§3.1ἥ τε ἀτυχία ἀδικεῖται ὑπʼ αὐτοῦ, ἣν προϊστάμενος τῆς κακουργίας ἀφανίσαι τὴν αὑτοῦ μιαρίαν ζητεῖ·
His misfortune is treated unjustly by him, which he, setting before his wickedness as a shield, seeks to wipe out his own pollution.
ὑπό τε ὑμῶν οὐκ ἄξιος ἐλεεῖσθαί ἐστιν, ἀκούσιον μὲν τῷ παθόντι περιθεὶς τὴν συμφοράν, ἑκουσίως δὲ αὐτὸς εἰς τοὺς κινδύνους καταστάς.
And he is not worthy of being pitied by you, having inflicted an involuntary calamity upon the victim, while having voluntarily placed himself in these dangers.
ὡς μὲν οὖν ἀπέκτεινε τὸν ἄνδρα, ἐν τῷ προτέρῳ λόγῳ ἀπεδείξαμεν· ὡς δὲ οὐκ ὀρθῶς ἀπελογήθη, νῦν πειρασόμεθα ἐλέγχοντες.
That he killed the man, we demonstrated in the prior speech; that he has defended himself incorrectly, we shall now attempt to prove by refuting him.
§3.2εἴτε γὰρ προσιόντας τινὰς προϊδόντες οἱ ἀποκτείναντες αὐτοὺς ἀπολιπόντες ᾤχοντο φεύγοντες πρότερον ἢ ἀπέδυσαν, οἱ ἐντυχόντες ἂν αὐτοῖς, εἰ καὶ τὸν δεσπότην τεθνεῶτα ηὗρον, τόν γε θεράποντα, ὃς ἔμπνους ἀρθεὶς ἐμαρτύρει, ἔτι ἔμφρονα εὑρόντες, σαφῶς ἀνακρίναντες τοὺς ἐργασαμένους ἤγγειλαν ἂν ἡμῖν, καὶ οὐχ οὗτος ἂν τὴν αἰτίαν εἶχεν·
For if the killers, foreseeing some people approaching, had fled and gone away before stripping them, those who came upon them—even if they found the master dead—finding the servant still conscious, who was carried away alive and testified, would have clearly questioned him about the doers and reported to us, and this man would not have held the blame.
εἴτε ἄλλοι τινὲς ἕτερόν τι τοιοῦτον κακουργοῦντες ὀφθέντες ὑπʼ αὐτῶν, ἵνα μὴ γνωσθῶσι διέφθειραν αὐτούς, ἅμα τῷ τούτων φόνῳ τὸ κακούργημα ἂν ἐκηρύσσετο καὶ εἰς τούτους ἂν ἡ ὑποψία ἧκεν.
Or if some others, being seen by them while committing some other such crime, had destroyed them in order not to be recognized, the crime would have been proclaimed along with their murder, and the suspicion would have fallen upon those people.
§3.3οἵ τε ἧσσον κινδυνεύοντες τῶν μᾶλλον ἐν φόβῳ ὄντων οὐκ οἶδʼ ὅπως ἂν μᾶλλον ἐπεβούλευσαν αὐτῷ·
And those who are in less danger, I do not know how they would have plotted against him more than those who are in greater fear.
τοὺς μὲν γὰρ ὅ τε φόβος ἥ τε ἀδικία ἱκανὴ ἦν παῦσαι τῆς προμηθίας, τοῖς δὲ ὅ τε κίνδυνος ἥ τε αἰσχύνη μείζων οὖσα τῆς διαφορᾶς, εἰ καὶ διενοήθησαν ταῦτα πρᾶξαι, ἀρκοῦσα ἦν σωφρονίσαι τὸ θυμούμενον τῆς γνώμης.
For in the case of the latter, both fear and the injustice were sufficient to stop their prudence; whereas in the case of the former, both the danger and the shame, being greater than the dispute, even if they had intended to do these things, were sufficient to sober the anger of their mind.
§3.4οὐκ ὀρθῶς δὲ τὴν τοῦ ἀκολούθου μαρτυρίαν ἄπιστον λέγουσιν εἶναι.
And they are incorrect to say that the testimony of the attendant is unworthy of belief.
