- Source
- Thucydides. Historiae, Vol 1-2. Jones, Henry Stuart, editor. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1910. (1942 printing).
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0003.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:7.14.1-7.14.4
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-08
Nicias candidly reports to Athens the harsh reality of their situation, including the weakening of the crews, the difficulty of commanding them, and the lack of reinforcements. He warns that if their supply locations in Italy defect to the enemy, defeat will be inevitable, and emphasizes the safety of telling the truth.
ἐπισταμένοις δ’ ὑμῖν γράφω ὅτι βραχεῖα ἀκμὴ πληρώματος καὶ ὀλίγοι τῶν ναυτῶν οἱ ἐξορμῶντές τε ναῦν καὶ ξυνέχοντες τὴν εἰρεσίαν.
And I write to you who well know that the prime of a crew is short-lived, and that those of the sailors who start a ship and keep the rowing together are few.
τούτων δὲ πάντων ἀπορώτατον τό τε μὴ οἷόν τε εἶναι ταῦτα ἐμοὶ κωλῦσαι τῷ στρατηγῷ (χαλεπαὶ γὰρ αἱ ὑμέτεραι φύσεις ἄρξαι)1 καὶ ὅτι2 οὐδ’ ὁπόθεν ἐπιπληρωσόμεθα τὰς ναῦς ἔχομεν, ὃ τοῖς πολεμίοις πολλαχόθεν ὑπάρχει, ἀλλ’ ἀνάγκη ἀφ’ ὧν ἔχοντες ἤλθομεν τά τε ὄντα καὶ ἀπαναλισκόμενα γίγνεσθαι· αἱ γὰρ νῦν οὖσαι πόλεις ξύμμαχοι ἀδύνατοι Νάξος καὶ Κατάνη.
And the most difficult of all these things is both that it is impossible for me, the general, to prevent these things (for your tempers are difficult to command) and that we do not even have anywhere from which we can reinforce our crews—which is open to the enemy from many quarters—but it is necessary that both our present strength and what is being wasted must come from what we brought with us; for the cities that are now our allies, Naxos and Catana, are powerless.
εἰ δὲ προσγενήσεται ἓν ἔτι τοῖς πολεμίοις, ὥστε τὰ τρέφοντα ἡμᾶς χωρία τῆς Ἰταλίας, ὁρῶντα3 ἐν ᾧ τ’ ἐσμὲν καὶ ὑμῶν μὴ ἐπιβοηθούντων, πρὸς ἐκείνους χωρῆσαι, διαπεπολεμήσεται αὐτοῖς ἀμαχεὶ ἐκπολιορκηθέντων ἡμῶν [ὁ πόλεμος ].
And if one more advantage is added to the enemy, so that the places in Italy which supply us with food, seeing what a state we are in and that you are sending no reinforcement, should go over to them, the war will have been completely won by them without a battle, since we shall have been starved out.
‘τούτων ἐγὼ ἡδίω μὲν ἂν εἶχον4 ὑμῖν ἕτερα ἐπιστέλλειν, οὐ μέντοι χρησιμώτερά γε, εἰ δεῖ σαφῶς εἰδότας τὰ ἐνθάδε βουλεύσασθαι. καὶ ἅμα τὰς φύσεις ἐπιστάμενος ὑμῶν, βουλομένων μὲν τὰ ἥδιστα ἀκούειν, αἰτιωμένων δὲ ὕστερον, ἤν τι ὑμῖν ἀπ’ αὐτῶν μὴ ὁμοῖον ἐκβῇ, ἀσφαλέστερον ἡγησάμην τὸ ἀληθὲς δηλῶσαι.
I could indeed have sent you other news more pleasant than this, but certainly not more useful, if you must deliberate with a clear knowledge of the situation here. And at the same time, because I know your tempers—that you wish to hear only what is most pleasant, but blame others afterwards if the result from it should turn out not to be the same—I thought it safer to reveal the truth.
- 7.14.2ἄρξαι
An infinitive of relation or explanation (epexegetical infinitive) limiting the adjective χαλεπαὶ (difficult), meaning 'difficult to rule or command'.
- 7.14.2τό τε μὴ οἷόν τε εἶναι... καὶ ὅτι...
The two nominal elements explaining ἀπορώτατον (the most difficult thing) are coordinated by τε... καί... (both... and...) using different grammatical constructions (anacoluthon or heterosis): an articular infinitive clause (τό ... εἶναι) and a ὅτι clause.
- 7.14.3ὁρῶντα
A neuter plural accusative present participle, agreeing in gender, number, and case with τὰ ... χωρία (neuter plural), which is the subject accusative of the infinitive within the ὥστε clause. This represents a personification where the 'places' (cities) in Italy are said to 'see' the situation.
- 7.14.4ἂν εἶχον
An indicative past with ἂν, representing a past potential or unfulfilled possibility (counterfactual) with an implied condition (such as 'if I had wished to do so'), meaning 'I could have (sent other news)'.