypereides, son of Cleander, of Sphettus, Mnesitheides, son of Antiphanes, of Phrearrii, Democrates, son of Sophilus, of Phlya, Callaeschrus, son of Diotimus, of Cothocidae.”
187. διόπερ οὐδὲ νῦν ἀποστήσεται ὁ Ἀθηναίων δῆμος τῶν Θηβαίοις τε καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις Ἕλλησι συμφερόντων. συνθέσθαι δὲ πρὸς αὐτοὺς [καὶ] συμμαχίαν καὶ ἐπιγαμίαν ποιήσασθαι καὶ ὅρκους δοῦναι καὶ λαβεῖν. πρέσβεις Δημοσθένης Δημοσθένους Παιανιεύς, Ὑπερείδης Κλεάνδρου Σφήττιος, Μνησιθείδης Ἀντιφάνους Φρεάρριος, Δημοκράτης Σωφίλου Φλυεύς, Κάλλαισχρος Διοτίμου Κοθωκίδης.
188. Such was the first beginning and such the basis of our negotiations with Thebes; the first, I say, for hitherto the two cities had been dragged by these men into mutual enmity, hatred, and distrust. The decree was made, and the danger that environed the city passed away like a summer cloud. Then was the time therefore for an honest man to point, if he could, to a better way; now cavilling comes too late.
188. αὕτη τῶν περὶ Θήβας ἐγίγνετο πραγμάτων ἀρχὴ καὶ κατάστασις πρώτη, τὰ πρὸ τούτων εἰς ἔχθραν καὶ μῖσος καὶ ἀπιστίαν τῶν πόλεων ὑπηγμένων ὑπὸ τούτων. τοῦτο τὸ ψήφισμα τὸν τότε τῇ πόλει περιστάντα κίνδυνον παρελθεῖν ἐποίησεν ὥσπερ νέφος. ἦν μὲν τοίνυν τοῦ δικαίου πολίτου τότε δεῖξαι πᾶσιν, εἴ τι τούτων εἶχεν ἄμεινον, μὴ νῦν ἐπιτιμᾶν.
189. That is the salient difference between the statesman and the charlatan, who are indeed in all respects unlike one another. The statesman declares his judgement before the event, and accepts responsibility to his followers, to fortune, to the chances of the hour, to every critic of his policy. The charlatan holds his peace when he ought to speak, and then croaks over any untoward result.
189. ὁ γὰρ σύμβουλος καὶ ὁ συκοφάντης, οὐδὲ τῶν ἄλλων οὐδὲν ἐοικότες, ἐν τούτῳ πλεῖστον ἀλλήλων διαφέρουσιν· ὁ μέν γε πρὸ τῶν πραγμάτων γνώμην ἀποφαίνεται, καὶ δίδωσιν ἑαυτὸν ὑπεύθυνον τοῖς πεισθεῖσι, τῇ τύχῃ, τῷ καιρῷ, τῷ βουλομένῳ· ὁ δὲ σιγήσας ἡνίκʼ ἔδει λέγειν, ἄν τι δύσκολον συμβῇ, τοῦτο βασκαίνει.
190. That then, as I said, was the opportunity for any man who cared for Athens or for honest discussion. But I will make a large concession. If even now any man can point to a better way, nay, if any policy whatever, save mine, was even praticable, I plead guilty. If anyone has now discerned any course which might have been taken profitably then, I admit that I ought not to have missed it. But if there is none, if there never was any, if to this very day no one is able to name any, what was a statesman to do? Surely to choose the best policy among those that were visible and feasible.
