§799αὖθις τὸ κακὸν παρακύψαν ἰδεῖν.
to see the "evil" peeping out again.
οὕτως ἡμεῖς ἐπιδήλως §800ὑμῶν ἐσμεν πολὺ βελτίους, βάσανός τε πάρεστιν ἰδέσθαι.
Thus we are manifestly much better than you, and a test is at hand to see.
§801βάσανον δῶμεν πότεροι χείρους.
Let us put to the test which of us is worse.
ἡμεῖς μὲν γάρ φαμεν ὑμᾶς, §802ὑμεῖς δʼ ἡμᾶς.
For we say you are, and you say we are.
σκεψώμεθα δὴ κἀντιτιθῶμεν πρὸς ἕκαστον, §803παραβάλλουσαι τῆς τε γυναικὸς καὶ τἀνδρὸς τοὔνομʼ ἑκάστου.
Let us examine indeed and compare each against each, comparing the name of each woman and each man.
§804Ναυσιμάχης μέν γʼ ἥττων ἐστὶν Χαρμῖνος· δῆλα δὲ τἄργα.
Charminos, for instance, is inferior to Nausimache; and the deeds are clear.
§805καὶ μὲν δὴ καὶ Κλεοφῶν χείρων πάντως δήπου Ξαλαβακχοῦς.
And indeed, Cleophon is surely altogether worse than Salabaccho.
§806πρὸς Ἀριστομάχην δὲ χρόνου πολλοῦ, πρὸς ἐκείνην τὴν Μαραθῶνι, §807καὶ Ξτρατονίκην ὑμῶν οὐδεὶς οὐδʼ ἐγχειρεῖ πολεμίζειν.
Against Aristomache, moreover, for a long time—against her, the one at Marathon— and Stratonike, not one of you even attempts to compete.
But is any of last year's councillors better than Euboule, who handed over his office to another?
οὐδʼ αὐτὸς τοῦτό γε φήσεις.
Not even you yourself will say this.
§810οὕτως ἡμεῖς πολὺ βελτίους τῶν ἀνδρῶν εὐχόμεθʼ εἶναι.
Thus we boast that we are much better than the men.
§811οὐδʼ ἂν κλέψασα γυνὴ ζεύγει κατὰ πεντήκοντα τάλαντα §812ἐς πόλιν ἔλθοι τῶν δημοσίων· ἀλλʼ ἢν τὰ μέγισθʼ ὑφέληται §813φορμὸν πυρῶν τἀνδρὸς κλέψασʼ, αὐθημερὸν αὔτʼ ἀπέδωκεν.
Nor would a woman, having stolen fifty talents of public funds, come into the city with a carriage; but if she should purloin the greatest amount, stealing a basket of wheat from her husband, she gives it back on the very same day.
§814ἀλλʼ ἡμεῖς ἂν πολλοὺς τούτων §815ἀποδείξαιμεν ταῦτα ποιοῦντας. §816καὶ πρὸς τούτοις γάστριδας ἡμῶν §817ὄντας μᾶλλον καὶ λωποδύτας §818καὶ βωμολόχους κἀνδραποδιστάς.
But we could point out many of them doing these very things, and besides, that they are bigger gluttons than us, and cutpurses, and buffoons, and kidnappers.
§819καὶ μὲν δήπου καὶ τὰ πατρῷά γε §820χείρους ἡμῶν εἰσιν σῴζειν· §821ἡμῖν μὲν γὰρ σῶν ἔτι καὶ νῦν §822τἀντίον ὁ κανὼν οἱ καλαθίσκοι §823τὸ σκιάδειον· §824τοῖς δʼ ἡμετέροις ἀνδράσι τούτοις §825ἀπόλωλεν μὲν πολλοῖς ὁ κανὼν §826ἐκ τῶν οἴκων αὐτῇ λόγχῃ, §827πολλοῖς δʼ ἑτέροις ἀπὸ τῶν ὤμων §828ἐν ταῖς στρατιαῖς §829ἔρριπται τὸ σκιάδειον.
And indeed, surely, when it comes to preserving ancestral property, they are worse than us; for we still have safe and sound even now the loom-beam, the weaving rod, the baskets, and the parasol; but for these husbands of ours, for many of them, the weaving rod has been lost from their houses along with the spearhead itself, and for many others, from their shoulders during campaigns, the parasol has been flung away.
§830πόλλʼ ἂν αἱ γυναῖκες ἡμεῖς ἐν δίκῃ μεμψαίμεθʼ ἂν §831τοῖσιν ἀνδράσιν δικαίως, ἓν δʼ ὑπερφυέστατον.
We women could justly find many faults with the men, but one is most monstrous of all.
