§1190ἀλλʼ οὖν λέγειν χρή σʼ ὡς ἐμάχετό γʼ αὐτίκα §1191Ἐφουδίων παγκράτιον Ἀσκώνδᾳ καλῶς, §1192ἤδη γέρων ὢν καὶ πολιός, ἔχων δέ τοι §1193πλευρὰν βαθυτάτην καὶ χέρας καὶ λαγόνα καὶ §1194θώρακʼ ἄριστον.
Bdelycleon: Well, at any rate you must tell how Ephudion just now fought well in the pancratium against Ascondas, though already old and gray, yet having indeed a most deep rib-cage, hands, flank, and an excellent chest.
§1194bπαῦε παῦʼ, οὐδὲν λέγεις.
Philocleon: Stop, stop! You are talking nonsense.
§1195πῶς ἂν μαχέσαιτο παγκράτιον θώρακʼ ἔχων;
How could he fight in the pancratium wearing a breastplate?
§1196οὕτω διηγεῖσθαι νομίζουσʼ οἱ σοφοί.
Bdelycleon: That is how clever men are accustomed to narrate.
§1197ἀλλʼ ἕτερον εἰπέ μοι·
But tell me another thing.
When among strange men you are drinking, what deed of your youth do you think you would tell as your most manly exploit?
Philocleon: That one, that one indeed was the most manly of my deeds, when I stole the vine-props of Ergasion.
§1202ἀπολεῖς με.
Bdelycleon: You will destroy me!
ποίας χάρακας;
What vine-props?
Rather, tell how you once chased a wild boar, or a hare, or ran a torch-race, finding whatever was most vigorous.
§1205ἐγᾦδα τοίνυν τό γε νεανικώτατον· §1206ὅτε τὸν δρομέα Φάυλλον ὢν βούπαις ἔτι §1207εἶλον διώκων λοιδορίας ψήφοιν δυοῖν.
Philocleon: Well, then, I know the most vigorous deed of all: when, being still a big boy, the runner Phayllus I prosecuted for slander and won by two votes.
§1208παὖ·
Bdelycleon: Stop!
ἀλλὰ δευρὶ κατακλινεὶς προσμάνθανε §1209ξυμποτικὸς εἶναι καὶ ξυνουσιαστικός.
But recline here and learn further to be fit for a drinking-party and sociable.
§1210πῶς οὖν κατακλινῶ;
Philocleon: How then shall I recline?
φράζʼ ἀνύσας.
Tell me quickly.
§1210bεὐσχημόνως.
Bdelycleon: Gracefully.
§1211ὡδὶ κελεύεις κατακλινῆναι;
Philocleon: Do you bid me to recline like this?
§1211bμηδαμῶς.
Bdelycleon: By no means.
§1212πῶς δαί;
Philocleon: How then?
Bdelycleon: Stretch out your knees, and in athletic fashion, pour yourself fluidly onto the coverlets.
Then praise some of the bronze vessels, look at the ceiling, admire the tapestries of the courtyard.
§1216ὕδωρ κατὰ χειρός·
"Water for the hands!
τὰς τραπέζας ἐσφέρειν· §1217δειπνοῦμεν· ἀπονενίμμεθʼ· ἤδη σπένδομεν. §1218πρὸς τῶν θεῶν ἐνύπνιον ἑστιώμεθα;
Bring in the tables!" "We are dining; we have washed our hands; now we make libations." Philocleon: By the gods, are we feasting in a dream?
§1219αὑλητρὶς ἐνεφύσησεν·
Bdelycleon: The flute-girl has played.
οἱ δὲ συμπόται §1220εἰσὶν Θέωρος Αἰσχίνης Φᾶνος Κλέων, §1221ξένος τις ἕτερος πρὸς κεφαλῆς Ἀκέστορος.
The drinking-companions are Theorus, Aeschines, Phanus, Cleon, and some other stranger next to Acestor's head.
§1222τούτοις ξυνὼν τὰ σκόλιʼ ὅπως δέξει καλῶς.
See to it that you take up the drinking-songs well in company with these men.
§1223ἄληθες;
Philocleon: Really?
ὡς οὐδεὶς Διακρίων δέξεται.
No one of the Diacrians will take it up as well as I will!
§1224ἐγὼ εἴσομαι·
Bdelycleon: I shall find out.
καὶ δὴ γάρ εἰμʼ ἐγὼ Κλέων, §1225ᾄδω δὲ πρῶτος Ἁρμοδίου· δέξαι δὲ σύ.
For look, indeed, I am Cleon, and I sing first the song of Harmodius; and you take it up.
§1226οὐδεὶς πώποτʼ ἀνὴρ ἔγεντʼ Ἀθήναις
— §1227οὐχ οὕτω γε πανοῦργος οὐδὲ κλέπτης. §1228τουτὶ σὺ δράσεις;
"There never was any man born in Athens—" Philocleon: "—who was such a rogue or a thief!" Bdelycleon: "You will do this?
παραπολεῖ βοώμενος·
You will be utterly destroyed by his shouting!