190. ἦν μὲν οὖν, ὅπερ εἶπον, ἐκεῖνος ὁ καιρὸς τοῦ γε φροντίζοντος ἀνδρὸς τῆς πόλεως καὶ τῶν δικαίων λόγων· ἐγὼ δὲ τοσαύτην ὑπερβολὴν ποιοῦμαι ὥστε, ἂν νῦν ἔχῃ τις δεῖξαί τι βέλτιον, ἢ ὅλως εἴ τι ἄλλʼ ἐνῆν πλὴν ὧν ἐγὼ προειλόμην, ἀδικεῖν ὁμολογῶ. εἰ γὰρ ἔσθʼ ὅ τι τις νῦν ἑόρακεν, ὃ συνήνεγκεν ἂν τότε πραχθέν, τοῦτʼ ἐγώ φημι δεῖν ἐμὲ μὴ λαθεῖν. εἰ δὲ μήτʼ ἔστι μήτʼ ἦν μήτʼ ἂν εἰπεῖν ἔχοι μηδεὶς μηδέπω καὶ τήμερον, τί τὸν σύμβουλον ἐχρῆν ποιεῖν; οὐ τῶν φαινομένων καὶ ἐνόντων τὰ κράτισθʼ ἑλέσθαι;
191. That is what I did, Aeschines, when the marshal put the question, “Who wishes to speak?” He did not ask, “Who wishes to rake up old grievances?” or, “Who wishes to be answerable for the future?” In those days you sat speechless at every assembly; I came forward and spoke. You had nothing to say then; very well,—show us our duty now. Tell me what plan I ought to have discovered. Tell me what favorable opportunity was lost to the state by my default. Tell me of any alliance, or any negotiation, to which I ought by preference to have introduced the people.
191. τοῦτο τοίνυν ἐποίησα, τοῦ κήρυκος ἐρωτῶντος, Αἰσχίνη, τίς ἀγορεύειν βούλεται, οὐ τίς αἰτιᾶσθαι περὶ τῶν παρεληλυθότων, οὐδὲ τίς ἐγγυᾶσθαι τὰ μέλλοντʼ ἔσεσθαι; σοῦ δʼ ἀφώνου κατʼ ἐκείνους τοὺς χρόνους ἐν ταῖς ἐκκλησίαις καθημένου, ἐγὼ παριὼν ἔλεγον. ἐπειδὴ δʼ οὐ τότε, ἀλλὰ νῦν δεῖξον. εἰπὲ τίς ἢ λόγος, ὅντινʼ ἐχρῆν εὐπορεῖν, ἢ καιρὸς συμφέρων ὑπʼ ἐμοῦ παρελείφθη τῇ πόλει; τίς δὲ συμμαχία, τίς πρᾶξις, ἐφʼ ἣν μᾶλλον ἔδει μʼ ἀγαγεῖν τουτουσί;
192. Bygones are bygones, all the world over. No one proposes deliberation about the past; it is the present and the future that call the statesman to his post. And at that time, as we all thought, there were future perils and there were present perils. Look at the policy I chose in the light of those perils; do not carp at results. The issue depends on the will of a higher Power; the mind of the statesman is manifested in his policy.
192. rend="indent"ἀλλὰ μὴν τὸ μὲν παρεληλυθὸς ἀεὶ παρὰ πᾶσιν ἀφεῖται, καὶ οὐδεὶς περὶ τούτου προτίθησιν οὐδαμοῦ βουλήν· τὸ δὲ μέλλον ἢ τὸ παρὸν τὴν τοῦ συμβούλου τάξιν ἀπαιτεῖ. τότε τοίνυν τὰ μὲν ἔμελλεν, ὡς ἐδόκει, τῶν δεινῶν, τὰ δʼ ἤδη παρῆν, ἐν οἷς τὴν προαίρεσίν μου σκόπει τῆς πολιτείας, μὴ τὰ συμβάντα συκοφάντει. τὸ μὲν γὰρ πέρας ὡς ἂν ὁ δαίμων βουληθῇ πάντων γίγνεται· ἡ δὲ προαίρεσις αὐτὴ τὴν τοῦ συμβούλου διάνοιαν δηλοῖ.
193. You must not accuse me of crime, because Philip happened to win the battle; for the event was in God’s hands, not mine. Show me that I did not adopt, as far as human calculation could go, all the measures that were practicable, or that I did not carry them out with honesty and diligence, and with an industry that overtaxed my strength; or else show me that the enterprises I initiated were not honor able, worthy of Athens, and inevitable. Prove that, and then denounce me; but not till then.
