§13ἄριστα ἐπιμελεῖσθαι·
...to take the best care.
ἔτι δὲ πρὸς τούτῳ δύο ἄνδρας, τὸν μὲν Ἐρεχθῇδος Ἀμεινίαν, ὃν αὐτοὶ οἱ φυλέται ἐψηφίσαντο συλλέγειν καὶ ἐπιμελεῖσθαι τῆς φυλῆς ἑκάστοτε, δοκοῦντα χρηστὸν εἶναι, τὸν δʼ ἕτερον. . . , τῆς Κεκροπίδος, ὅσπερ ἑκάστοτε εἴωθεν ταύτην τὴν φυλὴν συλλέγειν· ἔτι δὲ τέταρτον Φίλιππον, ᾧ προσετέτακτο ὠνεῖσθαι καὶ ἀναλίσκειν εἴ τι φράζοι ὁ διδάσκαλος ἢ ἄλλος τις τούτων, ὅπως ὡς ἄριστα χορηγοῖντο οἱ παῖδες καὶ μηδενὸς ἐνδεεῖς εἶεν διὰ τὴν ἐμὴν ἀσχολίαν.
And in addition to this, two men: one, Ameinias of the Erechtheis tribe, whom the tribesmen themselves elected by vote to collect and take care of the tribe on each occasion, since he was thought to be an honest man; and the other..., of the Cecropis tribe, who on each occasion was accustomed to collect this tribe; and furthermore, a fourth, Philippus, to whom it was assigned to purchase and spend whatever the teacher or anyone else of these should direct, so that the boys might be taken care of as well as possible and might lack nothing on account of my lack of leisure.
§14καθειστήκει μὲν ἡ χορηγία οὕτω.
Thus was the choregia established.
καὶ τούτων εἴ τι ψεύδομαι προφάσεως ἕνεκα, ἔξεστι τῷ κατηγόρῳ ἐξελέγξαι ἐν τῷ ὑστέρῳ λόγῳ ὅ τι ἂν βούληται [εἰπεῖν].
And if I am telling any falsehood about these matters for the sake of an excuse, the accuser is free to refute whatever he wishes [to say] in his later speech.
ἐπεί τοι οὕτως ἔχει, ὦ ἄνδρες· πολλοὶ τῶν περιεστώτων τούτων τὰ μὲν πράγματα ταῦτα πάντα ἀκριβῶς ἐπίστανται, καὶ τοῦ ὁρκωτοῦ ἀκούουσι, καὶ ἐμοὶ προσέχουσι τὸν νοῦν ἅττα ἐγὼ ἀποκρίνομαι, οἷς ἐγὼ βουλοίμην ἂν δοκεῖν αὐτός τε εὔορκος εἶναι καὶ ὑμᾶς τἀληθῆ λέγων πεῖσαι ἀποψηφίσασθαί μου.
For indeed, gentlemen, it is thus: many of those standing around here know all these matters accurately, and they hear the oath, and pay attention to what I answer, to whom I should wish myself to appear to be keeping my oath, and by speaking the truth to persuade you to acquit me.
§15πρῶτον μὲν οὖν ἀποδείξω ὑμῖν ὅτι οὔτʼ ἐκέλευσα πιεῖν τὸν παῖδα τὸ φάρμακον οὔτʼ ἠνάγκασα οὔτʼ ἔδωκα καὶ οὐδὲ παρῆ ὅτʼ ἔπιεν.
First then, I shall demonstrate to you that I neither ordered the boy to drink the drug, nor forced him, nor gave it, and was not even present when he drank it.
καὶ οὐ τούτου ἕνεκα ταῦτα σφόδρα λέγω, ὡς ἐμαυτὸν ἔξω αἰτίας καταστήσω, ἕτερον δέ τινα εἰς αἰτίαν ἀγάγω· οὐ δῆτα ἔγωγε, πλήν γε τῆς τύχης, ἥπερ οἶμαι καὶ ἄλλοις πολλοῖς ἀνθρώπων αἰτία ἐστὶν ἀποθανεῖν· ἣν οὔτʼ ἂν ἐγὼ οὔτʼ ἄλλος οὐδεὶς οἷός τʼ ἂν εἴη ἀποτρέψαι μὴ οὐ γενέσθαι ἥντινα δεῖ ἑκάστῳ. . . .
And I do not say these things so strongly for this reason, that I may place myself outside of blame and bring someone else into blame; certainly not I, except indeed for fortune, which I think is the cause of death for many other men; which neither I nor anyone else would be able to avert from happening, since it must happen to each....
"Μάρτυρες
" §16μεμαρτύρηται μὲν οὖν, ὦ ἄνδρες, περὶ τοῦ πράγματος ἃ ἐγὼ ὑμῖν ὑπεσχόμην·
"Witnesses" Witnesses then, gentlemen, have testified concerning the matter what I promised you; and from these very testimonies you must consider both what they swore in their solemn oath and what I swore, which of us swore more truly and in greater accordance with our oath.
