1. Perhaps some of you, gentlemen of the jury, suppose that, since I desire to be a person of some account, I must be able to excel others in speaking: but, so far from my being competent to speak on matters that do not concern myself, I fear that, even on matters of which I am obliged to speak, I may be unable to say what is needful. I believe, however, that if I can give you the full story of our dealings with Eraton and his children, you will easily form therefrom a proper judgement on the claim now put forward. So let me tell it you from the beginning.
1. ἴσως τινὲς ὑμῶν, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, διὰ τὸ βούλεσθαί με ἄξιον εἶναί τινος ἡγοῦνται καὶ εἰπεῖν ἂν μᾶλλον ἑτέρου δύνασθαι· ἐγὼ δὲ τοσούτου δέω περὶ τῶν μὴ, προσηκόντων ἱκανὸς εἶναι λέγειν, ὥστε δέδοικα μή, καὶ περὶ ὧν ἀναγκαῖόν μοί ἐστι λέγειν, ἀδύνατος ὦ τὰ δέοντα εἰπεῖν. οἴμαι μὲν οὖν, ἐάν πάντα διηγήσωμαι τὰ πεπραγμένα ἡμῖν πρὸς Ἐράτωνα καὶ τοὺς ἐκείνου παῖδας, ῥαδίως ἐξ αὐτῶν ὑμᾶς εὑρήσειν ἃ προσήκει σκέψασθαι περὶ ταύτης τῆς διαδικασίας. ἐξ ἀρχῆς οὖν ἀκούσατε.
2. Eraton, father of Erasiphon, borrowed from my grandfather two talents. To show that he received this money, and that it was the amount of the loan that he requested, I will produce to you witnesses before whom the money was paid. As to the use that he made of it, and the profit that he got, those who know better than I, as having been in touch with his business, will relate and testify it to you. Please call witnesses.
2. ἐράτων ὁ Ἐρασιφῶντος πατὴρ ἐδανείσατο παρὰ τοῦ ἐμοῦ πάππου τάλαντα δύο. ὅτι μὲν οὖν ἔλαβε τἀργύριον καὶ ὡς τοσοῦτόν γε ἐδεήθη δανείσασθαι, [καὶ] ὧν ἐναντίον ἐδόθη, μάρτυρας ὑμῖν παρέξομαι· ἃ δʼ ἐχρήσατο αὐτῷ καὶ ὅσα ὠφελήθη, οἱ μᾶλλόν τε ἐμοῦ εἰδότες καὶ παραγεγενημένοι οἷς ἐκεῖνος ἔπραττε διηγήσονται ὑμῖν καὶ μαρτυρήσουσι. καί μοι κάλει μάρτυρας.
3. Witnesses Now as long as Eraton was alive, we duly received our interest and the terms of agreement were kept; but when he died, leaving three sons—Erasiphon, Eraton and Erasistratus,—these persons ceased to give us our rightful dues. During the war, of course, as there were no suits at law, we were unable to make them pay what they owed; but when peace was made, as soon as civil suits began to be tried, my father got permission to proceed against Erasistratus for the whole debt, as he alone of the brothers was resident here, and obtained a verdict against him in the archonship of Xenaenetus. I will produce to you witnesses of these facts also. Please call witnesses.
3. Μάρτυρες ἕως τοίνυν ὁ Ἐράτων ἔζη, τούς τε τόκους ἀπελαμβάνομεν καὶ τἆλλα τὰ συγκείμενα· ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἐτελεύτησε καταλιπὼν ὑοὺς τρεῖς, Ἐρασιφῶντα καὶ Ἐράτωνα καὶ Ἐρασίστρατον, οὗτοι οὐδὲν ἔτι ἡμῖν τῶν δικαίων ἐποίουν. ἐν μὲν οὖν τῷ πολέμῳ, διότι οὐκ ἦσαν δίκαι, οὐ δυνατοὶ ἦμεν παρʼ αὐτῶν ἃ ὤφειλον πράξασθαι· ἐπειδὴ δὲ εἰρήνη ἐγένετο, ὅτε περ πρῶτον αἱ ἀστικαὶ δίκαι ἐδικάζοντο, λαχὼν ὁ πατὴρ παντὸς τοῦ συμβολαίου Ἐρασιστράτῳ, ὅσπερ μόνος τῶν ἀδελφῶν ἐπεδήμει, κατεδικάσατο ἐπὶ Ξεναινέτου ἄρχοντος. μάρτυρας δὲ καὶ τούτων παρέξομαι ὑμῖν. καί μοι κάλει μάρτυρας.
