§10ὡς μὲν τοίνυν, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, ἔφηνε Θεοκρίνης τὸ τοῦ Μίκωνος πλοῖον, καὶ ὡς ἐξέκειτο πολὺν χρόνον ἡ φάσις, καὶ ὡς εἰς τὴν ἀνάκρισιν καλούμενος οὐχ ὑπήκουσεν οὐδʼ ἐπεξῆλθεν, ἀκηκόατε μαρτυρούντων οὓς εἰδέναι μάλιστα προσήκει.
Thus, gentlemen of the jury, how Theocrines denounced the ship of Micon, and how the denunciation lay exposed for a long time, and how, when called to the preliminary inquiry, he did not respond nor prosecute, you have heard from the testimony of those who are most proper to know.
ὅτι δʼ οὐ ταῖς χιλίαις μόνον ἔνοχός ἐστιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀπαγωγῇ καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις ὅσα κελεύει πάσχειν ὁ νόμος οὑτοσὶ τὸν συκοφαντοῦντα τοὺς ἐμπόρους καὶ τοὺς ναυκλήρους, ῥᾳδίως ἐξ αὐτοῦ τοῦ νόμου γνώσεσθε.
And that he is liable not only to the thousand drachmas, but also to summary arrest and all the other penalties which this law commands that the one who maliciously accuses merchants and shipowners should suffer, you will easily learn from the law itself.
§11βουλόμενος γὰρ ὁ τὸν νόμον τιθεὶς μήτε τοὺς ἀδικοῦντας τῶν ἐμπόρων ἀθῴους εἶναι, μήτε τοὺς ἄλλους πράγματʼ ἔχειν, ἁπλῶς ἀπεῖπε τοῖς τοιούτοις τῶν ἀνθρώπων μὴ φαίνειν, εἰ μὴ πιστεύει τις αὑτῷ δείξειν ἐν ὑμῖν γεγενημένα περὶ ὧν ποιεῖται τὴν φάσιν·
For the lawgiver, wishing neither that those among the merchants who do wrong should go unpunished, nor that the others should be troubled, simply forbade such people from bringing a denunciation, unless one is confident in himself that he will prove before you that the events occurred about which he makes the denunciation.
ἐὰν δέ τις παρὰ ταῦτα ποιῇ τῶν συκοφαντούντων, ἔνδειξιν αὐτῶν εἶναι καὶ ἀπαγωγήν.
And if anyone among the malicious accusers should act contrary to these provisions, he ordained that there should be an information and summary arrest against them.
μᾶλλον δὲ λέγε τὸν νόμον αὐτόν· πολὺ γὰρ ἐμοῦ σαφέστερον διδάξει.
But rather, read the law itself; for it will instruct you much more clearly than I.
ΝΟΜΟΣ.
LAW.
§12ἀκούετε τοῦ νόμου ἃ κελεύει πάσχειν, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, τὸν συκοφάντην.
You hear, gentlemen of the jury, what the law commands the malicious accuser to suffer.
οὐκοῦν εἰ μέν τι πεποιηκότα τούτων ὧν ἔγραψεν ἐν τῇ φάσει Θεοκρίνης πεποιηκέναι τὸν Μίκωνα, καθυφεῖκε τὸ πρᾶγμα καὶ διαλέλυται πρὸς τὸν ἄνθρωπον, ἀδικεῖ πάντας ὑμᾶς καὶ δικαίως ὀφείλει τὰς χιλίας.
Therefore, if indeed Micon had done any of those things which Theocrines wrote in the denunciation that he had done, and Theocrines abandoned the case and came to terms with the man, he wrongs you all and justly owes the thousand drachmas.
εἰ δὲ πλεύσαντα αὐτὸν δικαίως οἷ προσῆκεν (ἔστω γὰρ ὁπότερον οὗτος βούλεται) φαίνει καὶ προσκαλεῖται, συκοφαντεῖ τοὺς ναυκλήρους, καὶ τὸν νόμον οὐ μόνον τὸν πρότερον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν ἀρτίως ἀναγνωσθέντα παραβέβηκεν, καὶ καταμεμαρτύρηκεν αὑτοῦ μηδὲν ὑγιὲς μήτε λέγειν μήτε πράττειν.
But if, when Micon had sailed justly to where he ought (for let it be whichever of the two this man wishes), Theocrines denounced and summoned him, he was maliciously accusing the shipowners, and has violated not only the former law but also the one just read, and has borne witness against himself that he says and does nothing sound.
§13τίς γὰρ ἂν παρεὶς τὸ δικαίως πράττοντα λαβεῖν τὸ μέρος τῶν χρημάτων κατὰ τὸν νόμον, διαλυσάμενος ἐβουλήθη μικρὰ κερδᾶναι καὶ τούτοις ἔνοχον αὑτὸν καταστῆσαι τοῖς νόμοις, ἐξόν, ὅπερ ἀρτίως εἶπον, τὰ ἡμίσεα τῶν φανθέντων λαβεῖν;
For who, letting slip the opportunity to receive a portion of the property by acting justly in accordance with the law, would have wished, by settling, to make a small gain and render himself liable to these laws, when it was permitted, as I just said, to receive half of what was denounced?
οὐδʼ ἂν εἷς, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, μὴ οὐ συνειδὼς ἑαυτῷ συκοφαντοῦντι.
Not a single person, gentlemen of the jury, unless he was conscious in his own mind that he was bringing a malicious accusation.
§14δύο μὲν τοίνυν οὗτοι νόμοι εἰσὶν οὓς παραβέβηκεν ὁ τοὺς ἄλλους παρανόμων γραφόμενος·
These, then, are two laws which have been violated by this man who indicts others for illegal proposals.