193. μὴ δὴ τοῦθʼ ὡς ἀδίκημʼ ἐμὸν θῇς, εἰ κρατῆσαι συνέβη Φιλίππῳ τῇ μάχῃ· ἐν γὰρ τῷ θεῷ τὸ τούτου τέλος ἦν, οὐκ ἐμοί. ἀλλʼ ὡς οὐχ ἅπανθʼ ὅσʼ ἐνῆν κατʼ ἀνθρώπινον λογισμὸν εἱλόμην, καὶ δικαίως ταῦτα καὶ ἐπιμελῶς ἔπραξα καὶ φιλοπόνως ὑπὲρ δύναμιν, ἢ ὡς οὐ καλὰ καὶ τῆς πόλεως ἄξια πράγματʼ ἐνεστησάμην καὶ ἀναγκαῖα, ταῦτά μοι δεῖξον, καὶ τότʼ ἤδη κατηγόρει μου.
194. If the hurricane that burst upon us has been too strong, not for us alone, but for every Hellenic state,—what then? As if a shipowner, who had done everything in his power for a prosperous voyage, who had equipped his craft with every appliance he could think of to ensure her safety, should encounter a great storm, and then, because his tackle was overstrained or even shattered, should be accused of the crime of shipwreck! “But,” he might say, “I was not at the helm”—nor was I in command of the army—“and I could not control fortune, but fortune controls all.”
194. εἰ δʼ ὁ συμβὰς σκηπτὸς [ἢ χειμὼν] μὴ μόνον ἡμῶν ἀλλὰ καὶ πάντων τῶν ἄλλων Ἑλλήνων μείζων γέγονε, τί χρὴ ποιεῖν; ὥσπερ ἂν εἴ τις ναύκληρον πάντʼ ἐπὶ σωτηρίᾳ πράξαντα καὶ κατασκευάσαντα τὸ πλοῖον ἀφʼ ὧν ὑπελάμβανε σωθήσεσθαι, εἶτα χειμῶνι χρησάμενον καὶ πονησάντων αὐτῷ τῶν σκευῶν ἢ καὶ συντριβέντων ὅλως, τῆς ναυαγίας αἰτιῷτο. ἀλλʼ οὔτʼ ἐκυβέρνων τὴν ναῦν, φήσειεν ἄν (ὥσπερ οὐδʼ ἐστρατήγουν ἐγώ), οὔτε τῆς τύχης κύριος ἦν, ἀλλʼ ἐκείνη τῶν πάντων.
195. Here is another point for your consideration. If we were destined to disaster when we fought with the Thebans at our side, what were we to expect if we had lacked even that alliance, and if they had joined Philip, a union for which he exerted all his powers of appeal? And if, after a battle fought three days’ march from the frontier, such danger and such alarm beset the city, what must we have expected after suffering the same defeat within our own borders? Do you not see that, as it was, one, or two, or three days gave the city time for resistance, concentration, recovery, for much that made for deliverance; as it might have been—but I will not mention an experience that we were spared by divine favor, and by the protection of that very alliance which you denounce.
