48. In those days, when they manned their triremes, they put on board crews of foreigners and slaves but sent out citizens to fight under heavy arms. Now, however, we use mercenaries as heavy-armed troops but compel citizens to row the ships, with the result that when they land in hostile territory these men, who claim the right to rule over the Hellenes, disembark with their cushions under their arms, while men who are of the character which I have just described take the field with shield and spear!
48. καὶ τότε μὲν εἰ τριήρεις πληροῖεν, τοὺς μὲν ξένους καὶ τοὺς δούλους ναύτας εἰσεβίβαζον, τοὺς δὲ πολίτας μεθʼ ὅπλων ἐξέπεμπον· νῦν δὲ τοῖς μὲν ξένοις ὁπλίταις χρώμεθα, τοὺς δὲ πολίτας ἐλαύνειν ἀναγκάζομεν, ὥσθʼ ὁπόταν ἀποβαίνωσιν εἰς τὴν τῶν πολεμίων, οἱ μὲν ἄρχειν τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἀξιοῦντες ὑπηρέσιον ἔχοντες ἐκβαίνουσιν, οἱ δὲ τοιοῦτοι τὰς φύσεις ὄντες οἵους ὀλίγῳ πρότερον διῆλθον, μεθʼ ὅπλων κινδυνεύουσιν.
49. However, if one could see that the domestic policy of Athens was well managed he might be of good cheer as to our other affairs. But is it not about this very thing that he would feel most aggrieved? For we assert that we are sprung from our very soil and that our city was founded before all others, but although we ought to be an example to all the world of good and orderly government, we manage our state in a worse manner and with more disorder than those who are just founding their cities.
49. ἀλλὰ γὰρ τὰ κατὰ τὴν πόλιν ἄν τις ἰδὼν καλῶς διοικούμενα περὶ τῶν ἄλλων θαρρήσειεν, ἀλλʼ οὐκ ἂν ἐπʼ αὐτοῖς τούτοις μάλιστʼ ἀγανακτήσειεν; οἵτινες αὐτόχθονες μὲν εἶναί φαμεν καὶ τὴν πόλιν ταύτην προτέραν οἰκισθῆναι τῶν ἄλλων, προσῆκον δʼ ἡμᾶς ἅπασιν εἶναι παράδειγμα τοῦ καλῶς καὶ τεταγμένως πολιτεύεσθαι, χεῖρον καὶ ταραχωδέστερον τὴν ἡμετέραν αὐτῶν διοικοῦμεν τῶν ἄρτι τὰς πόλεις οἰκιζόντων, καὶ σεμνυνόμεθα μὲν καὶ μέγα φρονοῦμεν ἐπὶ τῷ βέλτιον γεγονέναι τῶν ἄλλων, ῥᾴδιον δὲ μεταδίδομεν τοῖς βουλομένοις ταύτης τῆς εὐγενείας ἢ Τριβαλλοὶ καὶ Λευκανοὶ τῆς δυσγενείας·
50. We glory and take great pride in being better born than the rest but we are readier to share this noble birth-right with any who desire it than are the Triballians or the Leucanians to share their ignoble origin. We pass a multitude of laws, but we care so little about them (for if I give you a single instance you will be able to judge of the others as well) that, although we have prescribed the penalty of death for anyone who is convicted of bribery, we elect men who are most flagrantly guilty of this crime as our generals and we pick out the man who has been able to deprave the greatest number of our citizens and place him in charge of the most important affairs.
50. πλείστους δὲ τιθέμενοι νόμους οὕτως ὀλίγον αὐτῶν φροντίζομεν, ἓν γὰρ ἀκούσαντες γνώσεσθε καὶ περὶ τῶν ἄλλων, ὥστε θανάτου τῆς ζημίας ἐπικειμένης, ἤν τις ἁλῷ δεκάζων, τοὺς τοῦτο φανερώτατα ποιοῦντας στρατηγοὺς χειροτονοῦμεν, καὶ τὸν πλείστους διαφθεῖραι τῶν πολιτῶν δυνηθέντα, τοῦτον ἐπὶ τὰ μέγιστα τῶν πραγμάτων καθίσταμεν·
51. We are concerned about our polity no less than about the safety of the whole state and we know that our democracy flourishes and endures in times of peace and security while in times of war it has twice already been overthrown, but we are hostile to those who desire peace as if suspecting them of favoring oligarchy, while we are friendly to those who advocate war as if assured of their devotion to democracy.
51. σπουδάζοντες δὲ περὶ τὴν πολιτείαν οὐκ ἧττον ἢ περὶ τὴν σωτηρίαν ὅλης τῆς πόλεως, καὶ τὴν δημοκρατίαν εἰδότες ἐν μὲν ταῖς ἡσυχίαις καὶ ταῖς ἀσφαλείαις αὐξανομένην καὶ διαμένουσαν, ἐν δὲ τοῖς πολέμοις δὶς ἤδη καταλυθεῖσαν, πρὸς μὲν τοὺς τῆς εἰρήνης ἐπιθυμοῦντας ὡς πρὸς ὀλιγαρχικοὺς ὄντας δυσκόλως ἔχομεν, τοὺς δὲ τὸν πόλεμον ποιοῦντας ὡς τῆς δημοκρατίας κηδομένους εὔνους εἶναι νομίζομεν·
52. We are versed beyond all others in discourse and in the conduct of affairs, but we are so devoid of reason that we do not hold the same views about the same question on the same day; on the contrary, the things which we condemn before we enter the assembly are the very things which we vote for when we are in session, and again a little later when we depart to our homes we disapprove of the things which we resolved upon here. We pretend that we are the wisest of the Hellenes, but we employ the kind of advisers whom no one could fail to despise, and we place these very same men in control of all our public interests to whom no one would entrust a single one of his private affairs.
52. ἐμπειρότατοι δὲ λόγων καὶ πραγμάτων ὄντες οὕτως ἀλογίστως ἔχομεν, ὥστε περὶ τῶν αὐτῶν τῆς αὐτῆς ἡμέρας οὐ ταὐτὰ γιγνώσκομεν, ἀλλʼ ὧν μὲν πρὶν εἰς τὴν ἐκκλησίαν ἀναβῆναι κατηγοροῦμεν, ταῦτα συνελθόντες χειροτονοῦμεν, οὐ πολὺν δὲ χρόνον διαλιπόντες τοῖς ἐνθάδε ψηφισθεῖσιν, ἐπειδὰν ἀπίωμεν, πάλιν ἐπιτιμῶμεν· προσποιούμενοι δὲ σοφώτατοι τῶν Ἑλλήνων εἶναι τοιούτοις χρώμεθα συμβούλοις, ὧν οὐκ ἔστιν ὅστις οὐκ ἂν καταφρονήσειεν, καὶ τοὺς αὐτοὺς τούτους κυρίους ἁπάντων τῶν κοινῶν καθίσταμεν, οἷς οὐδεὶς ἂν οὐδὲν τῶν ἰδίων ἐπιτρέψειεν.