§832χρῆν γάρ, ἡμῶν εἰ τέκοι τις ἄνδρα χρηστὸν τῇ πόλει, §833ταξίαρχον ἢ στρατηγόν, λαμβάνειν τιμήν τινα, §834προεδρίαν τʼ αὐτῇ δίδοσθαι Στηνίοισι καὶ Σκίροις §835ἔν τε ταῖς ἄλλαις ἑορταῖς αἷσιν ἡμεῖς ἤγομεν·
For it was right, if any of us gave birth to a man useful to the city, a taxiarch or a general, that she should receive some honor, and that front-row seats should be given to her at the Stenia and the Skira, and at the other festivals which we celebrated.
§836εἰ δὲ δειλὸν καὶ πονηρὸν ἄνδρα τις τέκοι γυνή, §837ἢ τριήραρχον πονηρὸν ἢ κυβερνήτην κακόν, §838ὑστέραν αὐτὴν καθῆσθαι σκάφιον ἀποκεκαρμένην §839τῆς τὸν ἀνδρεῖον τεκούσης.
But if a woman should give birth to a cowardly and base man, either a worthless trierarch or a bad helmsman, she ought to sit behind, with her hair cropped close in a bowl-cut, behind the one who gave birth to the brave man.
τῷ γὰρ εἰκὸς ὦ πόλις §840τὴν Ὑπερβόλου καθῆσθαι μητέρʼ ἠμφιεσμένην §841λευκὰ καὶ κόμας καθεῖσαν πλησίον τῆς Λαμάχου, §842καὶ δανείζειν χρήμαθʼ, ᾗ χρῆν, εἰ δανείσειέν τινι §843καὶ τόκον πράττοιτο, διδόναι μηδένʼ ἀνθρώπων τόκον, §844ἀλλʼ ἀφαιρεῖσθαι βίᾳ τὰ χρήματʼ εἰπόντας τοδί, §845ἀξία γοῦν εἶ τόκου τεκοῦσα τοιοῦτον τόκον. §846ἰλλὸς γεγένημαι προσδοκῶν· ὁ δʼ οὐδέπω.
For how is it reasonable, O city, for the mother of Hyperbolos to sit clothed in white and with her hair let down, near the mother of Lamachus, and to lend money, whereas she ought—if she should lend to anyone and demand interest, no man should pay her interest, but they should take away the money by force, saying this: "You are indeed worthy of interest, having given birth to such an offspring." Relative: I have gone squint-eyed with waiting; but he is not here yet.
§847τί δῆτʼ ἂν εἴη τοὐμποδών;
What then could be the obstacle?
οὐκ ἔσθʼ ὅπως §848οὐ τὸν Παλαμήδην ψυχρὸν ὄντʼ αἰσχύνεται.
There is no way he is not ashamed of the Palamedes, because it was cold.
§849τῷ δῆτʼ ἂν αὐτὸν προσαγαγοίμην δράματι;
By what drama then could I draw him here?
§850ἐγᾦδα·
I know!
τὴν καινὴν Ἑλένην μιμήσομαι.
I will imitate the new Helen.
§851πάντως ὑπάρχει μοι γυναικεία στολή.
At any rate, I have a woman's costume ready.
§852τί αὖ σὺ κυρκανᾷς;
Mikka: What are you stirring up again?
τί κοικύλλεις ἔχων;
Why do you keep peering around?
You will soon see a bitter Helen, unless you behave, until one of the prytaneis appears.
§855Νείλου μὲν αἵδε καλλιπάρθενοι ῥοαί, §856ὃς ἀντὶ δίας ψακάδος Αἰγύπτου πέδον §857λευκῆς νοτίζει μελανοσυρμαῖον λεών.
Relative: These are the fair-virgin streams of the Nile, which, instead of heavenly rain, moistens the plain of Egypt, the white plain, and its black-muck-swept people.
§858πανοῦργος εἶ νὴ τὴν Ἑκάτην τὴν φωσφόρον.
Mikka: You are a scoundrel, by Hecate the light-bringer!
Relative: And to me, my fatherland is no nameless land, Sparta, and my father is Tyndareus.
§860bσοί γʼ ὦλεθρε
Mikka: For you, you pest?
§861πατὴρ ἐκεῖνός ἐστι;
Is he your father?
Φρυνώνδας μὲν οὖν.
Phrynondas more like!
§862Ἑλένη δʼ ἐκλήθην.
Relative: And I was called Helen.
Mikka: Again you become a woman, before paying the penalty for your other woman-impersonation?
Relative: And many souls died because of me by the streams of Scamander.
§865bὤφελες δὲ καὶ σύ γε.
Mikka: And you ought to have died as well!
Relative: And I indeed am here; but my wretched husband, my Menelaus, does not arrive yet.
§868τί οὖν ἔτι ζῶ;
Why then do I still live?
§868bτῶν κοράκων πονηρίᾳ.
Mikka: Because of the laziness of the crows!
§869ἀλλʼ ὥσπερ αἰκάλλει τι καρδίαν ἐμήν.
Relative: But something, as it were, flatters my heart.
§870μὴ ψεῦσον ὦ Ζεῦ τῆς ἐπιούσης ἐλπίδος.
O Zeus, do not cheat me of my oncoming hope!