οὐ γὰρ ἐπὶ ταῖς τοιαύταις μαρτυρίαις βασανίζονται, ἀλλʼ ἐλεύθεροι ἀφίενται· ὁπόταν δὲ ἢ κλέψαντες ἀπαρνῶνται ἢ συγκρύπτωσι τοῖς δεσπόταις, τότε βασανίζοντες ἀξιοῦμεν τἀληθῆ λέγειν αὐτούς.
For slaves are not tortured for such testimonies, but are left free; but whenever they either deny having stolen or conceal something in conspiracy with their masters, it is then that we require them to speak the truth by torturing them.
§3.5οὐδὲ μὴν ἀπογενέσθαι ἢ παραγενέσθαι εἰκότερον αὐτόν ἐστιν.
Nor indeed is it more probable that he was absent than that he was present.
εἰ γὰρ ἀπεγένετο, τὸν μὲν κίνδυνον τὸν αὐτὸν ἔμελλε καὶ παρὼν κινδυνεύειν—πᾶς γὰρ αὐτῶν ληφθεὶς τοῦτον ἂν τὸν ἐπιβουλεύσαντα ἤλεγχεν ὄντα—τὸ δʼ ἔργον ἧσσον πράσσειν· οὐδεὶς γὰρ ὅστις τῶν παρόντων οὐκ ἂν ὀκνηρότερος εἰς τὴν πρᾶξιν ἦν.
For if he had been absent, he was bound to run the same danger as if he were present—for any of them, if caught, would have proved that he was the plotter—but he would have accomplished the deed less effectively; for there is no one among those present who would not have been more hesitant in the action.
§3.6ὡς δʼ οὐκ ἐλάσσω ἀλλὰ πολὺ μείζω τὸν ἀπὸ τῆς γραφῆς κίνδυνον ἢ τόνδε ἡγεῖτο εἶναι, διδάξω.
But that he considered the danger from the public suit to be not less, but much greater than this one, I will show.
τὸ μὲν ἁλῶναι καὶ ἀποφυγεῖν ἀμφοτέρας τὰς διώξεις ἐν ἴσαις ἐλπίσι θῶμεν αὐτῷ εἶναι.
Let us assume that his hopes of being convicted and of escaping both prosecutions were equal.
μὴ παραχθῆναι δὲ τὴν γραφὴν οὐδεμίαν ἐλπίδα εἶχε τούτου γε ζῶντος· οὐ γὰρ ἂν ἐπείθετο αὐτῷ· εἰς δὲ τόνδε τὸν ἀγῶνα ἥξειν οὐκ ἤλπισε· λήσειν γὰρ ἐδόκει ἀποκτείνας αὐτόν.
But he had no hope that the public suit would not be brought to trial as long as this man was alive—for he would not have yielded to him—whereas he did not expect to come into this trial; for he thought he would escape detection by killing him.
§3.7ἀξιῶν δὲ διὰ τὸ φανερὰν εἶναι τὴν ὑποψίαν αὐτῷ μὴ καταδοκεῖσθαι ὑφʼ ὑμῶν, οὐκ ὀρθῶς ἀξιοῖ.
And in claiming that because the suspicion against him was obvious, he should not be suspected by you, his claim is incorrect.
εἰ γὰρ τοῦτον ἐν τοῖς μεγίστοις κινδύνοις ὄντα ἱκανὴ ἦν ἡ ὑποψία ἀποτρέψαι τῆς ἐπιθέσεως, οὐδείς γʼ ἂν ἐπεβούλευσεν αὐτῷ· πᾶς γὰρ ἄν τις τῶν ἧσσον κινδυνευόντων, τὴν ὑποψίαν μᾶλλον τοῦ κινδύνου φοβούμενος, ἧσσον ἢ οὗτος ἐπέθετο αὐτῷ.
For if the suspicion had been sufficient to deter him from the attack when he was in the greatest dangers, no one would have plotted against him; for anyone among those in less danger, fearing the suspicion more than the danger, would have attacked him even less than this man did.
§3.8αἱ δʼ εἰσφοραὶ καὶ χορηγίαι εὐδαιμονίας μὲν ἱκανὸν σημεῖόν ἐστι, τοῦ δὲ μὴ ἀποκτεῖναι τἀναντία· περὶ γὰρ αὐτῆς τῆς εὐδαιμονίας τρέμων μὴ ἀποστερηθῇ, εἰκότως μὲν ἀνοσίως δὲ ἀπέκτεινε τὸν ἄνδρα.