53. But, what is most reprehensible of all, we regard those whom all would acknowledge to be the most depraved of our citizens as the most trustworthy guardians of our polity; and we judge the character of our alien residents by the kind of patrons they select to represent them, but do not expect that we shall be judged by the character of those who represent us at the head of the state.
53. ὃ δὲ πάντων σχετλιώτατον· οὓς γὰρ ὁμολογήσαιμεν ἂν πονηροτάτους εἶναι τῶν πολιτῶν, τούτους πιστοτάτους φύλακας ἡγούμεθα τῆς πολιτείας εἶναι· καὶ τοὺς μὲν μετοίκους τοιούτους εἶναι νομίζομεν, οἵους περ ἂν τοὺς προστάτας νέμωσιν, αὐτοὶ δʼ οὐκ οἰόμεθα τὴν αὐτὴν λήψεσθαι δόξαν τοῖς προεστῶσιν ἡμῶν.
54. So far are we different from our ancestors that whereas they chose the same men to preside over the city and to be generals in the field, since they believed that one who could give the best counsel on this platform would best take counsel with himself when alone, we ourselves do the very opposite;
54. τοσοῦτον δὲ διαφέρομεν τῶν προγόνων, ὅσον ἐκεῖνοι μὲν τοὺς αὐτοὺς προστάτας τε τῆς πόλεως ἐποιοῦντο καὶ στρατηγοὺς ᾑροῦντο, νομίζοντες τὸν ἐπὶ τοῦ βήματος τὰ βέλτιστα συμβουλεῦσαι δυνάμενον, τὸν αὐτὸν τοῦτον ἄριστʼ ἂν βουλεύσασθαι καὶ καθʼ αὑτὸν γενόμενον, ἡμεῖς δὲ τοὐναντίον τούτων ποιοῦμεν·
55. for the men whose counsels we follow in matters of the greatest importance—these we do not see fit to elect as our generals, as if distrusting their intelligence, but men whose counsel no one would seek either on his own business or on that of the state—these we send into the field with unlimited authority, as if expecting that they will be wiser abroad than at home and will find it easier to take counsel on questions pertaining to the Hellenes than on those which are proposed for consideration here.
55. οἷς μὲν γὰρ περὶ τῶν μεγίστων συμβούλοις χρώμεθα, τούτους μὲν οὐκ ἀξιοῦμεν στρατηγοὺς χειροτονεῖν ὡς νοῦν οὐκ ἔχοντας, οἷς δʼ οὐδεὶς ἂν οὔτε περὶ τῶν ἰδίων οὔτε περὶ τῶν κοινῶν συμβουλεύσαιτο, τούτους δʼ αὐτοκράτορας ἐκπέμπομεν ὡς ἐκεῖ σοφωτέρους ἐσομένους καὶ ῥᾷον βουλευσομένους περὶ τῶν Ἑλληνικῶν πραγμάτων ἢ περὶ τῶν ἐνθάδε προτιθεμένων.
56. I say these things, not with reference to all, but with reference to those only who are open to the charges which I have made. However, the remainder of the day would not suffice me if I should attempt to review all the errors which have crept into our conduct of affairs.
56. λέγω δὲ ταῦτʼ οὐ κατὰ πάντων, ἀλλὰ κατὰ τῶν ἐνόχων τοῖς λεγομένοις ὄντων. ἐπιλίποι δʼ ἄν με τὸ λοιπὸν μέρος τῆς ἡμέρας, εἰ πάσας τὰς πλημμελείας τὰς ἐν τοῖς πράγμασιν ἐγγεγενημένας ἐξετάζειν ἐπιχειροίην.
57. But someone among those who are hard hit by my strictures might take offense and demand of me, “How is it, if indeed we are so badly advised, that we are safe and hold a power which is inferior to that of no other city?” I, for my part, would reply to this question that we have in our adversaries men who are no more prudent than ourselves.
57. τάχʼ οὖν ἄν τις τῶν σφόδρα τοῖς λεγομένοις ἐνόχων ὄντων ἀγανακτήσας ἐρωτήσειε “πῶς, εἴπερ οὕτω κακῶς βουλευόμεθα, σωζόμεθα καὶ δύναμιν οὐδεμιᾶς πόλεως ἐλάττω κεκτημένοι τυγχάνομεν;” ἐγὼ δὲ πρὸς ταῦτʼ ἀποκριναίμην ἂν ὅτι τοὺς ἀντιπάλους ἔχομεν οὐδὲν βέλτιον ἡμῶν φρονοῦντας.
58. For example, if the Thebans, after the battle which they won over the Lacedaemonians, had contented themselves with liberating the Peloponnesus and making the other Hellenes independent and had thenceforth pursued peace, while we continued to make such blunders, then neither could this man have asked such a question nor could we ourselves have failed to realize how much better moderation is than meddlesomeness.
58. εἰ γὰρ μετὰ τὴν μάχην, ἣν ἐνίκησαν Θηβαῖοι Λακεδαιμονίους, ἐκεῖνοι μὲν ἐλευθερώσαντες τὴν Πελοπόννησον καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους Ἕλληνας αὐτονόμους ποιήσαντες ἡσυχίαν εἶχον, ἡμεῖς δὲ τοιαῦτʼ ἐξημαρτάνομεν, οὔτʼ ἂν οὗτος ἔσχε ταύτην ποιήσασθαι τὴν ἐρώτησιν, ἡμεῖς τʼ ἂν ἔγνωμεν ὅσῳ κρεῖττόν ἐστι τὸ σωφρονεῖν τοῦ πολυπραγμονεῖν.
59. But now matters have taken such a turn that the Thebans are saving us and we them, and they are procuring allies for us and we for them. So that if we were sensible we should supply each other with money for our general assemblies; for the oftener we meet to deliberate the more do we promote the success of our rivals.
59. νῦν δʼ ἐνταῦθα τὰ πράγματα περιέστηκεν, ὥστε Θηβαῖοι μὲν ἡμᾶς σώζουσιν, ἡμεῖς δὲ Θηβαίους, καὶ συμμάχους ἐκεῖνοι μὲν ἡμῖν ποιοῦσιν, ἡμεῖς δʼ ἐκείνοις. ὥστʼ εἰ νοῦν ἔχοιμεν, ἀλλήλοις ἂν εἰς τὰς ἐκκλησίας ἀργύριον παρέχοιμεν· ὁπότεροι γὰρ ἂν πλεονάκις συλλεγῶσιν, οὗτοι τοὺς ἐναντίους ἄμεινον πράττειν ποιοῦσιν.
60. But those among us who are able to exercise even a modicum of reason ought not to rest our hopes of safety upon the blunders of our enemies but upon our own management of affairs and upon our own judgement. For the good fortune which results to us from their stupidity might perhaps cease or change to the opposite, whereas that which comes about because of our own efforts will be more certain and more enduring.
