1. … nor expecting that now, after this lapse of time, they will be strict in their scrutiny, since you are conscious of having committed many grievous offences against them; but these, you believe, some of them have forgotten, and will not even recall them to mind. Well, for my part I am quite indignant that he should come before you in the confidence of this hope, as though the persons whom he had wronged were different and distinct from those who are to give their verdict on these matters, and as though it were not the same people that have been his victims and are also to be his hearers. It is yourselves who are responsible for this:
1. … οὐδʼ ἡγούμενος ἀκριβῆ νῦν τὴν δοκιμασίαν αὐτοὺς διὰ τὸν χρόνον ποιήσεσθαι, ἐπεὶ σύνοισθα πολλὰ καὶ δεινὰ εἰς αὐτοὺς ἐξημαρτηκώς, ὧν ἐπιλελῆσθαι καὶ οὐδʼ ἀναμνησθήσεσθαι ἐνίους αὐτῶν νομίζεις. ὃ δὴ ἔγωγε καὶ ἀγανακτῶ, εἰ ταύτῃ τῇ ἐλπίδι εἰς ὑμᾶς ἥκει πιστεύων, ὥσπερ ἄλλων μέν τινων ὄντων τῶν ἠδικημένων, ἑτέρων δὲ τῶν ταῦτα διαψηφιουμένων, ἀλλʼ οὐκ ἀμφότερα τῶν αὐτῶν καὶ πεπονθότων καὶ ἀκουσομένων.
2. for you do not bear in mind that these men, when the city was subject to the Lacedaemonians, did not vouchsafe you a share even in the common slavery, but actually expelled you from the city; while you, after setting her free, made them partakers, not only in that freedom, but also in the judicature and in the public business of the Assembly. They have some reason, then, for thus convicting you of fatuity.
2. αἴτιοι δὲ τούτων ὑμεῖς ἐστε· οὐ γὰρ ἐνθυμεῖσθε ὅτι οὗτοι μέν, ὅτε ἡ πόλις ὑπὸ [τῶν] Λακεδαιμονίων ἤρχετο, οὐδὲ τῆς αὐτῆς δουλείας ὑμῖν μεταδοῦναι ἠξίωσαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς πόλεως ἐξήλασαν· ὑμεῖς δʼ ἐλευθέραν αὐτὴν ποιήσαντες οὐ μόνον τῆς ἐλευθερίας αὐτοῖς ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῦ δικάζειν καὶ τοῦ ἐκκλησιάζειν περὶ τῶν κοινῶν μετέδοτε, ὥστε εἰκότως ὑμῶν ταύτην τὴν εὐήθειαν καταγιγνώσκουσιν.
3. This man is one of them, and he is not content to be allowed to share these rights, but claims as well, before paying the penalty for those actions, to hold office once more. I am informed that today he will make but a brief reply to the charges brought against him, skimming over the facts and shuffling off the accusation with his defence; and he will tell how he and his family have spent a great amount on the State, have performed public services with ardent zeal, and have won many brilliant victories under the democracy; that he himself is an orderly person, and is not seen acting as others of our people venture to act, but prefers to mind his own business.
3. ὧν εἷς οὗτος ὢν οὐκ ἀγαπᾷ εἴ τις αὐτὸν ἐᾷ τούτων μετέχειν, ἀλλὰ καὶ πρὶν ἐκείνων δοῦναι δίκην πάλιν ἄρχειν ἀξιοῖ. καὶ νυνὶ αὐτὸν ἀκούω ὑπὲρ μὲν τῶν αὐτοῦ κατηγορουμένων διὰ βραχέων ἀπολογήσεσθαι, ἐπισύροντα τὰ πράγματα καὶ διακλέπτοντα τῇ ἀπολογίᾳ τὴν κατηγορίαν, λέξειν δὲ ὡς πολλὰ εἰς τὴν πόλιν ἀνηλώκασι καὶ φιλοτίμως λελῃτουργήκασι καὶ νίκας πολλὰς καὶ καλὰς ἐν δημοκρατίᾳ νενικήκασι, καὶ ὅτι αὐτὸς κόσμιός ἐστι καὶ οὐχ ὁρᾶται ποιῶν ἃ ἕτεροι ἐνταῦθα τολμῶσιν, ἀλλὰ τὰ ἑαυτοῦ πράττειν ἀξιοῖ.
