§29ἔτι δʼ, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, τὸν μὲν τῶν ἐτῶν χρόνον οὐδεὶς οἶδεν ὑμῶν (ἐγὼ μὲν γὰρ ἐμοὶ πλείονα, οὗτος δʼ ἑαυτῷ φήσει), τὸν δὲ τοῦ δικαίου λόγον ἅπαντες ἐπίστασθε.
Furthermore, men of Athens, none of you knows the actual length of our years (for I will say that I have more, and this man will say he has more for himself), but you all understand the principle of justice.
ἔστι δʼ οὗτος τίς;
And what is this?
ἀφʼ οὗ παῖδας ἐποιήσατο τούτους ὁ πατήρ, ἀπὸ τούτου καὶ νομίζεσθαι.
That from the time our father made them his children, from that time they should also be considered as such.
πρότερον τοίνυν ἔμʼ εἰς τοὺς δημότας ἐνέγραψε Μαντίθεον, πρὶν εἰσαγαγεῖν τοῦτον εἰς τοὺς φράτερας.
Now, he registered me first among the demesmen as Mantitheus, before introducing this man to the phratry-members.
ὥστʼ οὐ τῷ χρόνῳ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῷ δικαίῳ πρεσβεῖον ἔχοιμʼ ἂν ἐγὼ τοὔνομα τοῦτʼ εἰκότως.
Therefore, not only in time, but also by right, I would reasonably have the privilege of this name.
§30εἶεν.
Very well.
εἰ δέ τίς σʼ ἔροιτο,
εἰπέ μοι, Βοιωτέ, πόθεν νῦν Ἀκαμαντίδος φυλῆς γέγονας καὶ τῶν δήμων Θορίκιος καὶ υἱὸς Μαντίου, καὶ τὸ μέρος τῶν ὑπʼ ἐκείνου καταλειφθέντων ἔχεις; οὐδὲν ἂν ἄλλʼ ἔχοις εἰπεῖν, πλὴν ὅτι κἀμὲ ζῶν ἐποιήσατο Μαντίας. τί τεκμήριον, εἴ τίς σʼ ἔροιτο, ἢ μαρτύριόν ἐστί σοι τούτου; εἰς τοὺς φράτεράς μʼ εἰσήγαγε, φήσειας ἄν.
But if someone should ask you: "Tell me, Boeotus, how is it that you now belong to the Acamantid tribe, are a Thorician of the demes, the son of Mantias, and have a share of the property left by him?" you would have nothing else to say except: "Because Mantias made me his child while he was alive." "What proof or witness do you have of this?" if someone should ask you, "He introduced me to the phratry-members," you would say.
τί οὖν σʼ ἐνέγραψεν ὄνομα, εἴ τις ἔροιτο, Βοιωτὸν ἂν εἴποις· τοῦτο γὰρ εἰσήχθης.
"Under what name then did he register you?" if someone should ask, "Boeotus," you would say; for by this name you were introduced.
§31οὐκοῦν δεινὸν εἰ τῆς μὲν πόλεως καὶ τῶν ὑπʼ ἐκείνου καταλειφθέντων διὰ τοὔνομα τοῦτο μέτεστί σοι, τοῦτο δʼ ἀξιοῖς ἀφεὶς ἕτερον μεταθέσθαι σαυτῷ.
Is it not then strange if you share in the state and in the property left by him because of this name, but you think it right to cast this aside and assume another for yourself?
φέρʼ, εἴ σʼ ὁ πατὴρ ἀξιώσειεν ἀναστάς, ἢ μένειν ἐφʼ οὗ σʼ αὐτὸς ἐποιήσατʼ ὀνόματος, ἢ πατέρʼ ἄλλον σαυτοῦ φάσκειν εἶναι, ἆρʼ οὐκ ἂν μέτριʼ ἀξιοῦν δοκοίη;
Come, if your father should rise up and demand of you either to remain by the name under which he himself adopted you, or to claim that another is your father, would he not seem to demand what is reasonable?
ταὐτὰ τοίνυν ταῦτʼ ἐγώ σʼ ἀξιῶ, ἢ πατρὸς ἄλλου σεαυτὸν παραγράφειν, ἢ τοὔνομʼ ἔχειν ὃ ʼκεῖνος ἔδωκέ σοι.
Therefore, I demand these very same things of you: either register yourself under another father, or keep the name which he gave you.
§32νὴ Δίʼ, ἀλλʼ ὕβρει καὶ ἐπηρείᾳ τινὶ τοῦτʼ ἐτέθη σοι.
By Zeus, you may say that this name was given to you out of insolence and malice.