195. ἀλλʼ ἐκεῖνο λογίζου καὶ ὅρα· εἰ μετὰ Θηβαίων ἡμῖν ἀγωνιζομένοις οὕτως εἵμαρτο πρᾶξαι, τί χρῆν προσδοκᾶν εἰ μηδὲ τούτους ἔσχομεν συμμάχους ἀλλὰ Φιλίππῳ προσέθεντο, ὑπὲρ οὗ τότʼ ἐκεῖνος πάσας ἀφῆκε φωνάς; καὶ εἰ νῦν τριῶν ἡμερῶν ἀπὸ τῆς Ἀττικῆς ὁδὸν τῆς μάχης γενομένης τοσοῦτος κίνδυνος καὶ φόβος περιέστη τὴν πόλιν, τί ἄν, εἴ που τῆς χώρας ταὐτὸ τοῦτο πάθος συνέβη, προσδοκῆσαι χρῆν; ἆρʼ οἶσθʼ ὅτι νῦν μὲν στῆναι, συνελθεῖν, ἀναπνεῦσαι, πολλὰ μίʼ ἡμέρα καὶ δύο καὶ τρεῖς ἔδοσαν τῶν εἰς σωτηρίαν τῇ πόλει, τότε δʼ—οὐκ ἄξιον εἰπεῖν, ἅ γε μηδὲ πεῖραν ἔδωκε θεῶν τινὸς εὐνοίᾳ καὶ τῷ προβαλέσθαι τὴν πόλιν ταύτην τὴν συμμαχίαν, ἧς σὺ κατηγορεῖς.
196. Gentlemen of the jury, all this long story is intended for you, and for that circle of hearers outside the barrier. For this contemptible fellow, I have a short, plain, and sufficient answer. Aeschines, if the future was revealed to you and to nobody else, you should have given us the benefit of your predictions when we were deliberating; if you had no foreknowledge, you are open to the charge of ignorance just like the rest of us. Then what better right have you to denounce me than I to denounce you?
196. ἔστι δὲ ταυτὶ πάντα μοι, τὰ πολλά, πρὸς ὑμᾶς, ἄνδρες δικασταί, καὶ τοὺς περιεστηκότας ἔξωθεν καὶ ἀκροωμένους, ἐπεὶ πρός γε τοῦτον τὸν κατάπτυστον βραχὺς καὶ σαφὴς ἐξήρκει λόγος. εἰ μὲν γὰρ ἦν σοὶ πρόδηλα τὰ μέλλοντʼ, Αἰσχίνη, μόνῳ τῶν ἄλλων, ὅτʼ ἐβουλεύεθʼ ἡ πόλις περὶ τούτων, τότʼ ἔδει προλέγειν· εἰ δὲ μὴ προῄδεις, τῆς αὐτῆς ἀγνοίας ὑπεύθυνος εἶ τοῖς ἄλλοις, ὥστε τί μᾶλλον ἐμοῦ σὺ ταῦτα κατηγορεῖς ἢ ἐγὼ σοῦ;
197. In respect of the business of which I am speaking— and at present I discuss nothing else—I am a better citizen than you, in so far as I devoted myself to a course of action that was unanimously approved, neither shirking nor even counting any personal danger. You made no more acceptable suggestion, otherwise mine would not have been adopted; and in carrying out mine you were not of the slightest use. You are proved after the event to have behaved throughout like a worthless and most unpatriotic citizen; and now, by a strange coincidence, those thorough-going enemies of Athens, Aristratus at Naxos and Aristolaus at Thasos, are bringing the friends of Athens to trial, while at Athens itself Aeschines is accusing Demosthenes.
197. τοσοῦτον γὰρ ἀμείνων ἐγὼ σοῦ πολίτης γέγονʼ εἰς αὐτὰ ταῦθʼ ἃ λέγω (καὶ οὔπω περὶ τῶν ἄλλων διαλέγομαι), ὅσον ἐγὼ μὲν ἔδωκʼ ἐμαυτὸν εἰς τὰ πᾶσι δοκοῦντα συμφέρειν, οὐδένα κίνδυνον ὀκνήσας ἴδιον οὐδʼ ὑπολογισάμενος, σὺ δʼ οὔθʼ ἕτερʼ εἶπες βελτίω τούτων (οὐ γὰρ ἂν τούτοις ἐχρῶντο), οὔτʼ εἰς ταῦτα χρήσιμον οὐδὲν σαυτὸν παρέσχες, ὅπερ δʼ ἂν ὁ φαυλότατος καὶ δυσμενέστατος ἄνθρωπος τῇ πόλει, τοῦτο πεποιηκὼς ἐπὶ τοῖς συμβᾶσιν ἐξήτασαι, καὶ ἅμʼ Ἀρίστρατος ἐν Νάξῳ καὶ Ἀριστόλεως ἐν Θάσῳ, οἱ καθάπαξ ἐχθροὶ τῆς πόλεως, τοὺς Ἀθηναίων κρίνουσι φίλους καὶ Ἀθήνησιν Αἰσχίνης Δημοσθένους κατηγορεῖ.