60. χρὴ δὲ τοὺς καὶ μικρὰ λογίζεσθαι δυναμένους οὐκ ἐν τοῖς τῶν ἐχθρῶν ἁμαρτήμασι τὰς ἐλπίδας ἔχειν τῆς σωτηρίας, ἀλλʼ ἐν τοῖς αὑτῶν πράγμασι καὶ ταῖς αὑτῶν διανοίαις· τὸ μὲν γὰρ διὰ τὴν ἐκείνων ἀμαθίαν συμβαῖνον ἡμῖν ἀγαθὸν τυχὸν ἂν παύσαιτο καὶ λάβοι μεταβολήν, τὸ δὲ διʼ ἡμᾶς αὐτοὺς γιγνόμενον βεβαιοτέρως ἂν ἔχοι καὶ μᾶλλον παραμείνειεν ἡμῖν.
61. Now it is not difficult to reply to those who take us to task without reason. But if anyone among those who are more fair-minded were to confront me and object, while conceding that I speak the truth and am correct in condemning the things which are taking place, that we have a right to expect of those who seek to admonish us with friendly purpose that they should not only denounce what has been done but should also counsel us what to abstain from and what to strive for in order to cease from this way of thinking and from making such blunders, his objection would place me at a loss, not for a true answer and one that would be profitable, but for one that would be acceptable to you.
61. πρὸς μὲν οὖν τοὺς εἰκῇ τὰς ἐπιλήψεις ποιουμένους οὐ χαλεπὸν ἀντειπεῖν· εἰ δὲ δή τίς μοι παραστὰς τῶν ἐπιεικέστερον διακειμένων ἀληθῆ μὲν λέγειν με προσομολογήσειε καὶ προσηκόντως ἐπιτιμᾶν τοῖς γιγνομένοις, δίκαιον δʼ εἶναι φαίη τοὺς ἐπʼ εὐνοίᾳ νουθετοῦντας μὴ μόνον κατηγορεῖν τῶν πεπραγμένων, ἀλλὰ καὶ συμβουλεύειν τίνων ἀπεχόμενοι καὶ ποίων ὀρεγόμενοι παυσαίμεθʼ ἂν ταύτην ἔχοντες τὴν γνώμην καὶ τοιαῦτʼ ἐξαμαρτάνοντες, οὗτος ὁ λόγος ἀπορεῖν ἄν με ποιήσειεν ἀποκρίσεως, οὐκ ἀληθοῦς καὶ συμφερούσης, ἀλλʼ ἀρεσκούσης ὑμῖν.
62. But since I have set out to speak openly I must not shrink from disclosing what I think on these matters also.
62. οὐ μὴν ἀλλʼ ἐπειδή περ ἀποκεκαλυμμένως ὥρμημαι λέγειν, οὐκ ἀποκνητέον ἀποφήνασθαι καὶ περὶ τούτων.
63. Well then, the qualities which we must possess as a foundation if we are to be happy and prosperous, namely, piety and moderation and justice and virtue in all its phases, I mentioned a moment ago. But as to the means by which we may most speedily be taught to attain to such a character, what I am going to say will probably seem repellent to you when you have heard it as well as far removed from the opinions held by the rest of the world.
63. ἃ μὲν οὖν ὑπάρχειν δεῖ τοῖς μέλλουσιν εὐδαιμονήσειν, τὴν εὐσέβειαν καὶ τὴν σωφροσύνην καὶ τὴν δικαιοσύνην καὶ τὴν ἄλλην ἀρετὴν ὀλίγῳ πρότερον εἰρήκαμεν· ὡς δʼ ἂν τάχιστα πρὸς τὸ τοιοῦτοι γενέσθαι παιδευθεῖμεν, ἀληθὲς μέν ἐστι τὸ ῥηθησόμενον, ἴσως δʼ ἂν ἀκούσασιν ὑμῖν δεινὸν εἶναι δόξειε καὶ παρὰ πολὺ τῆς τῶν ἄλλων ἐξηλλαγμένον διανοίας.
64. For I, for my part, consider that we shall manage our city to better advantage and be ourselves better men and go forward in all our undertakings if we stop setting our hearts on the empire of the sea. For it is this which plunged us into our present state of disorder, which overthrew that democratic government under which our ancestors lived and were the happiest of the Hellenes, and which is the cause, one might almost say, of all the ills which we both suffer ourselves and inflict upon the rest of the Hellenes.
64. ἐγὼ γὰρ ἡγοῦμαι καὶ τὴν πόλιν ἡμᾶς ἄμεινον οἰκήσειν καὶ βελτίους αὐτοὺς ἔσεσθαι καὶ πρὸς ἁπάσας τὰς πράξεις ἐπιδώσειν, ἢν παυσώμεθα τῆς ἀρχῆς τῆς κατὰ θάλατταν ἐπιθυμοῦντες. αὕτη γάρ ἐστιν ἡ καὶ νῦν εἰς ταραχὴν ἡμᾶς καθιστᾶσα, καὶ τὴν δημοκρατίαν ἐκείνην καταλύσασα μεθʼ ἧς οἱ πρόγονοι ζῶντες εὐδαιμονέστατοι τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἦσαν, καὶ σχεδὸν ἁπάντων αἰτία τῶν κακῶν ὧν αὐτοί τʼ ἔχομεν καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις παρέχομεν.
65. I know, however, that it is difficult for one who attempts to denounce that imperial power which all the world lusts after and has waged many wars to obtain to impress his hearers as saying anything which is not intolerable. Nevertheless, since you have endured the other things which I have said, which, although true, are offensive, I beg you to be patient also with what I shall say upon this subject and not to impute to me the madness of having chosen to discourse to you on matters so contrary to the general opinion without having something true to say about them.
65. οἶδα μὲν οὖν ὅτι χαλεπόν ἐστι δυναστείας ὑπὸ πάντων ἐρωμένης καὶ περιμαχήτου γεγενημένης κατηγοροῦντα δοκεῖν ἀνεκτόν τι λέγειν· ὅμως δʼ ἐπειδή περ ὑπεμείνατε καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους λόγους, ἀληθεῖς μὲν ὄντας φιλαπεχθήμονας δέ, καὶ τοῦτον ὑμῶν ἀνασχέσθαι δέομαι, καὶ μὴ καταγνῶναί μου τοιαύτην μανίαν, ὡς ἄρʼ ἐγὼ προειλόμην ἂν διαλεχθῆναι πρὸς ὑμᾶς περὶ πραγμάτων οὕτω παραδόξων, εἰ μή τι λέγειν ἀληθὲς εἶχον περὶ αὐτῶν.
66. Nay, I believe that I shall make it evident to all that we covet an empire which is neither just nor capable of being attained nor advantageous to ourselves.
66. νῦν δʼ οἶμαι πᾶσι φανερὸν ποιήσειν ὡς οὔτε δικαίας ἀρχῆς ἐπιθυμοῦμεν οὔτε γενέσθαι δυνατῆς οὔτε συμφερούσης ἡμῖν.