ἕτερον δὲ τρίτον, ὃς ὁμοίως κελεύει κατά τε τῶν ὀφειλόντων τῷ δημοσίῳ τὰς ἐνδείξεις τὸν βουλόμενον ποιεῖσθαι τῶν πολιτῶν, καὶ ἐάν τις ὀφείλῃ τῇ Ἀθηνᾷ ἢ τῶν ἄλλων θεῶν ἢ τῶν ἐπωνύμων τῳ.
And there is a third, which likewise commands that any of the citizens who wishes may bring informations against those who owe money to the treasury, and if anyone owes to Athena or to any other of the gods or to one of the eponymous heroes.
ὃ φανήσεται οὗτος, ὀφείλων καὶ οὐκ ἐκτετεικὼς ἑπτακοσίας δραχμάς, ἃς ὦφλεν ἐν ταῖς εὐθύναις τῷ ἐπωνύμῳ τῆς αὑτοῦ φυλῆς.
And this man will be shown to owe and not to have paid seven hundred drachmas, which he was fined in the audits to the eponymous hero of his own tribe.
καί μοι λέγε τοῦτʼ αὐτὸ τοῦ νόμου.
Read to me this very part of the law.
ΝΟΜΟΣ.
LAW.
§15ἐπίσχες.
Stop.
ἀκούεις, οὑτοσί, τί λέγει;
Do you hear, you there, what it says?
ἢ τῶν ἐπωνύμων τῳ
.
.
λέγε δὴ τὴν τῶν φυλετῶν μαρτυρίαν.
Read now the deposition of the tribesmen.
ΜΑΡΤΥΡΙΑ.
ταχύ γʼ ἂν οὗτος, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, ἀνθρώπων ὀλίγων φροντίσειεν ἢ τῶν τὸν πλεῖστον τοῦ χρόνου πλεόντων, ὥσπερ ὁ Μίκων, ὅστις τοὺς φυλέτας παρόντας οὔτʼ ἔδεισεν οὔτʼ ᾐσχύνθη, τοῦτο μὲν οὕτως αὐτῶν τὰ κοινὰ διοικήσας ὥστʼ ἐκείνους κλοπὴν αὐτοῦ καταγνῶναι, τοῦτο δὲ ὀφλὼν καὶ τοὺς νόμους ἀκριβῶς εἰδὼς ὅτι κωλύουσιν αὐτὸν γράφεσθαι γραφὰς ἕως ἂν ἐκτείσῃ, βιαζόμενος καὶ νομίζων δεῖν τοὺς μὲν ἄλλους τοὺς ὀφείλοντας μηδενὸς μετέχειν τῶν κοινῶν, αὑτὸν δὲ κρείττω τῶν νόμων εἶναι.
DEPOSITION.
§16φήσει τοίνυν τὸν πάππον, οὐχ αὑτὸν εἶναι τὸν ἐν τῷ γραμματείῳ γεγραμμένον, καὶ περὶ τούτου πολλοὺς ἐρεῖ λόγους, ὡς ἐκεῖνός ἐστιν.
Very likely indeed, gentlemen of the jury, would this man care for a few people or for those who sail for the greatest part of their time, like Micon—he who neither feared nor felt shame before his fellow tribesmen who were present, having on the one hand administered their common funds in such a way that they convicted him of embezzlement, and on the other hand, although he owed this debt and knew precisely that the laws prevent him from bringing public indictments until he pays, forcing his way and thinking that while other debtors must have no share in public affairs, he himself is superior to the laws.
ἐγὼ δὲ τὸ μὲν ἀκριβές, ὁπότερός ἐστιν, οὐκ ἔχω λέγειν·
He will claim, then, that it is his grandfather and not himself who is registered in the record, and will speak many words about this, to show that it is he.
εἰ δʼ οὖν ἐστιν ὡς οὗτος ἐρεῖ, πολὺ δικαιότερον εἶναι νομίζω καταψηφίσασθαι ὑμᾶς αὐτοῦ, εἰ ταῦθʼ οὕτως ἐστίν.
For my part, I cannot say for certain which of the two it is; but if, indeed, it is as he will claim, I think it is much more just for you to vote against him, if that is how matters stand.
§17εἰ γὰρ ὀφείλοντος αὐτῷ τοῦ πάππου πάλαι, καὶ τοῦ νόμου κελεύοντος κληρονομεῖν τοῦτον τῶν ἐκείνου, προσῆκον αὐτῷ μηδὲ πάλαι γράφεσθαι ἐγράφετο, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο οἰήσεται δεῖν ἀποφεύγειν ὅτι πονηρὸς ἐκ τριγονίας ἐστίν, οὐ δίκαια ἐρεῖ, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί.
For if, since his grandfather had long owed the debt, and the law commands him to inherit his grandfather's property, it was proper for him not to bring public indictments even long ago, yet he did bring them, and on this account he thinks he ought to escape punishment because he is a rogue of three generations, he will not be speaking justly, gentlemen of the jury.
ὡς οὖν καὶ παρʼ αὐτοῦ Θεοκρίνου ὁμολογεῖται τοῦτʼ εἶναι τὸ ὄφλημα καὶ κατετάξατο τοῖς φυλέταις ὑπὲρ αὑτοῦ καὶ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ, καὶ τοῖς βουλομένοις εὐορκεῖν οὐ καλῶς ἔχει ταύτην ἀπογιγνώσκειν τὴν ἔνδειξιν, λαβέ μοι τὸ ψήφισμα ὃ εἶπεν ἐν τοῖς φυλέταις Σκιρωνίδης.
To prove, therefore, that this debt is admitted even by Theocrines himself, and that he made arrangements with his fellow tribesmen on behalf of himself and his brother, and that it is not proper for those who wish to keep their oaths to acquit him of this information, take for me the decree which Scironides proposed among the tribesmen.