§2.87.1‘ἡ μὲν γενομένη ναυμαχία, ὦ ἄνδρες Πελοποννήσιοι, εἴ τις ἄρα δι’ αὐτὴν ὑμῶν φοβεῖται τὴν μέλλουσαν, οὐχὶ δικαίαν ἔχει τέκμαρσιν τὸ ἐκφοβῆσαι. §2.87.2τῇ τε γὰρ παρασκευῇ ἐνδεὴς ἐγένετο, ὥσπερ ἴστε, καὶ οὐχὶ ἐς ναυμαχίαν μᾶλλον ἢ ἐπὶ στρατείαν ἐπλέομεν· ξυνέβη δὲ καὶ τὰ ἀπὸ τῆς τύχης οὐκ ὀλίγα ἐναντιωθῆναι, καί πού τι καὶ ἡ ἀπειρία πρῶτον ναυμαχοῦντας ἔσφηλεν. §2.87.3ὥστε οὐ κατὰ τὴν ἡμετέραν κακίαν τὸ ἡσσᾶσθαι προσεγένετο, οὐδὲ δίκαιον τῆς γνώμης τὸ μὴ κατὰ κράτος νικηθέν, ἔχον δέ τινα ἐν αὑτῷ ἀντιλογίαν, τῆς γε ξυμφορᾶς τῷ ἀποβάντι ἀμβλύνεσθαι, νομίσαι δὲ ταῖς μὲν τύχαις ἐνδέχεσθαι σφάλλεσθαι τοὺς ἀνθρώπους,ταῖς δὲ γνώμαις τοὺς αὐτοὺς αἰεὶ ὀρθῶς ἀνδρείους εἶναι, καὶ μὴ ἀπειρίαν τοῦ ἀνδρείου παρόντος προβαλλομένους εἰκότως ἂν ἔν τινι κακοὺς γενέσθαι. §2.87.4ὑμῶν δὲ οὐδ’ ἡ ἀπειρία τοσοῦτον λείπεται ὅσον τόλμῃ προύχετε· τῶνδε δὲ ἡ ἐπιστήμη, ἣν μάλιστα φοβεῖσθε, ἀνδρείαν μὲν ἔχουσα καὶ μνήμην ἕξει ἐν τῷ δεινῷ ἐπιτελεῖν ἃ ἔμαθεν, ἄνευ δὲ εὐψυχίας οὐδεμία τέχνη πρὸς τοὺς κινδύνους ἰσχύει.
'The sea-fight which has taken place, Peloponnesians, if any of you indeed is afraid of the coming one because of it, does not afford a just ground for being terrified. For it was deficient in preparation, as you know, and we were sailing rather for a military expedition than for a sea-fight; and it happened also that not a few things from fortune were adverse, and doubtless also inexperience, as we were fighting at sea for the first time, in some measure tripped us up. Therefore, the defeat did not occur through our cowardice, nor is it right that a spirit which was not defeated by superior force, but contains some ground for defense within itself, should be blunted by the outcome of the disaster; but rather we should believe that while it is possible for men to be tripped up in fortunes, they should always be rightly brave in their spirits, and that they should not, by putting forward inexperience while courage is present, think they would reasonably become cowards in any way. And your inexperience is not so far behind as you surpass them in daring; and their knowledge, which you especially fear, if indeed it has courage, will also have the presence of mind in danger to perform what it has learned, but without courage no skill has any strength against dangers.
φόβος γὰρ μνήμην ἐκπλήσσει, τέχνη δὲ ἄνευ ἀλκῆς οὐδὲν ὠφελεῖ. §2.87.5πρὸς μὲν οὖν τὸ ἐμπειρότερον αὐτῶν τὸ τολμηρότερον ἀντιτάξασθε, πρὸς δὲ τὸ διὰ τὴν ἧσσαν δεδιέναι τὸ ἀπαράσκευοι τότε τυχεῖν. §2.87.6περιγίγνεται δὲ ὑμῖν πλῆθός τε νεῶν καὶ πρὸς τῇ γῇ οἰκείᾳ οὔσῃ ὁπλιτῶν παρόντων ναυμαχεῖν· τὰ δὲ πολλὰ τῶν πλεόνων καὶ ἄμεινον παρεσκευασμένων τὸ κράτος ἐστίν. §2.87.7ὥστε οὐδὲ καθ’ ἓν εὑρίσκομεν εἰκότως ἂν ἡμᾶς σφαλλομένους· καὶ ὅσα ἡμάρτομεν πρότερον, νῦν αὐτὰ ταῦτα προσγενόμενα διδασκαλίαν παρέξει. §2.87.8θαρσοῦντες οὖν καὶ κυβερνῆται καὶ ναῦται τὸ καθ’ ἑαυτὸν ἕκαστος ἕπεσθε, χώραν μὴ προλείποντες ᾗ ἄν τις προσταχθῇ. §2.87.9τῶν δὲ πρότερον ἡγεμόνων οὐ χεῖρον τὴν ἐπιχείρησιν ἡμεῖς παρασκευάσομεν, καὶ οὐκ ἐνδώσομεν πρόφασιν οὐδενὶ κακῷ γενέσθαι· ἢν δέ τις ἄρα καὶ βουληθῇ, κολασθήσεται τῇ πρεπούσῃ ζημίᾳ, οἱ δὲ ἀγαθοὶ τιμήσονται τοῖς προσήκουσιν ἄθλοις τῆς ἀρετῆς. ’
For fear drives out presence of mind, and skill without valor is of no avail. Therefore, oppose your greater daring to their superior experience, and to your fear because of the defeat, oppose the fact of being unprepared at that time. Moreover, you have the advantage of a multitude of ships and of fighting near your own friendly land with hoplites present; and victory generally belongs to those who are more numerous and better prepared. So that we do not find even a single reason why we should reasonably be tripped up; and whatever errors we committed before will now, by being added to our experience, provide a lesson. Be of good courage, therefore, and let both helmsmen and sailors each follow his own duty, not leaving the post to which anyone may be assigned. And we shall prepare the undertaking no worse than our former leaders, and we will not give an excuse for anyone to behave like a coward; but if anyone indeed should wish to do so, he shall be punished with the proper penalty, while the brave shall be honored with the fitting rewards of valor.'