§49ἐγὼ δʼ εἰμὶ ἔμπορος, καὶ σὺ ἀδελφὸς καὶ κληρονόμος ἑνὸς τῶν ἐμπόρων, τοῦ λαβόντος παρʼ ἡμῶν τὰ ἐμπορικὰ χρήματα.
I am a merchant, and you are the brother and heir of one of the merchants, the one who received the commercial money from us.
ποῖ οὖν δεῖ ταύτην εἰσελθεῖν τὴν δίκην;
Where then should this suit be brought?
δίδαξον, ὦ Λάκριτε, μόνον δίκαιόν τι λέγων καὶ κατὰ τοὺς νόμους.
Instruct me, Lacritus, speaking only what is just and according to the laws.
ἀλλʼ οὐκ ἔστιν οὕτω δεινὸς ἄνθρωπος οὐδεὶς ὅστις ἂν περὶ τοιούτων πραγμάτων ἔχοι τι δίκαιον εἰπεῖν.
But there is no man so clever who would be able to say anything just about such matters.
§50οὐ τοίνυν ταῦτα μόνον, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, δεινὰ ἐγὼ πάσχω ὑπὸ Λακρίτου τουτουί, ἀλλὰ καὶ χωρὶς τοῦ ἀποστερεῖσθαι τὰ χρήματα καὶ εἰς τοὺς ἐσχάτους ἂν κινδύνους ἀφικόμην τὸ τούτου μέρος, εἰ μή μοι ἡ συγγραφὴ ἐβοήθει ἡ πρὸς τούτους, καὶ ἐμαρτύρει ὅτι εἰς τὸν Πόντον ἔδωκα τὰ χρήματα καὶ πάλιν Ἀθήναζε.
Therefore, gentlemen of the jury, not only do I suffer these terrible things from this Lacritus here, but apart from being defrauded of my money, I would also have run into the greatest dangers, as far as lay in his power, if the agreement made with them had not come to my aid and testified that I lent the money to the Pontus and back again to Athens.
ἴστε γάρ, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, τὸν νόμον ὡς χαλεπός ἐστιν, ἐάν τις Ἀθηναίων ἄλλοσέ ποι σιτηγήσῃ ἢ Ἀθήναζε, ἢ χρήματα δανείσῃ εἰς ἄλλο τι ἐμπόριον ἢ τὸ Ἀθηναίων, οἷαι ζημίαι περὶ τούτων εἰσίν, ὡς μεγάλαι καὶ δειναί.
For you know, gentlemen of the jury, how severe the law is, if any Athenian transports grain to any other place than Athens, or lends money to any other trading port than that of the Athenians, and what great and terrible penalties there are for these things.
§51μᾶλλον δὲ αὐτὸν ἀνάγνωθι αὐτοῖς τὸν νόμον, ἵνʼ ἀκριβέστερον μάθωσιν. ΝΟΜΟΣ
"ἀργύριον δὲ μὴ ἐξεῖναι ἐκδοῦναι Ἀθηναίων καὶ τῶν μετοίκων τῶν Ἀθήνησι μετοικούντων μηδενί, μηδὲ ὧν οὗτοι κύριοί εἰσιν, εἰς ναῦν ἥτις ἂν μὴ μέλλῃ ἄξειν σῖτον Ἀθήναζε, καὶ τἄλλα τὰ γεγραμμένα περὶ ἑκάστου αὐτῶν.
Rather, read them the law itself, so that they may learn it more accurately. [LAW] "It shall not be lawful for any Athenian, or for any resident alien residing at Athens, or for anyone under their control, to lend money on any vessel which is not going to bring grain to Athens, and other things written concerning each of them.
ἐὰν δέ τις ἐκδῷ παρὰ ταῦτα, εἶναι τὴν φάσιν καὶ τὴν ἀπογραφὴν τοῦ ἀργυρίου πρὸς τοὺς ἐπιμελητάς, καθάπερ τῆς νεὼς καὶ τοῦ σίτου εἴρηται, κατὰ ταὐτά.
And if anyone lends contrary to these provisions, information and registration of the money shall be laid before the inspectors, in the same manner as has been said concerning the ship and the grain.
καὶ δίκη αὐτῷ μὴ ἔστω περὶ τοῦ ἀργυρίου, ὃ ἂν ἐκδῷ ἄλλοσέ ποι ἢ Ἀθήναζε, μηδὲ ἀρχὴ εἰσαγέτω περὶ τούτου μηδεμία. " §52ὁ μὲν νόμος, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, οὕτω χαλεπός ἐστιν· οὗτοι δὲ οἱ μιαρώτατοι ἀνθρώπων ἁπάντων, γεγραμμένον διαρρήδην ἐν τῇ συγγραφῇ Ἀθήναζε πάλιν ἥκειν τὰ χρήματα, εἰς Χίον ἐπέτρεψαν καταχθῆναι ἃ ἐδανείσαντο Ἀθήνηθεν παρʼ ἡμῶν.
And he shall have no right of action for the money which he lends to any other place than to Athens, nor shall any magistrate bring any suit into court concerning it." The law, gentlemen of the jury, is indeed so severe; but these men, the most abominable of all mankind, although it was expressly written in the agreement that the money should come back to Athens, permitted the money which they had borrowed from us at Athens to be brought into Chios.