ἀλλὰ πολλάκις μέν, ὅτʼ οὐκ ἐποιεῖθʼ ὁ πατὴρ τούτους, ἔλεγον οὗτοι ὡς οὐδὲν χείρους εἰσὶν οἱ τῆς μητρὸς τῆς τούτου συγγενεῖς τῶν τοῦ πατρὸς τοῦ ἐμοῦ.
But many times, when our father was not adopting them, these people used to say that the relatives of this man's mother were in no way inferior to those of my father.
ἔστι δʼ ὁ Βοιωτὸς ἀδελφοῦ τῆς τούτου μητρὸς ὄνομα.
And "Boeotus" is the name of this man's mother's brother.
ἐπειδὴ δʼ εἰσάγειν ὁ πατὴρ τούτους ἠναγκάζετο, ἐμοῦ προεισηγμένου Μαντιθέου, οὕτω τοῦτον εἰσάγει Βοιωτόν, τὸν ἀδελφὸν δʼ αὐτοῦ Πάμφιλον.
When our father was forced to introduce them, since I had already been introduced before as Mantitheus, he introduced this man as Boeotus, and his brother as Pamphilus.
ἐπεὶ σὺ δεῖξον, ὅστις Ἀθηναίων ταὐτὸν ὄνομα τοῖς αὑτοῦ παισὶν ἔθετο δυοῖν· κἂν δείξῃς, ἐγὼ συγχωρήσω διʼ ἐπήρειάν σοι τοῦτο τοὔνομα θέσθαι τὸν πατέρα.
For show me, whoever of the Athenians gave the same name to two of his own children; and if you show me, I will concede that our father gave you this name out of malice.
§33καίτοι εἴ γε τοιοῦτος ἦσθα, ὥστε ποιήσασθαι μὲν σαυτὸν ἀναγκάσαι, ἐξ ὅτου δʼ ἀρέσεις ἐκείνῳ τρόπου μὴ σκοπεῖν, οὐκ ἦσθʼ οἷον δεῖ τὸν προσήκοντʼ εἶναι περὶ τοὺς γονέας, οὐκ ὢν δʼ οὐκ ἐπηρεάζου δικαίως ἄν, ἀλλʼ ἀπωλώλεις.
And yet, if you were such a person as to force him to adopt you, but not to consider by what means you might please him, you were not such as a relative ought to be toward parents; and not being such, you were not unjustly treated with malice, but would have been deservedly ruined.
ἢ δεινόν γʼ ἂν εἴη, εἰ κατὰ μὲν τῶν ὑπὸ τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ νομιζομένων παίδων οἱ περὶ τῶν γονέων ἰσχύσουσιν νόμοι, κατὰ δὲ τῶν αὑτοὺς εἰσβιαζομένων ἄκοντας ποιεῖσθαι ἄκυροι γενήσονται.
Or indeed, it would be strange if the laws concerning parents are to be valid against those children who are recognized by their father himself, but will become invalid against those who force themselves upon unwilling fathers to be adopted.
§34ἀλλʼ, ὦ χαλεπώτατε Βοιωτέ, μάλιστα μὲν ὧν πράττεις πάντων παῦσαι, εἰ δʼ ἄρα μὴ βούλει, ἐκεῖνό γε πρὸς Διὸς πείθου· παῦσαι μὲν σαυτῷ παρέχων πράγματα, παῦσαι δʼ ἐμὲ συκοφαντῶν, ἀγάπα δʼ ὅτι σοι πόλις, οὐσία, πατὴρ γέγονεν.
But, most difficult Boeotus, above all things cease from all that you are doing; but if you do not wish to, at least be persuaded of this, by Zeus: cease from causing trouble for yourself, cease from slandering me, and be content that you have obtained a state, a property, and a father.
οὐδεὶς ἀπελαύνει σʼ ἀπὸ τούτων, οὔκουν ἔγωγε.
No one is driving you away from these, certainly not I.
ἀλλʼ ἂν μέν, ὥσπερ εἶναι φὴς ἀδελφός, καὶ τὰ ἔργʼ ἀδελφοῦ ποιῇς, δόξεις εἶναι συγγενής, ἂν δʼ ἐπιβουλεύῃς, δικάζῃ, φθονῇς, βλασφημῇς, δόξεις εἰς ἀλλότριʼ ἐμπεσὼν ὡς οὐ προσήκουσιν οὕτω χρῆσθαι.
But if, just as you say you are a brother, you also do the deeds of a brother, you will be thought to be a relative; but if you plot, bring lawsuits, envy, and slander, you will be thought to have fallen into what belongs to others and to treat it as not belonging to you.