- Source
- Polybius. Vols. 1-4. Büttner-Wobst, Theodor, editor. Leipzig: Teubner, 1893.
- 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:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:1.15.1-1.15.13
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-12
The author (Polybius) points out a decisive self-contradiction in the historian Philinus's narrative regarding the battle outcomes between the Romans and the allied forces. He then concludes his digression and returns to the main historical narrative.
ἡμῶν εἰρημένα σκοπεῖν ἐκ τούτων πάρεστιν. ὁ γὰρ Φιλῖνος ἀρχόμενος ἅμα τῶν πραγμάτων καὶ τῆς δευτέρας βύβλου φησὶ προσκαθῆσθαι τῇ Μεσσήνῃ πολεμοῦντας τούς τε Καρχηδονίους καὶ τοὺς Συρακοσίους, παραγενομένους δὲ τοὺς Ῥωμαίους κατὰ θάλατταν εἰς τὴν πόλιν εὐθὺς ἐξελθεῖν ἐπὶ τοὺς Συρακοσίους· λαβόντας δὲ πολλὰς πληγὰς ἐπανελθεῖν εἰς τὴν Μεσσήνην· αὖθις δʼ ἐπὶ τοὺς Καρχηδονίους ἐκπορευθέντας οὐ μόνον πληγὰς λαβεῖν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ζωγρίᾳ τῶν στρατιωτῶν ἱκανοὺς ἀποβαλεῖν.
...what has been said by us can be examined from these facts. For Philinus, at the beginning both of the events and of his second book, says that the Carthaginians and the Syracusans were besieging Messene, and that the Romans, having arrived at the city by sea, immediately sallied out against the Syracusans; but having received many blows, they returned to Messene; and that having marched out again against the Carthaginians, they not only received blows but also lost a considerable number of their soldiers captured alive.
ταῦτα δʼ εἰπὼν τὸν μὲν Ἱέρωνά φησι μετὰ τὴν γενομένην συμπλοκὴν οὕτως ἔξω γενέσθαι τοῦ φρονεῖν1 ὥστε μὴ μόνον παραχρῆμα τὸν χάρακα καὶ τὰς σκηνὰς ἐμπρήσαντα φυγεῖν νυκτὸς εἰς τὰς Συρακούσας, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ φρούρια πάντα καταλιπεῖν τὰ κείμενα κατὰ τῆς τῶν Μεσσηνίων χώρας·
Having said this, he says that Hiero, after the clash that took place, became so out of his mind that he not only immediately burned his palisade and tents and fled by night to Syracuse, but also abandoned all the forts situated in the territory of the Messenians;
ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ τοὺς Καρχηδονίους μετὰ τὴν μάχην εὐθέως ἐκλιπόντας τὸν χάρακα διελεῖν σφᾶς εἰς τὰς πόλεις, τῶν δʼ ὑπαίθρων οὐδʼ ἀντιποιεῖσθαι τολμᾶν ἔτι· διὸ καὶ συνθεωρήσαντας τοὺς ἡγουμένους αὐτῶν ἀποδεδειλιακότας τοὺς ὄχλους βουλεύσασθαι μὴ κρίνειν διὰ μάχης τὰ πράγματα·
and likewise that the Carthaginians, immediately after the battle, abandoned their palisade and dispersed themselves into their cities, and no longer dared to dispute for the open country; wherefore their leaders, seeing that the multitudes had lost courage, resolved not to decide the issue by battle;
τοὺς δὲ Ῥωμαίους ἑπομένους αὐτοῖς οὐ μόνον τὴν χώραν πορθεῖν τῶν Καρχηδονίων καὶ Συρακοσίων, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰς Συρακούσας αὐτὰς προσκαθίσαντας ἐπιβαλέσθαι πολιορκεῖν.
and that the Romans, following them, not only plundered the territory of the Carthaginians and Syracusans, but also, sitting down before Syracuse itself, undertook to besiege it.
ταῦτα δʼ, ὡς ἐμοὶ δοκεῖ, τῆς πάσης ἐστὶν ἀλογίας πλήρη καὶ διαστολῆς οὐ προσδεῖται τὸ παράπαν.
This narrative, in my opinion, is full of complete contradiction and does not require any explanation at all.