198. And yet he who built his reputation on the accumulated misfortunes of Greece deserves rather to perish himself than to prosecute his neighbor; and the man who has found his profit in the same emergencies as his country’s foes can make no claim to patriotism. You stand revealed in your life and conduct, in your public performances and also in your public abstinences. A project approved by the people is going forward. Aeschines is speechless. A regrettable incident is reported. Aeschines is in evidence. He reminds one of an old sprain or fracture: the moment you are out of health it begins to be active.
198. καίτοι ὅτῳ τὰ τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἀτυχήματʼ ἐνευδοκιμεῖν ἀπέκειτο, ἀπολωλέναι μᾶλλον οὗτός ἐστι δίκαιος ἢ κατηγορεῖν ἑτέρου· καὶ ὅτῳ συνενηνόχασιν οἱ αὐτοὶ καιροὶ καὶ τοῖς τῆς πόλεως ἐχθροῖς, οὐκ ἔνι τοῦτον εὔνουν εἶναι τῇ πατρίδι. δηλοῖς δὲ καὶ ἐξ ὧν ζῇς καὶ ποιεῖς καὶ πολιτεύει καὶ πάλιν οὐ πολιτεύει. πράττεταί τι τῶν ὑμῖν δοκούντων συμφέρειν· ἄφωνος Αἰσχίνης. ἀντέκρουσέ τι καὶ γέγονʼ οἷον οὐκ ἔδει· πάρεστιν Αἰσχίνης. ὥσπερ τὰ ῥήγματα καὶ τὰ σπάσματα, ὅταν τι κακὸν τὸ σῶμα λάβῃ, τότε κινεῖται.
199. As he lays so much stress on results, let me venture on a paradox. If it seems extravagant, I beg that you will not be surprised, but that you will still give friendly consideration to what I am saying. Suppose that the future had been revealed to all of us, that every one had known what would happen, and that you, Aeschines, had predicted and protested, and shouted and stormed—though in fact you never opened your mouth—even then the city could not have departed from that policy, if she had any regard for honor, or for our ancestors, or for the days that are to come.
199. ἐπειδὴ δὲ πολὺς τοῖς συμβεβηκόσιν ἔγκειται, βούλομαί τι καὶ παράδοξον εἰπεῖν. καί μου πρὸς Διὸς καὶ θεῶν μηδεὶς τὴν ὑπερβολὴν θαυμάσῃ, ἀλλὰ μετʼ εὐνοίας ὃ λέγω θεωρησάτω. εἰ γὰρ ἦν ἅπασι πρόδηλα τὰ μέλλοντα γενήσεσθαι καὶ προῄδεσαν πάντες καὶ σὺ προὔλεγες, Αἰσχίνη, καὶ διεμαρτύρου βοῶν καὶ κεκραγώς, ὃς οὐδʼ ἐφθέγξω, οὐδʼ οὕτως ἀποστατέον τῇ πόλει τούτων ἦν, εἴπερ ἢ δόξης ἢ προγόνων ἢ τοῦ μέλλοντος αἰῶνος εἶχε λόγον.
200. All that can be said now is, that we have failed and that is the common lot of humanity, if God so wills. But then, if Athens, after claiming the primacy of the nations, had run away from her claims, she would have been held guilty of betraying Greece to Philip. If, without striking a blow, she had abandoned the cause for which our forefathers flinched from no peril, is there a man who would not have spat in your face? In your face, Aeschines: not at Athens, not at me!