4. But I find no difficulty in countering those statements. As regards the public services, I say that his father would have done better not to perform them than to spend so much of his substance: for it was on account of this that he won the confidence of the people and overthrew the democracy; and so our memory of these deeds must be more abiding than of the offerings he has set up in record of those services.
4. ἐγὼ δὲ πρὸς τούτους τοὺς λόγους οὐ χαλεπὸν οἶμαι ἀντειπεῖν· πρὸς μὲν τὰς λῃτουργίας, ὅτι κρείττων ἦν ὁ πατὴρ αὐτοῦ μὴ λῃτουργήσας ἢ τοσαῦτα τῶν ἑαυτοῦ ἀναλώσας· διὰ γὰρ ταῦτα πιστευθεὶς ὑπὸ τοῦ δήμου κατέλυσε τὴν δημοκρατίαν, ὥστʼ εἶναι ταῦτα τὰ ἔργα ἀειμνηστότερα ἢ τὰ ἐκ τῶν λῃτουργιῶν αὐτῷ ἀναθήματα·
5. As to his love of quiet, I say that we ought not to investigate his sobriety today, when there is no chance for him to be licentious: we should rather examine that period in which, being free to choose either way of life, he preferred to mark his citizenship by illegal acts. For the fact of his committing no offences now is due to those who have prevented him; but what he did then was owing to the man’s character and to those who vouchsafed him a free hand. So that if he claims to pass the scrutiny on this score, you should form this conception of the case, if you would not seem fatuous in his sight.
5. πρὸς δὲ τὴν ἡσυχιότητα τὴν τούτου, ὅτι οὐ νῦν δεῖ αὐτὸν ἐξετάζειν εἰ σώφρων ἐστίν, ὅτʼ αὐτὸν οὐκ ἔξεστιν ἀσελγαίνειν, ἀλλʼ ἐκεῖνον τὸν χρόνον σκοπεῖν, ἐν ᾧ ἐξὸν ὁποτέρως ἐβούλετο ζῆν εἵλετο παρανόμως πολιτευθῆναι. τοῦ μὲν γὰρ νῦν μηδὲν ἐξαμαρτάνειν οἱ κωλύσαντες αἴτιοι, τῶν δὲ τότε γενομένων ὁ τούτου τρόπος καὶ οἱ τούτῳ ἐπιτρέπειν ἀξιοῦντες. ὥστʼ ἐὰν ἐκ τούτων δοκιμάζεσθαι ἀξιοῖ, ταῦτα χρὴ ὑπολαμβάνειν, μὴ εὐήθεις αὐτῷ εἶναι δοκῆτε.
6. And if they have recourse to the further argument that time does not allow of your electing another man, and that his failure to pass your scrutiny must inevitably leave the ancestral sacrifices unperformed, you should reflect that the time has already long gone by. For tomorrow is the last remaining day of the year, and on that day a sacrifice is offered to Zeus the Saviour, when it is impossible to complete a panel of jurymen in defiance of the laws.
6. ἐὰν δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τοιόνδε λόγον τράπωνται, ὡς ὁ χρόνος οὐκ ἐγχωρεῖ ἄλλον ἀποκληρῶσαι, ἀλλὰ ἀνάγκη, ἐὰν αὐτὸν ἀποδοκιμάσητε, ἄθυτα τὰ πάτρια ἱερὰ γίγνεσθαι, τάδʼ ἐνθυμήθητε, ὅτι πάλαι ὁ χρόνος ἤδη παρελήλυθεν. ἡ γὰρ αὔριον ἡμέρα μόνη λοιπὴ τοῦ ἐνιαυτοῦ ἐστιν, ἐν δὲ ταύτῃ τῷ Διὶ τῷ σωτῆρι θυσία γίγνεται, δικαστήριον δὲ παρὰ τοὺς νόμους ἀδύνατον πληρωθῆναι.
7. If all these difficulties are the contrivance of this man, what are we to expect, when once he has passed the scrutiny, of the man who will have persuaded the outgoing magistrates to commit an illegality in his interest? Will he contrive just a few things of this sort in the course of a year? For my part, I think not.