Property taxes and choregies are a sufficient sign of wealth, but of not having killed, quite the contrary; for trembling lest he be deprived of this very wealth, he killed the man, plausibly though impiously.
φάσκων δὲ οὐ τοὺς εἰκότως ἀλλʼ ὄντως ἀποκτείναντας φονέας εἶναι, περὶ μὲν τῶν ἀποκτεινάντων ὀρθῶς λέγει, εἴπερ ἐγένετο φανερὸν ἡμῖν τίνες ἦσαν οἱ ἀποκτείναντες αὐτόν· μὴ δεδηλωμένων δὲ τῶν ἀποκτεινάντων, ὑπὸ τῶν εἰκότων ἐλεγχόμενος οὗτος ἂν καὶ οὐδεὶς ἕτερος ὁ ἀποκτείνας αὐτὸν εἴη.
And in claiming that not those who are likely, but those who actually killed are the murderers, he speaks correctly regarding the killers, if indeed it had become manifest to us who those were who killed him; but since the killers have not been revealed, this man, being convicted by the probabilities, and no other, would be the one who killed him.
οὐ γὰρ ἐπὶ μαρτύρων ἀλλὰ κρυπτόμενα πράσσεται τὰ τοιαῦτα.
For such things are not done before witnesses, but in secret.
§3.9οὕτω δὲ φανερῶς ἐκ τῆς αὑτοῦ ἀπολογίας ἐλεγχθεὶς διαφθείρας αὐτόν, οὐδὲν ἕτερον ὑμῶν δεῖται ἢ τὴν αὑτοῦ μιαρίαν εἰς ὑμᾶς αὐτοὺς ἐκτρέψαι.
Thus clearly convicted by his own defense of having destroyed him, he asks nothing else of you than to turn his own pollution onto yourselves.
ἡμεῖς δὲ ὑμῶν δεόμεθα μὲν οὐδέν, λέγομεν δʼ ὑμῖν, εἰ μήτε ἐκ τῶν εἰκότων μήτε ἐκ τῶν μαρτυρουμένων οὗτος νῦν ἐλέγχεται, οὐκ ἔστιν ἔτι τῶν διωκομένων ἔλεγχος οὐδείς.
But we ask nothing of you, yet we tell you: if this man is not now convicted either from the probabilities or from the testimonies, there is no longer any proof left against those who are prosecuted.
§3.10σαφῆ μὲν γὰρ τὸν θάνατον γιγνώσκοντες, φανερῶς δὲ τὰ ἴχνη τῆς ὑποψίας εἰς τοῦτον φέροντα, πιστῶς δὲ τοῦ ἀκολούθου μαρτυροῦντος, πῶς ἂν δικαίως ἀπολύοιτε αὐτόν;
For when you know the death is certain, and the tracks of suspicion clearly lead to this man, and the attendant testifies reliably, how could you justly acquit him?
ἀδίκως δʼ ἀπολυομένου τούτου ὑφʼ ὑμῶν, ἡμῖν μὲν προστρόπαιος ὁ ἀποθανὼν οὐκ ἔσται, ὑμῖν δὲ ἐνθύμιος γενήσεται.
And if he is unjustly acquitted by you, the deceased will not be a vengeful spirit against us, but will become a burden on your conscience.
§3.11ταῦτα οὖν εἰδότες βοηθεῖτε μὲν τῷ ἀποθανόντι, τιμωρεῖσθε δὲ τὸν ἀποκτείναντα, ἁγνεύετε δὲ τὴν πόλιν.
Knowing these things, therefore, aid the deceased, punish the killer, and purify the city.
τρία γὰρ ἀγαθὰ πράξετε· ἐλάσσους μὲν τοὺς ἐπιβουλεύοντας καταστήσετε, πλείους δὲ τοὺς τὴν εὐσέβειαν ἐπιτηδεύοντας, ἀπολύσεσθε δʼ αὐτοὶ τῆς ὑπὲρ τούτου μιαρίας.
For you will accomplish three good things: you will make plotters fewer, those who practice piety more numerous, and you yourselves will be acquitted of the pollution on his account.