67. Now that it is not just I can show you by lessons which I have learned from yourselves. For when the Lacedaemonians held this power, what eloquence did we not expend in denouncing their rule, contending that it was just for the Hellenes to enjoy independence?
67. ὅτι μὲν οὖν οὐ δικαίας, παρʼ ὑμῶν μαθὼν ὑμᾶς ἔχω διδάσκειν. ὅτε γὰρ Λακεδαιμόνιοι ταύτην εἶχον τὴν δύναμιν, ποίους λόγους οὐκ ἀνηλώσαμεν κατηγοροῦντες μὲν τῆς ἐκείνων ἀρχῆς, διεξιόντες δʼ ὡς δίκαιόν ἐστιν αὐτονόμους εἶναι τοὺς Ἕλληνας;
68. What cities of repute did we not call upon to join the alliance which was formed in this cause? How many embassies did we not dispatch to the great King to convince him that it was neither just nor expedient for one state to dominate the Hellenes? Indeed we did not cease waging war and facing perils both by land and sea until the Lacedaemonians were willing to enter into the treaty which guaranteed our independence.
68. τίνας δὲ τῶν πόλεων τῶν ἐλλογίμων οὐ παρεκαλέσαμεν ἐπὶ τὴν συμμαχίαν τὴν ὑπὲρ τούτων συστᾶσαν; πόσας δὲ πρεσβείας ὡς βασιλέα τὸν μέγαν ἀπεστείλαμεν, διδαξούσας αὐτὸν ὡς οὔτε δίκαιόν ἐστιν οὔτε συμφέρον μίαν πόλιν κυρίαν εἶναι τῶν Ἑλλήνων; οὐ πρότερον δʼ ἐπαυσάμεθα πολεμοῦντες καὶ κινδυνεύοντες καὶ κατὰ γῆν καὶ κατὰ θάλατταν, πρὶν ἠθέλησαν Λακεδαιμόνιοι ποιήσασθαι τὰς συνθήκας τὰς περὶ τῆς αὐτονομίας.
69. At that time, then, we recognized the principle that it is not just for the stronger to rule over the weaker, even as now we recognize it in the nature of the polity which has been established amongst ourselves. But that we could not, if we would, attain to this empire by conquest I think I shall quickly prove. For when, with the help of ten thousand talents, we were not able to retain it, how can we acquire it in our present state of poverty, especially since we are now addicted, not to the ways of life by which we gained it, but to those by which we lost it?
69. ὅτι μὲν οὖν οὐ δίκαιόν ἐστι τοὺς κρείττους τῶν ἡττόνων ἄρχειν, ἐν ἐκείνοις τε τοῖς χρόνοις τυγχάνομεν ἐγνωκότες, καὶ νῦν ἐπὶ τῆς πολιτείας τῆς παρʼ ἡμῖν καθεστηκυίας· ὡς δʼ οὐδʼ ἂν δυνηθείημεν τὴν ἀρχὴν ταύτην καταστήσασθαι, ταχέως οἶμαι δηλώσειν. ἣν γὰρ μετὰ μυρίων ταλάντων οὐχ οἷοί τʼ ἦμεν διαφυλάξαι, πῶς ἂν ταύτην ἐκ τῆς παρούσης ἀπορίας κτήσασθαι δυνηθεῖμεν, ἄλλως τε καὶ χρώμενοι τοῖς ἤθεσιν οὐχ οἷς ἐλάβομεν ἀλλʼ οἷς ἀπωλέσαμεν αὐτήν;
70. Furthermore, that it is not even for the advantage of the state to accept this empire, if it were offered to us, I think you will learn very quickly from what further I have to say. But first I want to say a word by way of leading up to this point, fearing that, on account of my many strictures, I may give the impression to some of you of having chosen to denounce our city.
70. ὡς τοίνυν οὐδὲ δέξασθαι διδομένην τῇ πόλει συμφέρει, δοκεῖτέ μοι τάχιστʼ ἂν ἐκεῖθεν καταμαθεῖν. μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ περὶ τούτων βούλομαι μικρὰ προειπεῖν· δέδοικα γὰρ μὴ διὰ τὸ πολλοῖς ἐπιτιμᾶν δόξω τισὶ προῃρῆσθαι τῆς πόλεως κατηγορεῖν.
71. If I were attempting to discourse in this manner before any others, I should naturally lay myself open to this charge. But now I am addressing myself to you, not with the wish that I may prejudice you in the eyes of others, but with the desire that I may cause you to make an end of such a policy and that Athens and the rest of the Hellenes may form a lasting peace.
71. ἐγὼ δʼ εἰ μὲν πρὸς ἄλλους τινὰς ἐπεχείρουν οὕτω διεξιέναι περὶ τῶν πραγμάτων, εἰκότως ἂν εἶχον τὴν αἰτίαν ταύτην· νῦν δὲ πρὸς ὑμᾶς ποιοῦμαι τοὺς λόγους, οὐ διαβάλλειν ἑτέροις ἐπιθυμῶν, ἀλλʼ αὐτοὺς βουλόμενος παῦσαι τῶν τοιούτων ἔργων, καὶ τὴν εἰρήνην, περὶ ἧς ἅπας ὁ λόγος ἐστί, βεβαίως καὶ τὴν πόλιν καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους Ἕλληνας ἀγαγεῖν.
72. But those who admonish and those who denounce cannot avoid using similar words, although their purposes are as opposite as they can be. You ought not, therefore, to have the same feeling towards all who use the same language but, while abhorring those who revile you to your harm as inimical to the state, you ought to commend those who admonish you for your good and to esteem them as the best of your fellow-citizens, and him most of all, even among them, who is able to point out most vividly the evils of your practices and the disasters which result from them.
72. ἀνάγκη δὲ τοὺς νουθετοῦντας καὶ τοὺς κατηγοροῦντας τοῖς μὲν λόγοις χρῆσθαι παραπλησίοις, τὰς δὲ διανοίας ἔχειν ἀλλήλοις ὡς οἷόν τʼ ἐναντιωτάτας. ὥστε περὶ τῶν ταὐτὰ λεγόντων οὐκ ἀεὶ προσήκει τὴν αὐτὴν ὑμᾶς γνώμην ἔχειν, ἀλλὰ τοὺς μὲν ἐπὶ βλάβῃ λοιδοροῦντας μισεῖν ὡς κακόνους ὄντας τῇ πόλει, τοὺς δʼ ἐπʼ ὠφελία νουθετοῦντας ἐπαινεῖν καὶ βελτίστους τῶν πολιτῶν νομίζειν, καὶ τούτων αὐτῶν μάλιστα τὸν ἐναργέστατα δυνάμενον δηλῶσαι τὰς πονηρὰς τῶν πράξεων καὶ τὰς συμφορὰς τὰς ἀπʼ αὐτῶν γιγνομένας·
73. For such a man can soonest bring you to abhor what you should abhor and to set your hearts on better things. These, then, are the things which I have to say in defense of my harshness both in the words which I have spoken and those which I am about to speak. I will now resume at the place where I left off.