7. εἰ δὲ ταῦτα πάνθʼ οὗτος ὥστε γενέσθαι διαπέπρακται, τί προσδοκῆσαι ⟨δεῖ⟩ δοκιμασθέντʼ αὐτὸν ποιήσειν, εἰ τὴν ἐξιοῦσαν ἀρχὴν πέπεικεν αὐτοῦ ἕνεκα παρανομῆσαι; ἆρʼ ἂν ὀλίγα τοιαῦτα ἐν τῷ ἐνιαυτῷ διαπράξασθαι; ἐγὼ μὲν γὰρ οὐκ ἂν οἶμαι.
8. But you have to consider, not this question alone, but whether piety is better served by the sacrifices on behalf of the future magistrate being offered by the king-archon and his fellow-magistrates,—as has in fact been done in the past,—or by this man, whom those who know about him have testified to be not even without stained hands; and whether you have sworn to install a magistrate who has not passed the scrutiny or, after holding the scrutiny, to crown the man who is worthy of the office?
8. ἔστι δʼ ὑμῖν οὐ τοῦτο μόνον σκεπτέον, ἀλλὰ καὶ πότερον εὐσεβέστερον τὸν βασιλέα καὶ τοὺς συνάρχοντας τὰ ὑπὲρ τοῦ μέλλοντος ἄρξειν ἱερὰ θῦσαι, ὡς καὶ πρότερον ἤδη γεγένηται, ἢ καὶ τοῦτον, ὃν οὐδὲ καθαρὸν εἶναι τὰς χεῖρας οἱ εἰδότες μεμαρτυρήκασι, καὶ πότερον ὑμεῖς ὠμόσατε εἰς τὴν ἀρχὴν ἀδοκίμαστον καταστήσειν, ἢ δοκιμάσαντες τὸν ἄξιον τῆς ἀρχῆς στεφανώσειν. ταῦτα γὰρ σκοπεῖσθε· κἀκεῖνο ⟨δʼ⟩ ἐνθυμεῖσθε, ὅτι ὁ θεὶς τὸν περὶ τῶν δοκιμασιῶν νόμον οὐχ ἥκιστα [περὶ] τῶν ἐν ὀλιγαρχίᾳ ἀρξάντων ἕνεκα ἔθηκεν, ἡγούμενος δεινὸν εἶναι, εἰ διʼ οὓς ἡ δημοκρατία κατελύετο, οὗτοι ἐν αὐτῇ τῇ πολιτείᾳ πάλιν ἄρξουσι, καὶ κύριοι γενήσονται τῶν νόμων καὶ τῆς πόλεως, ἣν πρότερον παραλαβόντες οὕτως αἰσχρῶς καὶ δεινῶς ἐλωβήσαντο.
9. That is what you have to consider. Reflect also on the fact that the author of the law concerning scrutinies had chiefly in view the magistrates of the oligarchy; for he thought it monstrous that the men responsible for the overthrow of the democracy should regain office under that very constitution, and get control over the laws and over the city of which they had formerly taken charge only to maim her with such shameful and terrible injuries. Hence it is not right to be careless of the scrutiny, or to make it of so slight account as to ignore it: no, you should keep guard over it; for on the just title of each magistrate depends the safety of the government and of your whole people.
9. ὥστʼ οὐκ ἄξιον τῆς δοκιμασίας ὀλιγώρως ἔχειν, οὐδὲ μικρὸν ἡγουμένους τὸ πρᾶγμα μὴ φροντίζειν αὐτῆς, ἀλλὰ φυλάττειν· ὡς ἐν τῷ ἕκαστον δικαίως ἄρχειν ἥ τε πολιτεία καὶ τὸ ἄλλο πλῆθος τὸ ὑμέτερον σῴζεται ⟨καὶ⟩ εἰ μὲν δὴ βουλεύσων νυνὶ ἐδοκιμάζετο καὶ ὡς ἱππευκότος αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τῶν τριάκοντα τοὔνομα ἐν ταῖς σανίσιν ἐνεγέγραπτο, καὶ ἄνευ κατηγόρου ἂν αὐτὸν ἀπεδοκιμάζετε·
10. Suppose that he were now under scrutiny for admission to the Council, and he had his name registered on the tablets as having served in the cavalry under the Thirty: even without an accuser you would reject him. And now, when he is found, not merely to have served in the cavalry and on the Council, but to have also committed offences against the people, will it not be strange behavior on your part not to show that you have the same feelings towards him?
