§41Λάκριτος δʼ οὑτοσί, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, οὐ τῷ δικαίῳ πιστεύων εἰσελήλυθε ταύτην τὴν δίκην, ἀλλʼ ἀκριβῶς εἰδὼς τὰ πεπραγμένʼ αὑτοῖς περὶ τὸ δάνεισμα τοῦτο, καὶ ἡγούμενος δεινὸς εἶναι καὶ ῥᾳδίως λόγους ποριεῖσθαι περὶ ἀδίκων πραγμάτων, οἴεται παράξειν ὑμᾶς ὅποι ἂν βούληται.
But this Lacritus here, gentlemen of the jury, has not entered upon this suit trusting in the justice of his cause, but because he knows full well what they have done regarding this loan, and because he thinks he is clever and can easily procure arguments in defense of unjust acts, he expects to lead you wherever he pleases.
ταῦτα γὰρ ἐπαγγέλλεται δεινὸς εἶναι, καὶ ἀργύριον αἰτεῖ καὶ μαθητὰς συλλέγει περὶ αὐτῶν τούτων ἐπαγγελλόμενος παιδεύειν.
For he professes to be clever in these very matters, and demands money and collects pupils, promising to instruct them in these very things.
§42καὶ πρῶτον μὲν τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς τοὺς αὑτοῦ ἐπαίδευσεν τὴν παιδείαν ταύτην, ἣν ὑμεῖς αἰσθάνεσθε πονηρὰν καὶ ἄδικον, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, δανείζεσθαι ἐν τῷ ἐμπορίῳ ναυτικὰ χρήματα καὶ ταῦτʼ ἀποστερεῖν καὶ μὴ ἀποδιδόναι.
And first of all, he gave his own brothers this education—which you, gentlemen of the jury, perceive to be wicked and unjust—namely, to borrow maritime money in the trading port, and then to defraud the lenders and not pay it back.
πῶς ἂν γένοιντο πονηρότεροι ἄνθρωποι ἢ τοῦ παιδεύοντος τὰ τοιαῦτα ἢ αὐτῶν τῶν παιδευομένων;
How could men become more wicked than either the one who teaches such things or those who are so taught?
ἐπεὶ δʼ οὖν δεινός ἐστιν καὶ πιστεύει τῷ λέγειν καὶ ταῖς χιλίαις δραχμαῖς ἃς δέδωκεν τῷ διδασκάλῳ, §43κελεύσατε αὐτὸν διδάξαι ὑμᾶς, ἢ ὡς τὰ χρήματα οὐκ ἔλαβον παρʼ ἡμῶν, ἢ ὡς λαβόντες ἀποδεδώκασιν, ἢ ὅτι τὰς ναυτικὰς συγγραφὰς οὐ δεῖ κυρίας εἶναι, ἢ ὡς δεῖ ἄλλο τι χρήσασθαι τοῖς χρήμασιν ἢ ἐφʼ οἷς ἔλαβον κατὰ τὴν συγγραφήν.
Since, however, he is clever and trusts in his eloquence and in the thousand drachmae which he has paid to his teacher, bid him instruct you, either that they did not receive the money from us, or that having received it they have paid it back, or that maritime agreements ought not to be valid, or that they had a right to use the money for some other purpose than that for which they received it according to the agreement.
τούτων ὅ τι βούλεται πεισάτω ὑμᾶς.
Let him convince you of whichever of these he pleases.
καὶ ἔγωγε καὶ αὐτὸς συγχωρῶ σοφώτατον εἶναι τοῦτον, ἐὰν ὑμᾶς πείσῃ τοὺς περὶ τῶν συμβολαίων τῶν ἐμπορικῶν δικάζοντας.
Indeed, I myself will concede that he is the wisest of men, if he can convince you who sit as judges on commercial contracts.
ἀλλʼ εὖ οἶδʼ ὅτι οὐδὲν ἂν τούτων οἷός τʼ εἴη οὗτος οὔτε διδάξαι οὔτε πεῖσαι.
But I know well that he would be able neither to instruct nor to convince you of any of these things.
§44χωρὶς δὲ τούτων, φέρε πρὸς τῶν θεῶν, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, εἰ τοὐναντίον συνεβεβήκει, μὴ ὁ τούτου ἀδελφὸς ὁ τετελευτηκὼς ἐμοὶ ὤφειλε χρήματα, ἀλλʼ ἐγὼ τῷ τούτου, τάλαντον ἢ ὀγδοήκοντα μνᾶς ἢ πλέον ἢ ἔλαττον, ἆρʼ ἂν οἴεσθε Λάκριτον τουτονί, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, τοὺς αὐτοὺς λόγους λέγειν οἷσπερ νυνὶ κατακέχρηται, ἢ φάσκειν αὑτὸν οὐκ εἶναι κληρονόμον ἢ ἀφίστασθαι τῶν τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ, καὶ οὐκ ἂν πάνυ πικρῶς εἰσπράττειν με, ὥσπερ καὶ παρὰ τῶν ἄλλων εἰσπέπρακται, εἴ τίς τι ἐκείνῳ τῷ τετελευτηκότι ὤφειλεν ἢ ἐν Φασήλιδι ἢ ἄλλοθί που;
Apart from these things, tell me, by the gods, gentlemen of the jury, if the reverse had happened, and his deceased brother had not owed money to me, but I to his brother, a talent or eighty minae, or more or less, do you think, gentlemen of the jury, that this Lacritus here would use the same arguments which he has now abused, or assert that he was not the heir or that he renounced his brother's estate, and would he not have exacted the money from me most ruthlessly, just as he has exacted it from others, if anyone owed anything to the deceased, whether in Phaselis or anywhere else?