73. οὗτος γὰρ ἂν τάχιστα ποιήσειεν ὑμᾶς, μισήσαντας ἃ δεῖ, βελτιόνων ἐπιθυμῆσαι πραγμάτων. ὑπὲρ μὲν οὖν τῆς τῶν λόγων τραχύτητος καὶ τῶν εἰρμένων καὶ τῶν ῥηθήσεσθαι μελλόντων ταῦτʼ ἔχω λέγειν πρὸς ὑμᾶς· ὅθεν δʼ ἀπέλιπον, πάλιν ποιήσομαι τὴν ἀρχήν.
74. For I was on the point of saying that you could best learn that it is not to your advantage to obtain the empire of the sea if you should consider what was the condition of Athens before she acquired this power and what after she obtained it. For if you will examine one condition in contrast with the other you will see how many evils this power has brought upon the city.
74. ἔφασκον γὰρ ἐκεῖθεν κάλλιστʼ ἂν ὑμᾶς καταμαθεῖν ὡς οὐ συμφέρει λαβεῖν τὴν κατὰ θάλατταν ἀρχήν, εἰ σκέψαισθε τίνα τρόπον ἡ πόλις διέκειτο πρὶν τὴν δύναμιν ταύτην κτήσασθαι, καὶ πῶς ἐπειδὴ κατέσχεν αὐτήν· ἢν γὰρ ταῦτα παρʼ ἄλληλα τῇ διανοία θεωρήσητε, γνώσεσθʼ ὅσων κακῶν αἰτία τῇ πόλει γέγονεν.
75. Now the polity as it was in the earlier time was as much better and stronger than that which obtained later as Aristides and Themistocles and Miltiades were better men than Hyperbolus and Cleophon and those who today harangue the people. And you will find that the people who then governed the state were not given over to slackness and poverty and empty hopes, but were able to conquer in battle all who invaded their territory; that they were awarded the meed of valor in the wars which they fought for the sake of Hellas; and that they were so trusted that most of the states of their own free will placed themselves under their leadership.
75. ἡ μὲν τοίνυν πολιτεία τοσούτω βελτίων ἦν καὶ κρείττων ἡ τότε τῆς ὕστερον καταστάσης, ὅσῳ περ Ἀριστείδης καὶ Θεμιστοκλῆς καὶ Μιλτιάδης ἄνδρες ἀμείνους ἦσαν Ὑπερβόλου καὶ Κλεοφῶντος καὶ τῶν νῦν δημηγορούντων· τὸν δὲ δῆμον εὑρήσετε τὸν τότε πολιτευόμενον οὐκ ἀργίας οὐδʼ ἀπορίας οὐδʼ ἐλπίδων κενῶν ὄντα μεστόν, ἀλλὰ νικᾶν μὲν δυνάμενον ἐν ταῖς μάχαις ἅπαντας τοὺς εἰς τὴν χώραν εἰσβάλλοντας, ἀριστείων δʼ ἀξιούμενον ἐν τοῖς ὑπὲρ τῆς Ἑλλάδος κινδύνοις, οὕτω δὲ πιστευόμενον ὥστε τὰς πλείστας αὐτῷ τῶν πόλεων ἑκούσας ἐγχειρίσαι σφᾶς αὐτάς.
77. But, notwithstanding these advantages, in place of a polity which was admired by all men this power has led us on to a state of license which no one in the world could commend; in place of our habit of conquering those who took the field against us it has instilled into our citizens such ways that they have not the courage even to go out in front of the walls to meet the enemy;
77. τούτων δʼ ὑπαρχόντων, ἀντὶ μὲν τῆς πολιτείας τῆς παρὰ πᾶσιν εὐδοκιμούσης ἐπὶ τοιαύτην ἀκολασίαν ἡ δύναμις ἡμᾶς αὕτη προήγαγεν, ἣν οὐδεὶς ἂν ἀνθρώπων ἐπαινέσειεν· ἀντὶ δὲ τοῦ νικᾶν τοὺς ἐπιστρατεύοντας οὕτω τοὺς πολίτας ἐπαίδευσεν, ὥστε μηδὲ πρὸ τῶν τειχῶν τολμᾶν ἐπεξιέναι τοῖς πολεμίοις·
78. and in place of the good will which was accorded us by our allies and of the good repute in which we were held by the rest of the Hellenes it brought us into such a degree of odium that Athens barely escaped being enslaved and would have suffered this fate had we not found the Lacedaemonians, who were at war with us from the first, more friendly than those who were formerly our allies — not that we can have any just complaint against the latter for being obdurate towards us; for they were not aggressors but on the defensive, and came to have this feeling after suffering many grievous wrongs at our hands.
78. ἀντὶ δὲ τῆς εὐνοίας τῆς παρὰ τῶν συμμάχων αὐτοῖς ὑπαρχούσης καὶ τῆς δόξης τῆς παρὰ τῶν ἄλλων Ἑλλήνων εἰς τοσοῦτον μῖσος κατέστησεν, ὥστε παρὰ μικρὸν ἐλθεῖν ἐξανδραποδισθῆναι τὴν πόλιν, εἰ μὴ Λακεδαιμονίων τῶν ἐξ ἀρχῆς πολεμούντων εὐνουστέρων ἐτύχομεν ἢ τῶν πρότερον ἡμῖν συμμάχων ὄντων.
79. For who could have brooked the insolence of our fathers? Gathering together from all Hellas men who were the worst of idlers and men who had a part in every form of depravity and manning their triremes with them, they made themselves odious to the Hellenes, driving into exile the best of the citizens in the other states and distributing their property among the most depraved of the Hellenes!
79. οἷς οὐκ ἂν δικαίως ἐγκαλοῖμεν, ὅτι χαλεπῶς πρὸς ἡμᾶς διετέθησαν· οὐ γὰρ ὑπάρχοντες ἀλλʼ ἀμυνόμενοι καὶ πολλὰ καὶ δεινὰ παθόντες τοιαύτην γνώμην ἔσχον περὶ ἡμᾶς· τίς γὰρ ἂν ὑπέμεινε τὴν ἀσέλγειαν τῶν πατέρων τῶν ἡμετέρων, οἳ συναγαγόντες ἐξ ἁπάσης τῆς Ἑλλάδος τοὺς ἀργοτάτους καὶ τοὺς ἁπασῶν τῶν πονηριῶν μετέχοντας, πληροῦντες τούτων τὰς τριήρεις, ἀπηχθάνοντο τοῖς Ἕλλησι, καὶ τοὺς μὲν βελτίστους τῶν ἐν ταῖς ἄλλαις πόλεσιν ἐξέβαλλον, τοῖς δὲ πονηροτάτοις τῶν Ἑλλήνων τἀκείνων διένεμον;
80. But if I were to make bold to go through in detail what took place in those times I might probably help you to be better advised regarding the present situation, but I should prejudice my own reputation; for you are wont to hate not so much those who are responsible for your mistakes as those who undertake to denounce them.