4. Witnesses That the property of Eraton should of right be ours is easily understood from these statements, but that the whole is being confiscated appears from the actual inventories; for these have been compiled in detail by three and even four persons. Surely it is obvious to everyone that they would not have omitted any other property of Eraton’s available for confiscation, when they were entering all the property of Eraton, including even the part that has belonged to me for a long time past. Well, that it is not possible for us to recover anything even from the other side, once you have confiscated this property, I consider obvious;
4. Μάρτυρες ὅτι μὲν τὰ Ἐράτωνος δικαίως ἂν ἡμέτερα εἴη, ἐκ τούτων ῥᾴδιον εἰδέναι, ὅτι δὲ πάντα δημεύεται, ἐξ αὐτῶν ⟨τῶν⟩ ἀπογραφῶν· τρεῖς γὰρ καὶ τέτταρες ἕκαστα ἀπογεγράφασι. καίτοι τοῦτό γε παντὶ εὔγνωστον, ὅτι οὐκ ἂν παρέλιπον, εἴ τι ἄλλο τῶν Ἐράτωνος οἷόν τε ἦν δημεύειν, οἱ πάντα τὰ Ἐράτωνος ἀπογράφοντες καὶ ἃ ἐγὼ πολὺν ἤδη χρόνον κέκτημαι. ὡς μὲν οὖν ἡμῖν οὐδʼ ἑτέρωθεν εἰσπράξασθαι οἷόν τε, ἐὰν ὑμεῖς ταῦτα δημεύσητε, εὔγνωστόν μοι δοκεῖ εἶναι·
5. but now let me tell you how I have treated you, as distinct from private persons, in the conduct of this dispute. As long as the relatives of Erasiphon were contesting this property, I claimed the whole as mine, because Erasistratus lost his case when he pleaded against my father’s suit for the whole debt; and for the last three years I have let out the property at Sphettus, but over the property at Cicynna and the house there I was at law with the occupiers. Last year, however, they got my suit quashed by alleging that they were sea-traders; but at present, although I was permitted to bring proceedings in the month of Gamelion, the nautical court has not decided the case.
5. ὡς δὲ τὴν ἀμφισβήτησιν ἐποιησάμην πρός τε ὑμᾶς καὶ τοὺς ἰδιώτας, ἔτι ἀκούσατε. ἕως μὲν γὰρ ἡμῖν οἱ Ἐρασιφῶντος οἰκεῖοι τούτων τῶν χρημάτων ἠμφεσβήτουν, ἅπαντα ἠξίουν ἐμὰ εἶναι, διότι ὑπὲρ ἅπαντος τοῦ χρέως ἀντιδικῶν πρὸς τὸν πατέρα ὁ Ἐρασίστρατος ἡττήθη· καὶ τὰ μὲν Σφηττοῖ ἤδη τρία ἔτη μεμίσθωκα, τῶν δὲ Κικυννοῖ καὶ τῆς οἰκίας ἐδικαζόμην τοῖς ἔχουσι. πέρυσι μὲν οὖν διεγράψαντό μου τὰς δίκας, ἔμποροι φάσκοντες εἶναι· νυνὶ δὲ λαχόντος ἐν τῷ Γαμηλιῶνι μηνὶ οἱ ναυτοδίκαι οὐκ ἐξεδίκασαν.
6. Now that you have seen fit to confiscate the property of Erasiphon, I relinquish two thirds to the State, and claim that the property of Erasistratus be adjudged to me, because it is this property that your previous decision has already made ours. So I have limited my share to one-third of their property, making no exact calculation, but leaving much more than two-thirds to the Treasury.