δανειζομένου γὰρ ἐν τῷ Πόντῳ τοῦ ναυκλήρου τοῦ Φασηλίτου ἕτερα χρήματα παρά τινος Χίου ἀνθρώπου, οὐ φάσκοντος δὲ τοῦ Χίου δανείσειν, ἐὰν μὴ ὑποθήκην λάβῃ ἅπαντα ὅσα ἦν περὶ τὸν ναύκληρον, καὶ ἐπιτρέπωσι ταῦτα οἱ πρότερον δεδανεικότες, ἐπέτρεψαν ταῦτα ὑποθήκην γενέσθαι τῷ Χίῳ τὰ ἡμέτερα καὶ κύριον ἐκεῖνον γενέσθαι ἁπάντων, §53καὶ οὕτως ἀπέπλεον ἐκ τοῦ Πόντου μετὰ τοῦ Φασηλίτου ναυκλήρου καὶ μετὰ τοῦ Χίου τοῦ δεδανεικότος, καὶ ὁρμίζονται ἐν φωρῶν λιμένι, εἰς δὲ τὸ ὑμέτερον ἐμπόριον οὐχ ὡρμίσαντο.
For when the shipowner of Phaselis was borrowing other money in the Pontus from a certain Chian, and the Chian said he would not lend it unless he should receive as security everything that was in the possession of the shipowner, and those who had previously lent money should permit this, they permitted our money to become security to the Chian, and permitted him to become master of everything, and so they sailed away from the Pontus with the Phaselite shipowner and with the Chian who had lent the money, and they anchored in the Thieves' Harbor, but they did not anchor in your trading port.
καὶ νυνί, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, τὰ Ἀθήνηθεν δανεισθέντα χρήματα εἰς τὸν Πόντον καὶ πάλιν ἐκ τοῦ Πόντου Ἀθήναζε εἰς Χίον κατηγμένα ἐστὶν ὑπὸ τούτων.
And now, gentlemen of the jury, the money lent from Athens to the Pontus and back again from the Pontus to Athens has been carried to Chios by these men.
§54ὅπερ οὖν ἐν ἀρχῇ ὑπεθέμην τοῦ λόγου, ὅτι καὶ ὑμεῖς ἀδικεῖσθε οὐδὲν ἧττον τῶν δόντων ἡμῶν τὰ χρήματα.
This, then, is what I assumed at the beginning of my speech, that you also are wronged no less than we who lent the money.
σκοπεῖτε δέ, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, πῶς οὐκ ἀδικεῖσθε, ἐπειδάν τις τῶν νόμων τῶν ὑμετέρων κρείττων ἐγχειρῇ εἶναι, καὶ τὰς συγγραφὰς τὰς ναυτικὰς ἀκύρους ποιῇ καὶ καταλύῃ, καὶ τὰ χρήματα τὰ παρʼ ἡμῶν εἰς Χίον ᾖ διαπεσταλκώς, πῶς οὐκ ἀδικεῖ ὁ τοιοῦτος ἄνθρωπος καὶ ὑμᾶς;
And consider, gentlemen of the jury, how you are not wronged, when someone attempts to be superior to your laws, and makes maritime agreements invalid and destroys them, and has dispatched the money from us to Chios—how does such a man not wrong you also?
§55ἐμοὶ μὲν οὖν ἐστιν, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, πρὸς τούτους ὁ λόγος (τούτοις γὰρ ἔδωκα τὰ χρήματα)· τούτοις δʼ ἔσται πρὸς τὸν ναύκληρον ἐκεῖνον τὸν Φασηλίτην, τὸν πολίτην τὸν αὑτῶν, ᾧ φασὶν δανεῖσαι τὰ χρήματα ἄνευ ἡμῶν παρὰ τὴν συγγραφήν·
Therefore, gentlemen of the jury, my business is with these men (for to these I lent the money); but their business will be with that shipowner of Phaselis, their own fellow-citizen, to whom they say they lent the money without our consent, contrary to the agreement.
οὐδὲ γὰρ ἡμεῖς ἴσμεν τίνα ἐστὶν τὰ πεπραγμένα τούτοις πρὸς τὸν ἑαυτῶν πολίτην, ἀλλʼ αὐτοὶ οὗτοι ἴσασιν.
For we do not know what has been done between them and their fellow-citizen, but they themselves know.
§56ταῦτα ἡγούμεθα δίκαια εἶναι, καὶ ὑμῶν δεόμεθα, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, βοηθεῖν ἡμῖν τοῖς ἀδικουμένοις, καὶ κολάζειν τοὺς κακοτεχνοῦντας καὶ σοφιζομένους, ὥσπερ οὗτοι σοφίζονται.
We consider these things to be just, and we entreat you, gentlemen of the jury, to help us who are wronged, and to punish those who employ evil arts and play tricks, just as these men do.
καὶ ἐὰν ταῦτα ποιῆτε, ὑμῖν τε αὐτοῖς τὰ συμφέροντα ἔσεσθε ἐψηφισμένοι, καὶ περιαιρήσεσθε τῶν πονηρῶν ἀνθρώπων τὰς πανουργίας ἁπάσας, ἃς ἔνιοι πανουργοῦσι περὶ τὰ συμβόλαια τὰ ναυτικά.
And if you do this, you will have voted for what is for your own interest, and you will take away all the villainies of wicked men, which some practice regarding maritime contracts.