10. νῦν δέ, ὅτε μὴ μόνον ἱππευκὼς μηδὲ βεβουλευκώς, ἀλλὰ καὶ εἰς τὸ πλῆθος ἐξημαρτηκὼς φαίνεται, οὐκ ἂν ἄτοπον ποιήσαιτε, εἰ μὴ τὴν αὐτὴν γνώμην ἔχοντες περὶ αὐτοῦ φανεῖσθε;
11. Besides, had he qualified for the Council, he would have held his seat as one in a body of five hundred, for a year only; so that, if in that period he had wished to commit an offence, he would have been easily prevented by the others. But, if he is approved for this office, he will hold it all by himself, and as a member of the Council of the Areopagus he will obtain control over the most important matters for an unlimited time.
11. καὶ μὲν δὴ βουλεύειν γε δοκιμασθεὶς πεντακοσιοστὸς ὢν μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων ἐνιαυτὸν ἂν μόνον ἐβούλευσεν, ὥστε καὶ εἴ τι ἐν τούτῳ τῷ χρόνῳ ἐξαμαρτάνειν ἐβούλετο, ῥᾳδίως ἂν ὑπὸ τῶν ἄλλων ἐκωλύετο, ταύτης δὲ τῆς ἀρχῆς ἀξιούμενος αὐτὸς καθʼ αὑτὸν ἄρξει, καὶ μετὰ τῆς ἐν Ἀρείῳ πάγῳ βουλῆς τὸν ἅπαντα χρόνον τῶν μεγίστων κύριος γενήσεται.
12. It therefore behoves you to be stricter in your scrutiny for this office than for any other one. Else, what do you suppose will be the attitude of the great body of the citizens, when they become aware that the man who ought to have been punished for his offences has been approved by you for this high post; when they find a man judging murder cases who should have been tried himself by the Council of the Areopagus; and when, moreover, they see him crowned and established in control of heiresses and orphans, whose bereavement, in some cases, he has himself brought about?
12. ὥστε ὑμῖν καθήκειν περὶ ταύτης τῆς ἀρχῆς ἀκριβεστέραν τὴν δοκιμασίαν ἢ περὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἀρχῶν ποιεῖσθαι. εἰ δὲ μή, πῶς οἴεσθε τὸ ἄλλο πλῆθος τῶν πολιτῶν διακείσεσθαι, ὅταν αἴσθωνται, ὃν προσῆκε δίκας τῶν ἡμαρτημένων διδόναι, τοῦτον ὑφʼ ὑμῶν τοιαύτης ἀρχῆς ἠξιωμένον; καὶ φόνου δίκας δικάζοντα, ὃν ἔδει αὐτὸν ὑπὸ τῆς ἐν Ἀρείῳ πάγῳ βουλῆς κρίνεσθαι; καὶ πρὸς τούτοις ἴδωσιν ἐστεφανωμένον, καὶ ἐπικλήρων καὶ ὀρφανῶν κύριον γεγενημένον, ὧν ἐνίοις αὐτὸς τῆς ὀρφανίας αἴτιος γεγένηται;
13. Do you not think they will show a resentful temper, and will hold you responsible for it all, when they put themselves back in those former times, in which many of them were hauled to prison and destroyed without trial by these men, or compelled to flee their own country; and when they further reflect that this same person, who has brought about the rejection of Leodamas, has caused this man to qualify, by acting as accuser of the former and undertaking the defence of the latter? And what is the attitude of Evandros towards the city? How many troubles has he brought upon her?
13. ἆρʼ οὐκ οἴεσθε αὐτοὺς χαλεπῶς διακείσεσθαι καὶ ὑμᾶς αὐτῶν αἰτίους ἡγήσεσθαι, ὅταν γένωνται ἐν ἐκείνοις τοῖς χρόνοις, ἐν οἷς αὐτῶν πολλοὶ εἰς τὸ δεσμωτήριον ἀπήγοντο καὶ ἄκριτοι ὑπὸ τούτων ἀπώλλυντο καὶ φεύγειν τὴν σφετέραν αὐτῶν ἠναγκάζοντο; κἀκεῖνο πρὸς ἐνθυμηθῶσιν, ὅτι ὁ αὐτὸς οὗτος ἀνὴρ [Θρασύβουλος] αἴτιος γεγένηται Λεωδάμαντά τε ἀποδοκιμασθῆναι καὶ τοῦτον δοκιμασθῆναι, τοῦ μὲν κατήγορος γενόμενος, ὑπὲρ τούτου δὲ ἀπολογήσασθαι παρασκευασάμενος, ὃς πῶς πρὸς τὴν πόλιν διάκειται καὶ πόσων αἴτιος αὐτῇ κακῶν γεγένηται;
14. Again, if you heed his words, what ill odor must you expect to incur! For, in the former case, they supposed it was anger that caused you to reject Leodamas; but if you approve this man, they will be convinced that you have given an unjust sentence on the other. These men are on their trial before you; but you are on yours before the whole city, which is watching even now to see what view you will take of her.