200. νῦν μέν γʼ ἀποτυχεῖν δοκεῖ τῶν πραγμάτων, ὃ πᾶσι κοινόν ἐστιν ἀνθρώποις ὅταν τῷ θεῷ ταῦτα δοκῇ· τότε δʼ ἀξιοῦσα προεστάναι τῶν ἄλλων, εἶτʼ ἀποστᾶσα τούτου Φιλίππῳ, προδεδωκέναι πάντας ἂν ἔσχεν αἰτίαν. εἰ γὰρ ταῦτα προεῖτʼ ἀκονιτεί, περὶ ὧν οὐδένα κίνδυνον ὅντινʼ οὐχ ὑπέμειναν οἱ πρόγονοι, τίς οὐχὶ κατέπτυσεν ἂν σοῦ; μὴ γὰρ τῆς πόλεώς γε, μηδʼ ἐμοῦ.
201. How could we have returned the gaze of visitors to our city, if the result had been what it is—Philip the chosen lord paramount of all Greece—and if other nations had fought gallantly to avert that calamity without our aid, although never before in the whole course of history had our city preferred inglorious security to the perils of a noble cause?
201. τίσι δʼ ὀφθαλμοῖς πρὸς Διὸς ἑωρῶμεν ἂν τοὺς εἰς τὴν πόλιν ἀνθρώπους ἀφικνουμένους, εἰ τὰ μὲν πράγματʼ εἰς ὅπερ νυνὶ περιέστη, ἡγεμὼν δὲ καὶ κύριος ᾑρέθη Φίλιππος ἁπάντων, τὸν δʼ ὑπὲρ τοῦ μὴ γενέσθαι ταῦτʼ ἀγῶνα ἕτεροι χωρὶς ἡμῶν ἦσαν πεποιημένοι, καὶ ταῦτα μηδεπώποτε τῆς πόλεως ἐν τοῖς ἔμπροσθεν χρόνοις ἀσφάλειαν ἄδοξον μᾶλλον ἢ τὸν ὑπὲρ τῶν καλῶν κίνδυνον ᾑρημένης.
202. There is no man living, whether Greek or barbarian, who does not know that the Thebans, or the Lacedaemonians, who held supremacy before them, or the king of Persia himself, would cheerfully and gratefully have given Athens liberty to keep what she had and to take what she chose, if only she would do their behest and surrender the primacy of Greece.
202. τίς γὰρ οὐκ οἶδεν Ἑλλήνων, τίς δὲ βαρβάρων, ὅτι καὶ παρὰ Θηβαίων καὶ παρὰ τῶν ἔτι τούτων πρότερον ἰσχυρῶν γενομένων Λακεδαιμονίων καὶ παρὰ τοῦ Περσῶν βασιλέως μετὰ πολλῆς χάριτος τοῦτʼ ἂν ἀσμένως ἐδόθη τῇ πόλει, ὅ τι βούλεται λαβούσῃ καὶ τὰ ἑαυτῆς ἐχούσῃ τὸ κελευόμενον ποιεῖν καὶ ἐᾶν ἕτερον τῶν Ἑλλήνων προεστάναι;
203. But to the Athenians of old, I suppose, such temporizing was forbidden by their heredity, by their pride, by their very nature. Since the world began, no man has ever prevailed upon Athens to attach herself in the security of servitude to the oppressors of mankind however formidable: in every generation she has striven without a pause in the perilous contention for primacy, and honor, and renown.
203. ἀλλʼ οὐκ ἦν ταῦθʼ, ὡς ἔοικε, τοῖς Ἀθηναίοις πάτρια οὐδʼ ἀνεκτὰ οὐδʼ ἔμφυτα, οὐδʼ ἐδυνήθη πώποτε τὴν πόλιν οὐδεὶς ἐκ παντὸς τοῦ χρόνου πεῖσαι τοῖς ἰσχύουσι μέν, μὴ δίκαια δὲ πράττουσι προσθεμένην ἀσφαλῶς δουλεύειν, ἀλλʼ ἀγωνιζομένη περὶ πρωτείων καὶ τιμῆς καὶ δόξης κινδυνεύουσα πάντα τὸν αἰῶνα διατετέλεκε.