§45καὶ εἴ γέ τις ἡμῶν φεύγων δίκην ὑπὸ τούτου παραγραφὴν ἐτόλμησε παραγράφεσθαι, μὴ εἰσαγώγιμον εἶναι τὴν δίκην, εὖ οἶδʼ ὅτι ἠγανάκτει ἂν αὐτὸς καὶ ἐσχετλίαζε πρὸς ὑμᾶς, δεινὰ φάσκων πάσχειν καὶ παρανομεῖσθαι, εἰ μή τις αὐτῷ τὴν δίκην ψηφιεῖται εἰσαγώγιμον εἶναι, ἐμπορικὴν οὖσαν.
And if any of us, when sued by him, had dared to enter a special plea of exception that the action was not maintainable, I know well that he would have been indignant and would have complained bitterly to you, declaring that he was suffering outrage and illegal treatment if the court should not vote that his action, being a commercial one, was maintainable.
ἔπειτα, ὦ Λάκριτε, σοὶ μὲν τοῦτο δίκαιον δοκεῖ εἶναι, ἐμοὶ δὲ διὰ τί οὐκ ἔσται;
Then, Lacritus, does this seem just to you, but why shall it not be just for me?
οὐχ ἅπασιν ἡμῖν οἱ αὐτοὶ νόμοι γεγραμμένοι εἰσὶν καὶ τὸ αὐτὸ δίκαιον περὶ τῶν ἐμπορικῶν δικῶν;
Have not the same laws been written and the same justice established for all of us regarding commercial suits?
§46ἀλλʼ οὕτως βδελυρός τίς ἐστι καὶ ὑπερβάλλων ἅπαντας ἀνθρώπους τῷ πονηρὸς εἶναι, ὥστʼ ἐπιχειρεῖ πείθειν ὑμᾶς ψηφίσασθαι μὴ εἰσαγώγιμον εἶναι τὴν ἐμπορικὴν δίκην ταύτην, δικαζόντων ὑμῶν νυνὶ τὰς ἐμπορικὰς δίκας.
But he is so loathsome and surpasses all mankind in wickedness, that he attempts to persuade you to vote that this commercial action is not maintainable, even while you are now sitting to try commercial actions.
ἀλλὰ τί κελεύεις, ὦ Λάκριτε;
But what are you urging, Lacritus?
μὴ ἱκανὸν εἶναι ἡμᾶς ἀποστερεῖσθαι ἃ ἐδανείσαμεν χρήματα ὑμῖν, ἀλλὰ καὶ εἰς τὸ δεσμωτήριον παραδοθῆναι ὑφʼ ὑμῶν προσοφλόντας τὰ ἐπιτίμια, ἐὰν μὴ ἐκτίνωμεν.
That it is not enough for us to be defrauded of the money which we lent you, but that we must also be delivered to prison by you, being condemned to pay costs if we do not pay?
§47καὶ πῶς οὐκ ἂν δεινὸν εἴη καὶ σχέτλιον καὶ αἰσχρὸν ὑμῖν, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, εἰ οἱ δανείσαντες ἐν τῷ ἐμπορίῳ τῷ ὑμετέρῳ χρήματα ναυτικὰ καὶ ἀποστερούμενοι ὑπὸ τῶν δανεισαμένων καὶ ἀποστερούντων ἀπάγοιντο εἰς τὸ δεσμωτήριον;
And how could it fail to be monstrous, cruel, and a disgrace to you, gentlemen of the jury, if those who have lent maritime money in your trading port, and are defrauded by the borrowers who seek to cheat them, should be hauled off to prison?
ταῦτʼ ἐστίν, ὦ Λάκριτε, ἃ τουτουσὶ πείθεις.
These are the things, Lacritus, of which you are trying to convince these men.
ἀλλὰ ποῦ χρὴ λαβεῖν δίκην, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, περὶ τῶν ἐμπορικῶν συμβολαίων;
But where, gentlemen of the jury, ought one to seek justice regarding commercial contracts?
παρὰ ποίᾳ ἀρχῇ ἢ ἐν τίνι χρόνῳ;
Before what magistrate, or at what season?
παρὰ τοῖς ἕνδεκα;
Before the Eleven?
ἀλλὰ τοιχωρύχους καὶ κλέπτας καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους κακούργους τοὺς ἐπὶ θανάτῳ οὗτοι εἰσάγουσιν.
But they bring to trial housebreakers, thieves, and other malefactors who are subject to the death penalty.
§48ἀλλὰ παρὰ τῷ ἄρχοντι;
Then before the Archon?
οὐκοῦν ἐπικλήρων καὶ ὀρφανῶν καὶ τῶν τοκέων τῷ ἄρχοντι προστέτακται ἐπιμελεῖσθαι.
But the Archon is appointed to look after heiresses, orphans, and parents.
ἀλλὰ νὴ Δία παρὰ τῷ βασιλεῖ.
Then, by Zeus, before the King?
ἀλλʼ οὐκ ἐσμὲν γυμνασίαρχοι, οὐδὲ ἀσεβείας οὐδένα γραφόμεθα.
But we are not gymnasiarchs, nor are we indicting anyone for impiety.
ἀλλʼ ὁ πολέμαρχος εἰσάξει.
But the Polemarch will bring the action.
ἀποστασίου γε καὶ ἀπροστασίου.
Yes, in cases of desertion of a patron or having no patron.
οὐκοῦν ὑπόλοιπόν ἐστιν οἱ στρατηγοί.
Then the only remaining alternative is the Generals.
ἀλλὰ τοὺς τριηράρχους καθιστᾶσιν, ἐμπορικὴν δὲ δίκην οὐδεμίαν εἰσάγουσιν.
But they appoint the trierarchs, and bring no commercial actions into court.