οὓς μὲν γὰρ πολιορκοῦντας τὴν Μεσσήνην καὶ νικῶντας ἐν ταῖς συμπλοκαῖς ὑπέθετο, τούτους φεύγοντας καὶ τῶν ὑπαίθρων ἐκχωροῦντας καὶ τέλος πολιορκουμένους καὶ ταῖς ψυχαῖς ἀποδεδειλιακότας ἀπέφηνεν·
For those whom he assumed to be besieging Messene and conquering in the clashes, these he represented as fleeing, evacuating the open country, and finally being besieged and utterly cowed in spirit;
οὓς δʼ ἡττωμένους καὶ πολιορκουμένους ὑπεστήσατο, τούτους διώκοντας καὶ παραχρῆμα κρατοῦντας τῶν ὑπαίθρων καὶ τέλος πολιορκοῦντας τὰς Συρακούσας ἀπέδειξε.
while those whom he set down as defeated and besieged, these he showed to be pursuing, immediately mastering the open country, and finally besieging Syracuse.
ταῦτα δὲ συνᾴδειν ἀλλήλοις οὐδαμῶς δύναται· πῶς γάρ; ἀλλʼ ἀναγκαῖον ἢ τὰς ὑποθέσεις εἶναι τὰς πρώτας ψευδεῖς ἢ τὰς ὑπὲρ τῶν συμβαινόντων ἀποφάσεις.
These things can by no means harmonize with one another; for how could they? Rather, it is necessary that either the first assumptions are false, or the assertions about what happened.
εἰσὶ δʼ αὗται2 μὲν ἀληθεῖς· καὶ γὰρ ἐξεχώρησαν οἱ Καρχηδόνιοι καὶ Συρακόσιοι τῶν ὑπαίθρων, καὶ τὰς Συρακούσας ἐπολέμουν οἱ Ῥωμαῖοι κατὰ πόδας, ὡς δʼ οὗτός φησι, καὶ τὴν Ἐχέτλαν, ἐν μέσῃ κειμένην τῇ τῶν Συρακοσίων καὶ Καρχηδονίων ἐπαρχίᾳ.
But the latter are true; for the Carthaginians and Syracusans did evacuate the open country, and the Romans attacked Syracuse close on their heels, and, as this writer says, also Echetla, which lies in the middle of the Syracusan and Carthaginian province.
λοιπὸν ἀνάγκη συγχωρεῖν τὰς ἀρχὰς καὶ τὰς ὑποθέσεις εἶναι ψευδεῖς, καὶ νικώντων εὐθέως τῶν Ῥωμαίων3 ἐν ταῖς περὶ τὴν Μεσσήνην συμπλοκαῖς ἡττημένους αὐτοὺς ἡμῖν ὑπὸ τοῦ συγγραφέως ἀπηγγέλθαι.
Consequently, one is forced to admit that the beginnings and assumptions are false, and that, although the Romans immediately conquered in the clashes around Messene, they were reported to us by the historian as defeated.
Φιλῖνον μὲν οὖν παρʼ ὅλην ἄν τις τὴν πραγματείαν εὕροι τοιοῦτον ὄντα, παραπλησίως δὲ καὶ Φάβιον, ὡς ἐπʼ αὐτῶν δειχθήσεται τῶν καιρῶν.
Philinus, then, one would find to be of this character throughout his whole work, and likewise Fabius, as will be shown on the actual occasions.
ἡμεῖς δʼ ἐπειδὴ τοὺς ἁρμόζοντας πεποιήμεθα λόγους ὑπὲρ τῆς παρεκβάσεως, ἐπανελθόντες ἐπὶ τὰς πράξεις πειρασόμεθα προστιθέντες ἀεὶ τὸν ἑξῆς λόγον εἰς ἀληθινὰς ἐννοίας ἄγειν διὰ βραχέων τοὺς ἐντυγχάνοντας ὑπὲρ τοῦ προειρημένου πολέμου.
But since we have made the fitting remarks concerning our digression, we shall return to the actions and, by always adding the next part of the narrative, try to lead our readers briefly to a true understanding of the aforementioned war.
- 1.15.3ἔξω γενέσθαι τοῦ φρονεῖν
An idiomatic expression consisting of the infinitive γενέσθαι combined with the adjective ἔξω and the genitive of the articular infinitive τοῦ φρονεῖν, meaning literally "to get outside of thinking," i.e., "to lose one's mind" or "to be driven out of one's senses."
- 1.15.10αὗται
The feminine plural demonstrative pronoun αὗται refers to the latter of the two alternatives presented in §1.15.9, namely "the assertions about what happened" (τὰς ὑπὲρ τῶν συμβαινόντων ἀποφάσεις), meaning "these latter assertions are true."
- 1.15.11νικώντων εὐθέως τῶν Ῥωμαίων
A genitive absolute construction. Since it stands in logical contrast with the main accusative-with-infinitive clause ἡττημένους αὐτοὺς ἡμῖν ... ἀπηγγέλθαι ("that they were reported to us as defeated"), it is best interpreted here concessively ("although the Romans immediately conquered").