14. ἢ πιθόμενοι πῶς ἂν οἴεσθε διαβληθῆναι; τότε μὲν γὰρ ὑμᾶς ᾤοντο ὀργισθέντας Λεωδάμαντα ἀποδοκιμάσαι· ἐὰν δὲ τοῦτον δοκιμάσητε, εὖ εἴσονται ὅτι οὐ δικαίᾳ γνώμῃ περὶ αὐτοῦ κέχρησθε. ἔστι δὲ τούτοις μὲν πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἁγών, ὑμῖν δὲ πρὸς ἅπασαν τὴν πόλιν, ἣ σκοπεῖ νυνὶ τίνα ὑμεῖς γνώμην περὶ αὐτῆς ἕξετε.
15. Let none of you imagine that I am accusing Evandros to oblige Leodamas, because he is a friend of mine: no, it is only from my solicitude for you and for the city. This you may easily apprehend from the actual circumstances. For it is to Leodamas’s interest that this man should be approved, since that would most surely discredit you, and give you the repute of placing oligarchs instead of democrats in the magistracy; but it is to your interest to reject this man, for you will get the credit of having acted justly also in rejecting the other. But if you do not reject this man, you will appear to have been unjust in the other case also.
15. καὶ μηδεὶς ὑμῶν ἡγείσθω με Λεωδάμαντι χαριζόμενον κατηγορεῖν Εὐάνδρου, ὅτι φίλος ὢν τυγχάνει, ἀλλʼ ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν καὶ τῆς πόλεως προνοούμενον. ῥᾴδιον δʼ ἐξ αὐτοῦ τοῦ πράγματος μαθεῖν. Λεωδάμαντι γὰρ συμφέρει τοῦτον δοκιμασθῆναι, οὕτω γὰρ ὑμεῖς μάλιστα διαβληθήσεσθε, καὶ δόξετε ἀντὶ δημοτικῶν ἀνθρώπων ὀλιγαρχικοὺς εἰς τὰς ἀρχὰς καθιστάναι· ὑμῖν δὲ τόνδε ἀποδοκιμάσαι, δόξετε γὰρ κἀκεῖνον δικαίως [ἂν] ἀποδοκιμάσαι· ἐὰν δὲ μηδὲ τόνδε, οὐδʼ ἐκεῖνον δικαίως.
16. And yet, I am told, he will assert that this scrutiny affects, not merely him, but all those who remained in the city, and he will remind you of your oaths and covenants in the hope that he will thus contrive to enlist the men who remained in the city to aid him in this scrutiny. But I desire, on behalf of the people, to give him this brief reply: the people do not take the same view of all those who remained in the city, but regard those who commit offences like his with the feelings that I say they ought, while towards the rest they feel the opposite.
16. καίτοιγε αὐτὸν ἀκούω λέξειν ὡς οὐ περὶ αὐτοῦ μόνον ἡ δοκιμασία ἐστίν, ἀλλὰ περὶ πάντων τῶν ἐν ἄστει μεινάντων, καὶ τοὺς ὅρκους καὶ τὰς συνθήκας ὑμᾶς ὑπομνήσειν, ὡς ἐκ τούτων προσληψόμενον αὐτὸν δοκιμαστὰς τοὺς ἐν ἄστει μείναντας. ἐγὼ δʼ ὑπὲρ τοῦ πλήθους βραχέα πρὸς αὐτὸν εἰπεῖν βούλομαι, ὅτι ὁ δῆμος οὐ τὴν αὐτὴν γνώμην ἔχει περὶ πάντων τῶν ἐν ἄστει μεινάντων, ἀλλὰ περὶ μὲν τῶν τοιαῦτα ἐξαμαρτανόντων οἵαν ἐγώ φημι δεῖν, περὶ δὲ τῶν ἄλλων τὴν ἐναντίαν.