80. ἀλλὰ γὰρ εἰ τολμήσαιμι περὶ τῶν ἐν ἐκείνοις τοῖς χρόνοις γενομένων ἀκριβῶς διελθεῖν, ὑμᾶς μὲν ἴσως ἂν ποιήσαιμι βέλτιον βουλεύσασθαι περὶ τῶν παρόντων, αὐτὸς δʼ ἂν διαβληθείην· εἰώθατε γὰρ μισεῖν οὐχ οὕτω τοὺς αἰτίους τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων ὡς τοὺς κατηγοροῦντας αὐτῶν.
81. I fear, therefore, since you are of such a mind, that if I attempt to benefit you I may myself reap a poor reward. Nevertheless, I am not going to refrain entirely from saying the things which I had in mind but shall pass over the most severe and, mayhap, the most painful to you and recall to your minds only the facts by which you will recognize the folly of the men who at that time governed the city.
81. τοιαύτην οὖν ὑμῶν γνώμην ἐχόντων, δέδοικα μὴ πειρώμενος ὑμᾶς εὐεργετεῖν αὐτὸς ἀπολαύσω τι φλαῦρον. οὐ μὴν ἀποστήσομαι παντάπασιν ὧν διενοήθην, ἀλλὰ τὰ μὲν πικρότατα καὶ μάλιστʼ ἂν ὑμᾶς λυπήσοντα παραλείψω, μνησθήσομαι δὲ τούτων μόνον ἐξ ὧν γνώσεσθε τὴν ἄνοιαν τῶν τότε πολιτευομένων.
82. For so exactly did they gauge the actions by which human beings incur the worst odium that they passed a decree to divide the surplus of the funds derived from the tributes of the allies into talents and to bring it on the stage, when the theatre was full, at the festival of Dionysus; and not only was this done but at the same time they led in upon the stage the sons of those who had lost their lives in the war, seeking thus to display to our allies, on the one hand, the value of their own property which was brought in by hirelings, and to the rest of the Hellenes, on the other, the multitude of the fatherless and the misfortunes which result from this policy of aggression.
82. οὕτω γὰρ ἀκριβῶς εὕρισκον ἐξ ὧν ἄνθρωποι μάλιστʼ ἂν μισηθεῖεν, ὥστʼ ἐψηφίσαντο τὸ περιγιγνόμενον ἐκ τῶν φόρων ἀργύριον, διελόντες κατὰ τάλαντον, εἰς τὴν ὀρχήστραν τοῖς Διονυσίοις εἰσφέρειν ἐπειδὰν πλῆρες ᾖ τὸ θέατρον· καὶ τοῦτʼ ἐποίουν, καὶ παρεισῆγον τοὺς παῖδας τῶν ἐν τῷ πολέμῳ τετελευτηκότων, ἀμφοτέροις ἐπιδεικνύοντες τοῖς μὲν συμμάχοις τὰς τιμὰς τῆς οὐσίας αὐτῶν ὑπὸ μισθωτῶν εἰσφερομένης, τοῖς δʼ ἄλλοις Ἕλλησι τὸ πλῆθος τῶν ὀρφανῶν καὶ τὰς συμφορὰς τὰς διὰ τὴν πλεονεξίαν ταύτην γιγνομένας.
83. And in doing this they themselves counted the city happy, while many of the simple-minded deemed it blessed, taking no thought whatsoever for future consequences but admiring and envying the wealth which flowed into the city unjustly and which was soon to destroy also that which justly belonged to it.
83. καὶ ταῦτα δρῶντες αὐτοί τε τὴν πόλιν εὐδαιμόνιζον, καὶ πολλοὶ τῶν νοῦν οὐκ ἐχόντων ἐμακάριζον αὐτήν, τῶν μὲν συμβήσεσθαι διὰ ταῦτα μελλόντων οὐδεμίαν ποιούμενοι πρόνοιαν, τὸν δὲ πλοῦτον θαυμάζοντες καὶ ζηλοῦντες, ὃς ἀδίκως εἰς τὴν πόλιν εἰσελθὼν καὶ τὸν δικαίως ὑπάρξαντα διὰ ταχέων ἤμελλε προσαπολεῖν.
84. For they reached such a degree of neglect of their own possessions and of covetousness of the possessions of other states that when the Lacedaemonians had invaded our territory and the fortifications at Decelea had already been built, they manned triremes to send to Sicily and were not ashamed to permit their own country to be cut off and plundered by the enemy while dispatching an expedition against a people who had never in any respect offended against us.
84. εἰς τοῦτο γὰρ κατὲστησαν τῶν μὲν οἰκείων ἀμελείας τῶν δʼ ἀλλοτρίων ἐπιθυμίας, ὥστε Λακεδαιμονίων εἰσβεβληκότων εἰς τὴν χώραν καὶ τοῦ τείχους ἤδη τοῦ Δεκελειᾶσιν ἑστηκότος εἰς Σικελίαν τριήρεις ἐπλήρουν, καὶ οὐκ ᾐσχύνοντο τὴν μὲν πατρίδα τεμνομένην καὶ πορθουμένην περιορῶντες, ἐπὶ δὲ τοὺς οὐδὲν πώποτʼ εἰς ἡμᾶς ἐξαμαρτόντας στρατιὰν ἐκπέμποντες, ἀλλʼ εἰς τοῦτʼ ἀφροσύνης ἦλθον, ὥστε τῶν προαστείων τῶν οἰκείων οὐ κρατοῦντες Ἰταλίας καὶ Σικελίας καὶ Καρχηδόνος ἄρξειν προσεδόκησαν.
85. Nay, they arrived at such a pitch of folly that at a time when they were not masters of their own suburbs they expected to extend their power over Italy and Sicily and Carthage. And so far did they outdo all mankind in recklessness that whereas misfortunes chasten others and render them more prudent our fathers learned no lessons even from this discipline.
85. τοσοῦτον δὲ διήνεγκαν ἀνοίᾳ πάντων ἀνθρώπων, ὥστε τοὺς μὲν ἄλλους αἱ συμφοραὶ συστέλλουσι καὶ ποιοῦσιν ἐμφρονεστέρους, ἐκεῖνοι δʼ οὐδʼ ὑπὸ τούτων ἐπαιδεύθησαν.
86. And yet they were involved in more and greater disasters in the time of the empire than have ever befallen Athens in all the rest of her history. Two hundred ships which set sail for Egypt perished with their crews, and a hundred and fifty off the island of Cyprus; in the Decelean War they lost ten thousand heavy armed troops of their own and of their allies, and in Sicily forty thousand men and two hundred and forty ships, and, finally, in the Hellespont two hundred ships.