204. Such constancy you deem so exemplary, and so congenial to your character, that you still sing the praises of those of your forefathers by whom it was most signally displayed. And you are right. Who would not exult in the valor of those famous men who, rather than yield to a conqueror’s behests, left city and country and made the war-galleys their home; who chose Themistocles, the man who gave them that counsel, as their commander, and stoned Cyrsilus to death for advising obedient submission? Aye, and his wife also was stoned by your wives.
204. καὶ ταῦθʼ οὕτω σεμνὰ καὶ προσήκοντα τοῖς ὑμετέροις ἤθεσιν ὑμεῖς ὑπολαμβάνετʼ εἶναι ὥστε καὶ τῶν προγόνων τοὺς ταῦτα πράξαντας μάλιστʼ ἐπαινεῖτε. εἰκότως· τίς γὰρ οὐκ ἂν ἀγάσαιτο τῶν ἀνδρῶν ἐκείνων τῆς ἀρετῆς, οἳ καὶ τὴν χώραν καὶ τὴν πόλιν ἐκλιπεῖν ὑπέμειναν εἰς τὰς τριήρεις ἐμβάντες ὑπὲρ τοῦ μὴ τὸ κελευόμενον ποιῆσαι, τὸν μὲν ταῦτα συμβουλεύσαντα Θεμιστοκλέα στρατηγὸν ἑλόμενοι, τὸν δʼ ὑπακούειν ἀποφηνάμενον τοῖς ἐπιταττομένοις Κυρσίλον καταλιθώσαντες, οὐ μόνον αὐτόν, ἀλλὰ καὶ αἱ γυναῖκες αἱ ὑμέτεραι τὴν γυναῖκʼ αὐτοῦ.
205. The Athenians of that day did not search for a statesman or a commander who should help them to a servile security: they did not ask to live, unless they could live as free men. Every man of them thought of himself as one born, not to his father and his mother alone, but to his country. What is the difference? The man who deems himself born only to his parents will wait for his natural and destined end; the son of his country is willing to die rather than see her enslaved, and will look upon those outrages and indignities, which a commonwealth in subjection is compelled to endure, as more dreadful than death itself.
205. οὐ γὰρ ἐζήτουν οἱ τότʼ Ἀθηναῖοι οὔτε ῥήτορʼ οὔτε στρατηγὸν διʼ ὅτου δουλεύσουσιν εὐτυχῶς, ἀλλʼ οὐδὲ ζῆν ἠξίουν, εἰ μὴ μετʼ ἐλευθερίας ἐξέσται τοῦτο ποιεῖν. ἡγεῖτο γὰρ αὐτῶν ἕκαστος οὐχὶ τῷ πατρὶ καὶ τῇ μητρὶ μόνον γεγενῆσθαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῇ πατρίδι. διαφέρει δὲ τί; ὅτι ὁ μὲν τοῖς γονεῦσι μόνον γεγενῆσθαι νομίζων τὸν τῆς εἱμαρμένης καὶ τὸν αὐτόματον θάνατον περιμένει, ὁ δὲ καὶ τῇ πατρίδι, ὑπὲρ τοῦ μὴ ταύτην ἐπιδεῖν δουλεύουσαν ἀποθνῄσκειν ἐθελήσει, καὶ φοβερωτέρας ἡγήσεται τὰς ὕβρεις καὶ τὰς ἀτιμίας, ἃς ἐν δουλευούσῃ τῇ πόλει φέρειν ἀνάγκη, τοῦ θανάτου.
206. If I had attempted to claim that you were first inspired with the spirit of your forefathers by me, every one would justly rebuke me. But I do not: I am asserting these principles as your principles; I am showing you that such was the pride of Athens long before my time,—though for myself I do claim some credit for the administration of particular measures.