17. The proof of this is that the latter have received no less honor from the city than those who marched on Phyle and got possession of the Peiraeus. And with good reason: for the character of these last is known to them only as shown under democracy, and they have not yet made trial of what it would be under oligarchy; whereas they have had sufficient test of those others under each kind of government to give grounds for confidence.
17. τεκμήριον δέ· οὐ γὰρ ἔλαττον τούτους ἡ πόλις τετίμηκε τῶν ἐπὶ Φυλὴν ἐλθόντων καὶ τὸν Πειραιᾶ καταλαβόντων. εἰκότως· τοὺς μὲν γὰρ ἴσασιν ὁποῖοι τινες ἐν δημοκρατίᾳ μόνῃ γεγένηνται, ὁποῖοι δʼ ἄν τινες ἐν ὀλιγαρχίᾳ γένοιντο, οὔπω πεῖραν εἰλήφασι· παρὰ δὲ τούτων ἑκατέρας τῆς πολιτείας ἱκανὴν βάσανον ἔχουσιν, ὥστʼ εἰκότως πιστεύειν.
18. They consider that the arrests and executions were due to the defendant and his like, whereas the escapes were owing to the other citizens: in fact, if all had been of the same mind as they, neither exile nor restoration nor any other of the events that have occurred would have befallen the city.
18. καὶ ἡγοῦνταί γε διὰ μὲν τοὺς τοιούτους συλληφθέντας τότε ἀποθανεῖν, διὰ δὲ τοὺς ἄλλους [τοὺς συλληφθέντας] ἐκφυγεῖν, ἐπεὶ εἴ γε τὴν αὐτὴν γνώμην ἅπαντες ἔσχον, οὔτʼ ἂν φυγὴ οὔτʼ ἂν κάθοδος οὔτʼ ἄλλο οὐδὲν ἂν τῶν γεγενημένων τῇ πόλει συνέβη.
19. As to the further point which some find unaccountable,—how it was that their large numbers were worsted by the little band of the Peiraeus,—this can only be attributed to the prudent policy of those citizens; for they chose to concert a government with the restored exiles rather than an enslavement to the Lacedaemonians with the Thirty.
19. ἀλλὰ καὶ ὃ ἄλογον δοκεῖ εἶναι παρά τισιν, ὅπως ποτὲ πολλοὶ ὄντες ὑπʼ ὀλίγων τῶν ἐν Πειραιεῖ ἡττήθησαν, οὐδαμόθεν ἄλλοθεν ἢ ἐκ τῆς τούτων προνοίας γεγένηται· οὗτοι γὰρ εἵλοντο μετὰ τῶν κατελθόντων πολιτεύεσθαι μᾶλλον ἢ μετὰ τῶν τριάκοντα Λακεδαιμονίοις δουλεύειν.
20. It is therefore they, not these persons, whom the people have distinguished with the highest honors, appointing them to cavalry commands, generalships and embassies in their service; and they have never repented of it. Those who had committed numerous offences caused them to decree the institution of scrutinies; those who had done nothing of the sort, to make their covenants. So much for my reply to you on behalf of the people.
20. τοιγάρτοι ἀντὶ τούτων αὐτοὺς ὁ δῆμος ταῖς μεγίσταις τιμαῖς τετίμηκεν, ἱππαρχεῖν καὶ στρατηγεῖν καὶ πρεσβεύειν ὑπὲρ αὑτῶν αἱρούμενοι· καὶ οὐδέποτε αὐτοῖς μετεμέλησεν. καὶ διὰ μέν γε τοὺς πολλὰ ἐξαμαρτόντας τὰς δοκιμασίας εἶναι ἐψηφίσαντο, διὰ δὲ τοὺς μηδὲν τοιοῦτον πράξαντας τὰς συνθήκας ἐποιήσαντο. τοσαῦτά σοι ἐγὼ ὑπὲρ τοῦ δήμου ἀποκρίνομαι.