§1229φήσει γὰρ ἐξολεῖν σε καὶ διαφθερεῖν §1230καὶ τῆσδε τῆς γῆς ἐξελᾶν. §1230bἐγὼ δέ γε, §1231ἐὰν ἀπειλῇ, νὴ Δίʼ ἕτερʼ ἀντᾴσομαι· §1232ὦνθρωφʼ, οὖτος ὁ μαιόμενος τὸ μέγα κράτος, §1235ἀντρέψεις ἔτι τὰν πόλιν· ἁ δʼ ἔχεται ῥοπᾶς. §1236τί δʼ ὅταν Θέωρος πρὸς ποδῶν κατακείμενος §1237ᾄδῃ Κλέωνος λαβόμενος τῆς δεξιᾶς· §1238Ἀδμήτου λόγον ὦταῖρε μαθὼν τοὺς ἀγαθοὺς φίλει. §1239τούτῳ τί λέξεις σκόλιον; §1239bᾠδικῶς ἐγώ. §1240οὐκ ἔστιν ἀλωπεκίζειν, §1241οὐδʼ ἀμφοτέροισι γίγνεσθαι φίλον. §1242μετὰ τοῦτον Αἰσχίνης ὁ Σέλλου δέξεται, §1244ἀνὴρ σοφὸς καὶ μουσικός, κᾆτʼ ᾄσεται· §1245χρήματα καὶ βίαν §1246Κλειταγόρᾳ τε κἀμοὶ §1247μετὰ Θετταλῶν
—
For he will say he will ruin you, destroy you, and drive you out of this land." Philocleon: "But for my part, if he threatens, by Zeus, I will sing another in reply:" "O man, you who are mad for great power," "you will yet overturn the city; and she is hanging on the scales." Bdelycleon: "And what when Theorus, reclining at Cleon's feet, sings, holding Cleon's right hand:" "'Learn the story of Admetus, my friend, and love the good.'?" "What skolion will you say to this man?" Philocleon: "In song-like fashion, I will sing:" "It is not possible to play the fox," "nor to be a friend to both sides." Bdelycleon: "After him, Aeschines the son of Sellus will take it up," "a wise and musical man, and then he will sing:" "'Wealth and power' 'to Cleitagora and me,' 'with the Thessalians—'" Philocleon: "—Many things indeed did you and I brag about." Bdelycleon: "This indeed you know reasonably well." "But let us see to it that we go to dinner at Philoctemon's house." "Boy, boy, Chrysus, pack up the dinner for us both, so that we may get drunk after a long time." Philocleon: "By no means." "Drinking is bad; for from wine comes breaking doors, and beating, and throwing things, and then paying out money as a result of a hangover." Bdelycleon: "No, not if you associate with fine and good men." "For either they beg off the victim, or you yourself tell some witty story, some funny Aesopic fable or Sybarite tale, of those you learned at the symposium; and then into a laugh you turn the matter, so that he lets you go and departs." Philocleon: "Then I must learn many stories," "if indeed I am to pay nothing if I do any mischief." Bdelycleon: "Come then, let us go.
§1248πολλὰ δὴ διεκόμπασας σὺ κἀγώ. §1249τουτὶ μὲν ἐπιεικῶς σύ γʼ ἐξεπίστασαι· §1250ὅπως δʼ ἐπὶ δεῖπνον ἐς Φιλοκτήμονος ἴμεν. §1251παῖ παῖ, τὸ δεῖπνον Χρυσὲ συσκεύαζε νῷν, §1252ἵνα καὶ μεθυσθῶμεν διὰ χρόνου. §1252bμηδαμῶς. §1253κακὸν τὸ πίνειν· ἀπὸ γὰρ οἴνου γίγνεται §1254καὶ θυροκοπῆσαι καὶ πατάξαι καὶ βαλεῖν, §1255κἄπειτʼ ἀποτίνειν ἀργύριον ἐκ κραιπάλης. §1256οὔκ, ἢν ξυνῇς γʼ ἀνδράσι καλοῖς τε κἀγαθοῖς. §1257ἢ γὰρ παρῃτήσαντο τὸν πεπονθότα, §1258ἢ λόγον ἔλεξας αὐτὸς ἀστεῖόν τινα, §1259Αἰσωπικὸν γέλοιον ἢ Συβαριτικόν, §1260ὧν ἔμαθες ἐν τῷ συμποσίῳ· κᾆτʼ ἐς γέλων §1261τὸ πρᾶγμʼ ἔτρεψας, ὥστʼ ἀφείς σʼ ἀποιχεται. §1262μαθητέον τἄρʼ ἐστὶ πολλοὺς τῶν λόγων, §1263εἴπερ ἀποτείσω μηδέν, ἤν τι δρῶ κακόν. §1264ἄγε νυν ἴωμεν· μηδὲν ἡμᾶς ἰσχέτω. §1265πολλάκις δὴ ʼδοξʼ ἐμαυτῷ δεξειὸς πεφυκέναι §1266καὶ σκαιὸς οὐδεπώποτε·
Let nothing hold us back." Chorus: Often indeed I have seemed to myself to be clever by nature, and never clumsy.
§1267ἀλλʼ Ἀμυνίας ὁ Σέλλου μᾶλλον οὑκ τῶν Κρωβύλων, §1268οὗτος ὅν γʼ ἐγώ ποτʼ εἶδον ἀντὶ μήλου καὶ ῥοᾶς §1269δειπνοῦντα μετὰ Λεωγόρου· §1270πεινῇ γὰρ ᾗπερ Ἀντιφῶν·
But Amynias, the son of Sellus, the one of the Crobylians, is more so— the one whom I once saw dining on an apple and a pomegranate instead of a proper meal with Leogoras; for he starves just like Antiphon.
§1271ἀλλὰ πρεσβεύων γὰρ ἐς Φάρσαλον ᾤχετʼ, εἶτʼ ἐκεῖ §1272μόνος μόνοις §1273τοῖς Πενέσταισι ξυνῆν τοῖς §1274Θετταλῶν, αὐτὸς πενέστης ὢν ἔλαττων οὐδενός.
But indeed he went on an embassy to Pharsalus, and then there, alone with the alone he associated with the Penestae of the Thessalians, being himself a poor man second to none.
§1275ὦ μακάριʼ Αὐτόμενες ὥς σε μακαρίζομεν,
O blessed Automenes, how we bless you!