206. εἰ μὲν τοίνυν τοῦτʼ ἐπεχείρουν λέγειν, ὡς ἐγὼ προήγαγον ὑμᾶς ἄξια τῶν προγόνων φρονεῖν, οὐκ ἔσθʼ ὅστις οὐκ ἂν εἰκότως ἐπιτιμήσειέ μοι. νῦν δʼ ἐγὼ μὲν ὑμετέρας τὰς τοιαύτας προαιρέσεις ἀποφαίνω, καὶ δείκνυμʼ ὅτι καὶ πρὸ ἐμοῦ τοῦτʼ εἶχεν τὸ φρόνημʼ ἡ πόλις, τῆς μέντοι διακονίας τῆς ἐφʼ ἑκάστοις τῶν πεπραγμένων καὶ ἐμαυτῷ μετεῖναί φημι·
207. Aeschines, on the other hand, arraigns the whole policy, stirs up your resentment against me as the author of your terrors and your dangers, and, in his eagerness to strip me of the distinction of a moment, would rob you of the enduring praises of posterity. For if you condemn Ctesiphon on the ground of my political delinquency, you yourselves will be adjudged as wrongdoers, not as men who owed the calamities they have suffered to the unkindness of fortune.
207. οὗτος δὲ τῶν ὅλων κατηγορῶν καὶ κελεύων ὑμᾶς ἐμοὶ πικρῶς ἔχειν ὡς φόβων καὶ κινδύνων αἰτίῳ τῇ πόλει, τῆς μὲν εἰς τὸ παρὸν τιμῆς ἔμʼ ἀποστερῆσαι γλίχεται, τὰ δʼ εἰς ἅπαντα τὸν λοιπὸν χρόνον ἐγκώμιʼ ὑμῶν ἀφαιρεῖται. εἰ γὰρ ὡς οὐ τὰ βέλτιστʼ ἐμοῦ πολιτευσαμένου τουδὶ καταψηφιεῖσθε, ἡμαρτηκέναι δόξετε, οὐ τῇ τῆς τύχης ἀγνωμοσύνῃ τὰ συμβάντα παθεῖν.
208. But no; you cannot, men of Athens, you cannot have done wrongly when you accepted the risks of war for the redemption and the liberties of mankind; I swear it by our forefathers who bore the brunt of warfare at Marathon, who stood in array of battle at Plataea, who fought in the sea-fights of Salamis and Artemisium, and by all the brave men who repose in our public sepulchres, buried there by a country that accounted them all to be alike worthy of the same honor —all, I say, Aeschines, not the successful and the victorious alone. So justice bids: for by all the duty of brave men was accomplished: their fortune was such as Heaven severally allotted to them.
208. ἀλλʼ οὐκ ἔστιν, οὐκ ἔστιν ὅπως ἡμάρτετʼ, ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, τὸν ὑπὲρ τῆς ἁπάντων ἐλευθερίας καὶ σωτηρίας κίνδυνον ἀράμενοι, μὰ τοὺς Μαραθῶνι προκινδυνεύσαντας τῶν προγόνων, καὶ τοὺς ἐν Πλαταιαῖς παραταξαμένους, καὶ τοὺς ἐν Σαλαμῖνι ναυμαχήσαντας καὶ τοὺς ἐπʼ Ἀρτεμισίῳ, καὶ πολλοὺς ἑτέρους τοὺς ἐν τοῖς δημοσίοις μνήμασιν κειμένους ἀγαθοὺς ἄνδρας, οὓς ἅπαντας ὁμοίως ἡ πόλις τῆς αὐτῆς ἀξιώσασα τιμῆς ἔθαψεν, Αἰσχίνη, οὐχὶ τοὺς κατορθώσαντας αὐτῶν οὐδὲ τοὺς κρατήσαντας μόνους. δικαίως· ὃ μὲν γὰρ ἦν ἀνδρῶν ἀγαθῶν ἔργον ἅπασι πέπρακται· τῇ τύχῃ δʼ, ἣν ὁ δαίμων ἔνειμεν ἑκάστοις, ταύτῃ κέχρηνται.