21. It is your business, gentlemen of the Council, to inquire whether you will reach a better decision in the matter of this scrutiny by listening to me or to Thrasybulus, who will defend this man. Well, concerning myself or my father or my ancestors he will have nothing to allege that points to hatred of the people. For he cannot say that I took part in the oligarchy, as I underwent the scrutiny for manhood at a later date than that; or that my father did either, since he died while holding command in Sicily, long before those seditions;
21. ὑμέτερον δὴ ἔργον ἐστίν, ὦ ἄνδρες βουλευταί, σκέψασθαι ποτέρῳ ἂν πιθόμενοι περὶ τῆς δοκιμασίας ταύτης ἄμεινον βουλεύσαισθε, πότερον ἐμοὶ ἢ Θρασυβούλῳ, ὃς αὐτῷ ἀπολογήσεται. περὶ μὲν οὖν ἐμοῦ ἢ τοῦ πατρὸς ἢ τῶν προγόνων οὐδὲν οὗτος εἰπεῖν ἕξει εἰς μισοδημίαν. οὔτε γὰρ ὡς ὀλιγαρχίας μετέσχον (ὕστερον γὰρ τῶν χρόνων τούτων ἀνὴρ εἶναι ἐδοκιμάσθην), οὔθʼ ὡς ὁ πατήρ (πρὸ γὰρ τῶν στάσεων πολὺ ἐν Σικελίᾳ ἄρχων ἐτελεύτησεν)·
22. or that my ancestors were subject to the despots, for they continually persisted in raising rebellion against them. Nor yet will he assert that we acquired our fortune in the war, and have spent nothing on the city: quite the contrary, our estate during the peace amounted to eighty talents, and the whole of it was spent in the war on the deliverance of the city.
22. οὐδʼ ὡς οἱ πρόγονοι ὑπὸ τοῖς τυράννοις ἐγένοντο· στασιάζοντες γὰρ πρὸς αὐτοὺς τὸν ἅπαντα χρόνον διετέλεσαν. ἀλλὰ μὲν δὴ οὐδὲ τὴν οὐσίαν ἡμᾶς ἐν τῷ πολέμῳ φήσει κτήσασθαι, εἰς δὲ τὴν πόλιν οὐδὲν ἀνηλωκέναι· πᾶν γὰρ τοὐναντίον, ἐν εἰρήνῃ μὲν ὀγδοηκοντατάλαντος ἡμῶν ὁ οἶκος ἐγένετο, εἰς δὲ τὴν τῆς πόλεως σωτηρίαν ἐν τῷ πολέμῳ ἅπας ἀνηλώθη.
23. But on my part I shall be able to tell of this person three things so grave in their enormity that each deed is worthy of death. First, for payment received, he raised a revolution in Boeotia, and deprived us of that alliance; second, he surrendered our ships and confronted the city with the problem of its safety;
23. ἐγὼ δὲ περὶ τούτου τρία ἕξω εἰπεῖν τηλικαῦτα τὸ μέγεθος, ὥστʼ ἄξιον εἶναι ἕκαστον ἔργον θανάτου· πρῶτον μὲν ὅτι τὴν ἐν Βοιωτοῖς πολιτείαν χρήματα λαβὼν μετέστησε καὶ τῆς συμμαχίας ἡμᾶς ταύτης ἀπεστέρησεν, ἔπειτα ὅτι τὰς ναῦς προὔδωκε καὶ τὴν πόλιν περὶ σωτηρίας βουλεύεσθαι πεποίηκεν, ἔπειτα ὅτι παρὰ τῶν αἰχμαλώτων, οὓς αὐτὸς ἀπώλεσε, τριάκοντα μνᾶς ἐσυκοφάντησεν, οὐ φάσκων αὐτοὺς λύσεσθαι, εἰ μὴ τοῦτο αὐτῷ παρὰ σφῶν αὐτῶν παράσχοιεν.
24. and last, from the prisoners of war, whose loss he himself had caused, he extracted a bribe of thirty minae, by declaring that he would not obtain their release unless they supplied him with this sum from their own pockets. So now you are acquainted with the life of each of us: decide accordingly which of us two you ought to believe regarding the scrutiny of Evandros, and by so doing you will avoid mistake.
24. συνειδότες οὖν ἡμῶν ἑκατέρῳ τὸν βίον, πρὸς ταῦτα βουλεύεσθε ὁποτέρῳ χρὴ πιστεύειν περὶ τῆς Εὐάνδρου δοκιμασίας, καὶ οὕτως οὐκ ἐξαμαρτήσεσθε.