86. καίτοι πλείοσι καὶ μείζοσι περιέπεσον ἐπὶ τῆς ἀρχῆς ταύτης τῶν ἐν ἅπαντι τῷ χρόνῳ τῇ πόλει γεγενημένων. εἰς Αἴγυπτον μέν γε διακόσιαι πλεύσασαι τριήρεις αὐτοῖς τοῖς πληρώμασι διεφθάρησαν, περὶ δὲ Κύπρον πεντήκοντα καὶ ἑκατόν· ἐν δὲ τῷ Δεκελεικῷ πολέμῳ μυρίους ὁπλίτας αὑτῶν καὶ τῶν συμμάχων ἀπώλεσαν, ἐν Σικελίᾳ δὲ τέτταρας μυριάδας καὶ τριήρεις τετταράκοντα καὶ διακοσίας, τὸ δὲ τελευταῖον ἐν Ἑλλησπόντῳ διακοσίας.
87. But of the ships which were lost in fleets of ten or five or more and of the men who were slain in armies of a thousand or two thousand who could tell the tale? In a word, it was at that time a matter of regular routine to hold public funerals every year, which many both of our neighbors and of the other Hellenes used to attend, not to grieve with us for the dead, but to rejoice together at our misfortunes.
87. τὰς δὲ κατὰ δέκα καὶ κατὰ πέντε καὶ πλείους τούτων ἀπολλυμένας καὶ τοὺς κατὰ χιλίους καὶ δισχιλίους ἀποθνήσκοντας τίς ἄν ἐξαριθμήσειεν; πλήν ἓν ἦν τοῦτο τῶν ἐγκυκλίων, ταφὰς ποιεῖν καθʼ ἕκαστον τὸν ἐνιαυτόν, εἰς ἃς πολλοὶ καὶ τῶν ἀστυγειτόνων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων Ἑλλήνων ἐφοίτων, οὐ συμπενθήσοντες τοὺς τεθνεῶτας ἀλλὰ συνησθησόμενοι ταῖς ἡμετέραις συμφοραῖς.
88. And at last, before they knew it, they had filled the public burial-grounds with the bodies of their fellow citizens and the registers of the phratries and of the state with the names of those who had no claim upon the city. And you may judge of the multitude of the slain from this fact: The families of the most illustrious Athenians and our greatest houses, which survived the civil conflicts under the tyrants and the Persian Wars as well, have been, you will find, entirely wiped out under this empire upon which we set our hearts.
88. τελευτῶντες δʼ ἔλαθον σφᾶς αὐτοὺς τοὺς μὲν τάφους τοὺς δημοσίους τῶν πολιτῶν ἐμπλήσαντες, τὰς δὲ φρατρίας καὶ τὰ γραμματεῖα τὰ ληξιαρχικὰ τῶν οὐδὲν τῇ πόλει προσηκόντων. γνοίη δʼ ἄν τις ἐκεῖθεν μάλιστα τὸ πλῆθος τῶν ἀπολλυμένων· τὰ γὰρ γένη τῶν ἀνδρῶν τῶν ὀνομαστοτάτων καὶ τοὺς οἴκους τοὺς μεγίστους, οἳ καὶ τὰς τυραννικὰς στάσεις καὶ τὸν Περσικὸν πόλεμον διέφυγον, εὑρήσομεν ἐπὶ τῆς ἀρχῆς, ἧς ἐπιθυμοῦμεν, ἀναστάτους γεγενημένους.
89. So that if one desired to go into the question of what befell the rest of our citizens, judging by this instance, it would be seen that we have been changed, one might almost say, into a new people. And yet we must not count that state happy which without discrimination recruits from all parts of the world a large number of citizens but rather that state which more than all others preserves the stock of those who in the beginning founded it. And we ought not to emulate those who hold despotic power nor those who have gained a dominion which is greater than is just but rather those who, while worthy of the highest honors, are yet content with the honors which are tendered them by a free people.
89. ὥστʼ εἴ τις σκοπεῖσθαι βούλοιτο περὶ τῶν ἄλλων, ὥσπερ πρὸς δεῖγμα τοῦτʼ ἀναφέρων, φανεῖμεν ἂν μικροῦ δεῖν ἀντηλλαγμένοι. καίτοι χρὴ πόλιν μὲν εὐδαιμονίζειν μὴ τὴν ἐξ ἁπάντων ἀνθρώπων εἰκῇ πολλοὺς πολίτας ἀθροίζουσαν, ἀλλὰ τὴν τὸ γένος τῶν ἐξ ἀρχῆς τὴν πόλιν οἰκισάντων μᾶλλον τῶν ἄλλων διασώζουσαν, ἄνδρας δὲ ζηλοῦν μὴ τοὺς τὰς τυραννίδας κατέχοντας μηδὲ τοὺς μείζω δυναστείαν τοῦ δικαίου κεκτημένους, ἀλλὰ τοὺς ἀξίους μὲν ὄντας τῆς μεγίστης τιμῆς, στέργοντας δʼ ἐπὶ ταῖς ὑπὸ τοῦ πλήθους διδομέναις.
90. For no man nor any state could obtain a position more excellent than this or more secure or of greater worth. And it was because they acquired just this position that our ancestors in the time of the Persian Wars did not live in the manner of freebooters, now having more than enough for their needs, again reduced to a state of famine and siege and extreme misfortune; on the contrary, while they lived neither in want nor in surfeit of the means of subsistence day by day, they prided themselves on the justice of their polity and on their own virtues, and passed their lives more pleasantly than the rest of the world.
90. ταύτης γὰρ ἕξιν οὔτʼ ἀνὴρ οὔτε πόλις λαβεῖν ἂν δύναιτο σπουδαιοτέραν οὐδʼ ἀσφαλεστέραν οὐδὲ πλείονος ἀξίαν· ἥνπερ οἱ περὶ τὰ Περσικὰ γενόμενοι σχόντες οὐχ ὁμοίως τοῖς λῃσταῖς ἐβίωσαν, τοτὲ μὲν πλείω τῶν ἱκανῶν ἔχοντες, τοτὲ δʼ ἐν σιτοδείαις καὶ πολιορκίαις καὶ τοῖς μεγίστοις κακοῖς καθεστῶτες, ἀλλὰ περὶ μὲν τὴν τροφὴν τὴν καθʼ ἡμέραν οὔτʼ ἐν ἐνδείαις οὔτʼ ἐν ὑπερβολαῖς, ὄντες, ἐπὶ δὲ τῇ τῆς πολιτείας δικαιοσύνῃ καὶ ταῖς ἀρεταῖς ταῖς αὑτῶν φιλοτιμούμενοι καὶ τὸν βίον ἥδιον τῶν ἄλλων διάγοντες.