6. ἐπειδὴ δʼ ὑμῖν τὰ Ἐρασιφῶντος δημεύειν ἔδοξεν, ἀφεὶς τῇ πόλει τὼ δύο μέρει τὰ Ἐρασιστράτου ἀξιῶ μοι ψηφισθῆναι, διότι ταῦτά γε ἤδη καὶ πρότερον ἐγνώκατε ἡμέτερα εἶναι. ὡρισάμην οὖν ἐμαυτῷ τὸ τρίτον μέρος τῆς ἐκείνων οὐσίας οὐ τὴν ἀκρίβειαν ἐπισκεψάμενος, ἀλλὰ πολλῷ πλέον ἢ τὼ δύο μέρει τῷ δημοσίῳ ὑπολιπών.
7. This is easily concluded from the valuation which has been attached to the schedule of the property. For they have valued the whole at more than a talent, whereas to one of the properties for which I am suing I attached five minae, and to the other a thousand drachmae: if they are worth more than those amounts, the surplus after they have been sold by auction will go to the State.
7. ῥᾴδιον δὲ γνῶναι ἐκ τοῦ τιμήματος τοῦ ἐπιγεγραμμένου τοῖς χρήμασιν. ἅπαντα μὲν γὰρ πλείονος ἢ ταλάντου τετίμηνται, ὧν δʼ ἐγὼ ἀμφισβητῶ τῷ μὲν πέντε μνᾶς τῷ δὲ χιλίας δραχμὰς ἐπεγραψάμην· καὶ εἰ πλείονος ἄξιά ἐστιν ἢ τοσούτου, ἀποκηρυχθέντων τὸ περιττὸν ἡ πόλις λήψεται.
8. And to convince you of the truth of this I will produce to you, as witnesses, first the persons who rented from me the estate at Sphettus, then the neighbors of the place at Cicynna, who know that we have been contesting it for the last three years, and next the magistrates of last year, before whom the suits were authorized to be heard, and the present judges of the nautical court.
8. ἵνα οὖν εἰδῆτε ὅτι ταῦτα ἀληθῆ ἐστι, μάρτυρας ὑμῖν παρέξομαι πρῶτον μὲν τοὺς μεμισθωμένους παρʼ ἐμοῦ τὸ Σφηττοῖ χωρίον, ἔπειτα τοῦ Κικυννοῖ τοὺς γείτονας, οἳ ἴσασιν ἡμᾶς ἤδη τρία ἔτη ἀμφισβητοῦντας, ἔτι δὲ τούς τε πέρυσιν ἄρξαντας, πρὸς οὓς αἱ δίκαι ἐλήχθησαν, καὶ τοὺς νῦν ναυτοδίκας.
9. You will also have these inventories read to you: for they above all will convince you that our claim to this property is no recent matter, and also that today we are contesting with the Treasury an amount that compares favorably with that which we formerly contested with private persons. Please call witnesses.
9. ἀναγνωσθήσονται δὲ ὑμῖν καὶ αὗται αἱ ἀπογραφαί· ἐκ τούτων γὰρ μάλιστα γνώσεσθε ὅτι οὔτε νεωστὶ ταῦτα τὰ χρήματα ἀξιοῦμεν ἡμέτερα εἶναι, οὔτε νυνὶ τῷ δημοσίῳ πλειόνων ἀμφισβητοῦμεν ἢ τῷ ἔμπροσθεν χρόνῳ τοῖς ἰδιώταις. καί μοι κάλει μάρτυρας.
10. Witnesses That there is no injustice, gentlemen, in my claiming your verdict on the property in question, but rather that I have relinquished to the State a great part of my own property before claiming this restoration, has been clearly proved. And now I deem it just to lay my request before you and also before the Commissioners in your presence.
10. Μάρτυρες ὅτι μέν, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, οὐ παρὰ τὸ δίκαιον ἀξιῶ μοι ψηφίσασθαι τὸ διαδίκασμα, ἀλλʼ αὐτὸς τῇ πόλει πολλὰ τῶν ἐμαυτοῦ ἀφεὶς τοῦτο ἀξιῶ μοι ἀποδοθῆναι, ἀποδέδεικται. ἤδη δέ μοι δοκεῖ δίκαιον εἶναι καὶ δεηθῆναι ὑμῶν τε καὶ τῶν συνδίκων ἐναντίον ὑμῶν.