91. But, heedless of these lessons, those who came after them desired, not to rule but to dominate —words which are thought to have the same meaning, although between them there is the utmost difference. For it is the duty of those who rule to make their welfare, whereas it is a habit of those who dominate to provide pleasures for themselves through the labors and hardships of others. But it is in the nature of things that those who attempt a despot’s course must encounter the disasters which befall despotic power and be afflicted by the very things which they inflict upon others. And it is just this which has happened in the case of Athens;
91. ὧν ἀμελήσαντες οἱ γενόμενοι μετʼ ἐκείνους οὐκ ἄρχειν ἀλλὰ τυραννεῖν ἐπεθύμησαν, ἃ δοκεῖ μὲν τὴν αὐτὴν ἔχειν δύναμιν, πλεῖστον δʼ ἀλλήλων κεχώρισται· τῶν μὲν γὰρ ἀρχόντων ἔργον ἐστὶ τοὺς ἀρχομένους ταῖς αὑτῶν ἐπιμελείαις ποιεῖν εὐδαιμονεστέρους, τοῖς δὲ τυράννοις ἔθος καθέστηκε τοῖς τῶν ἄλλων πόνοις καὶ κακοῖς αὑτοῖς ἡδονὰς παρασκευάζειν. ἀνάγκη δὲ τοὺς τοιούτοις ἔργοις ἐπιχειροῦντας τυραννικαῖς καὶ ταῖς συμφοραῖς περιπίπτειν, καὶ τοιαῦτα πάσχειν οἷά περ ἂν καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους δράσωσιν. ἃ καὶ τῇ πόλει συνέπεσεν·
92. for in place of holding the citadels of other states, her people saw the day when the enemy was in possession of the Acropolis; in place of dragging children from their mothers and fathers and taking them as hostages, many of her citizens, living in a state of siege, were compelled to educate and support their children with less than was their due; and in place of farming the lands of other states, for many years they were denied the opportunity of even setting eyes upon their own fields.
92. ἀντὶ μὲν γὰρ τοῦ φρουρεῖν τὰς τῶν ἄλλων ἀκροπόλεις τῆς αὑτῶν ἐπεῖδον τοὺς πολεμίους κυρίους γενομένους· ἀντὶ δὲ τοῦ παῖδας ὁμήρους λαμβάνειν, ἀποσπῶντες ἀπὸ πατέρων καὶ μητέρων, πολλοὶ τῶν πολιτῶν ἠναγκάσθησαν τοὺς αὑτῶν ἐν τῇ πολιορκίᾳ χεῖρον παιδεύειν καὶ τρέφειν ἢ προσῆκεν αὐτοῖς· ἀντὶ δὲ τοῦ γεωργεῖν τὰς χώρας τὰς ἀλλοτρίας πολλῶν ἐτῶν οὐδʼ ἰδεῖν αὐτοῖς ἐξεγένετο τὴν αὑτῶν.
93. If, therefore, anyone were to ask us whether we should choose to see Athens in such distress as the price of having ruled so long a time, who could answer yes, except some utterly abandoned wretch who cared not for sacred matters nor for parents nor for children nor for any other thing save for the term of his own existence? We, however, ought not to emulate the judgement of such men but rather that of those who exercise great forethought and are no less jealous for the reputation of the state than for their own—men who prefer a moderate competence with justice to great wealth unjustly gained.
93. ὥστʼ εἴ τις ἡμᾶς ἐρωτήσειεν εἰ δεξαίμεθʼ ἂν τοσοῦτον χρόνον ἄξαντες τοιαῦτα παθοῦσαν τὴν πόλιν ἐπιδεῖν, τίς ἂν ὁμολογήσειε, πλὴν εἴ τις παντάπασιν ἀπονενοημένος ἐστὶ καὶ μήθʼ ἱερῶν μήτε γονέων μήτε παίδων μήτʼ ἄλλου μηδενὸς φροντίζει πλὴν τοῦ χρόνου μόνον τοῦ καθʼ ἑαυτόν; ὧν οὐκ ἄξιον τὴν διάνοιαν ζηλοῦν, ἀλλὰ πολὺ μᾶλλον τῶν πολλὴν πρόνοιαν ποιουμένων, καὶ μηδὲν ἧττον ὑπὲρ τῆς κοινῆς δόξης ἢ τῆς ἰδίας φιλοτιμουμένων, καὶ προαιρουμένων μέτριον βίον μετὰ δικαιοσύνης μᾶλλον ἢ μέγαν πλοῦτον μετʼ ἀδικίας.
94. For our ancestors, proving themselves to be men of this character, handed on the city to their descendants in a most prosperous condition and left behind them an imperishable memorial of their virtue. And from this we may easily learn a double lesson: that our soil is able to rear better men than the rest of the world and that what we call empire, though in reality it is misfortune, is of a nature to deprave all who have to do with it.
94. καὶ γὰρ οἱ πρόγονοι τοιούτους αὑτοὺς παρασχόντες τήν τε πόλιν εὐδαιμονεστάτην τοῖς ἐπιγιγνομένοις παρέδοσαν καὶ τῆς αὑτῶν ἀρετῆς ἀθάνατον τὴν μνήμην κατέλιπον. ἐξ ὧν ἀμφότερα ῥᾴδιόν ἐστι καταμαθεῖν, καὶ τὴν χώραν ἡμῶν, ὅτι δύναται τρέφειν ἄνδρας ἀμείνους τῶν ἄλλων, καὶ τὴν καλουμένην μὲν ἀρχὴν οὖσαν δὲ συμφοράν, ὅτι πέφυκε χείρους ἅπαντας ποιεῖν τοὺς χρωμένους αὐτῇ.
95. We have a most convincing proof of this. For imperialism worked the ruin not only of Athens but of the city of the Lacedaemonians also, so that those who are in the habit of praising the virtues of Sparta cannot argue that we managed our affairs badly because of our democratic government whereas if the Lacedaemonians had taken over the empire the results would have been happy both for the rest of the Hellenes and for themselves. For this power revealed its nature much more quickly in their case. Indeed it brought it to pass that a polity which over a period of seven hundred years had never, so far as we know, been disturbed by perils or calamities was shaken and all but destroyed in a short space of time.
95. μέγιστον δὲ τεκμήριον· οὐ γὰρ μόνον ἡμᾶς ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν Λακεδαιμονίων πόλιν διέφθειρεν, ὥστε τοῖς εἰθισμένοις ἐπαινεῖν τὰς ἐκείνων ἀρετὰς οὐχ οἷόν τʼ ἐστὶν εἰπεῖν τοῦτον τὸν λόγον, ὡς ἡμεῖς μὲν διὰ τὸ δημοκρατεῖσθαι κακῶς ἐχρησάμεθα τοῖς πράγμασιν, εἰ δὲ Λακεδαιμόνιοι ταύτην τὴν δύναμιν παρέλαβον, εὐδαίμονας ἂν καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους καὶ σφᾶς αὐτοὺς ἐποίησαν. πολὺ γὰρ θᾶττον ἐν ἐκείνοις ἐπεδείξατο τὴν φύσιν τὴν αὑτῆς· τὴν γὰρ πολιτείαν ἣν ἐν ἑπτακοσίοις ἔτεσιν οὐδεὶς οἶδεν οὔθʼ ὑπὸ κινδύνων οὔθʼ ὑπὸ συμφορῶν κινηθεῖσαν, ταύτην ἐν ὀλίγῳ σαλεῦσαι καὶ λυθῆναι παρὰ μικρὸν ἐποίησεν.