ἐξ αὐτῶν δὲ τούτων χρὴ σκοπεῖν ἅ τε οὗτοι διωμόσαντο καὶ ἃ ἐγώ, πότεροι ἀληθέστερα καὶ εὐορκότερα. διωμόσαντο δὲ οὗτοι μὲν ἀποκτεῖναί με Διόδοτον βουλεύσαντα τὸν θάνατον, ἐγὼ δὲ μὴ ἀποκτεῖναι, μήτε χειρὶ ἐργασάμενος μήτε βουλεύσας.
For they swore that I killed Diodotus by planning his death, while I swore that I did not kill him, having neither done it with my hand nor planned it.
§17αἰτιῶνται δὲ οὗτοι μὲν ἐκ τούτων, ὡς αἴτιος ὃς ἐκέλευσε πιεῖν τὸν παῖδα τὸ φάρμακον ἢ ἠνάγκασεν ἢ ἔδωκεν· ἐγὼ δὲ ἐξ αὐτῶν τούτων ὧν αἰτιῶνται οὗτοι ἀποφανῶ ὅτι οὐκ ἔνοχός εἰμι· οὔτε γὰρ ἐκέλευσα οὔτʼ ἠνάγκασα οὔτʼ ἔδωκα· καὶ ἔτι προστίθημι αὐτοῖς ὅτι οὐ παρεγενόμην πίνοντι.
And they make their accusation from these things, on the ground that he is responsible who ordered the boy to drink the drug, or forced him, or gave it; but from these very things which they accuse me of, I shall show that I am not guilty; for I neither ordered, nor forced, nor gave it; and I further add for them that I was not present when he was drinking.
καὶ εἴ φασιν ἀδικεῖν εἴ τις ἐκέλευσεν, ἐγὼ οὐκ ἀδικῶ· οὐ γὰρ ἐκέλευσα.
And if they say that one does wrong if he ordered it, I do no wrong; for I did not order it.
καὶ εἴ φασιν ἀδικεῖν εἴ τις ἠνάγκασεν, ἐγὼ οὐκ ἀδικῶ· οὐ γὰρ ἠνάγκασα.
And if they say that one does wrong if he forced it, I do no wrong; for I did not force it.
καὶ εἰ τὸν δόντα τὸ φάρμακόν φασιν αἴτιον εἶναι, ἐγὼ οὐκ αἴτιος· οὐ γὰρ ἔδωκα.
And if they say that the one who gave the drug is responsible, I am not responsible; for I did not give it.
§18αἰτιάσασθαι μὲν οὖν καὶ καταψεύσασθαι ἔξεστι τῷ βουλομένῳ· αὐτὸς γὰρ ἕκαστος τούτου κρατεῖ·
To make accusations and to lie is indeed possible for anyone who wishes; for each man himself is master of this.
γενέσθαι μέντοι τὰ μὴ γενόμενα καὶ ἀδικεῖν τὸν μὴ ἀδικοῦντα οὐκ ἐν τοῖς τούτων λόγοις ἡγοῦμαι εἶναι, ἀλλʼ ἐν τῷ δικαίῳ καὶ τῷ ἀληθεῖ.
However, to make what did not happen happen, and to make one who did no wrong do wrong, is not, I believe, in their words, but in justice and truth.
ὁπόσα μὲν γὰρ λάθρᾳ πράττεται καὶ ἐπὶ θανάτῳ βουλευθέντα, ὧν μή εἰσι μάρτυρες, ἀνάγκη περὶ τῶν τοιούτων ἐξ αὐτῶν τῶν λόγων τῶν τε τοῦ κατηγόρου καὶ τοῦ ἀποκρινομένου τὴν διάγνωσιν ποιεῖσθαι καὶ θηρεύειν καὶ ἐπὶ σμικρὸν ὑπονοεῖν τὰ λεγόμενα, καὶ εἰκάζοντας μᾶλλον ἢ σάφα εἰδότας ψηφίζεσθαι περὶ τῶν πραγμάτων·
For concerning all things that are done in secret and planned with intent to kill, of which there are no witnesses, it is necessary to make the decision concerning such things from the words themselves of both the accuser and the respondent, and to hunt and suspect what is said even in small details, and to vote concerning the matters by guessing rather than by knowing clearly.
§19ὅπου δὲ πρῶτον μὲν αὐτοὶ οἱ κατήγοροι ὁμολογοῦσι μὴ ἐκ προνοίας μηδʼ ἐκ παρασκευῆς γενέσθαι τὸν θάνατον τῷ παιδί, ἔπειτα τὰ πραχθέντα φανερῶς ἅπαντα πραχθῆναι καὶ ἐναντίον μαρτύρων πολλῶν, καὶ ἀνδρῶν καὶ παίδων, καὶ ἐλευθέρων καὶ δούλων, ἐξ ὧνπερ καὶ εἴ τίς τι ἠδίκηκε, φανερώτατος ἂν εἴη, καὶ εἴ τις μὴ ἀδικοῦντα αἰτιῷτο, μάλιστʼ ἂν ἐξελέγχοιτο.
But where, in the first place, the accusers themselves admit that the death did not happen to the boy from premeditation nor from preparation, and then all the things done were done openly and in the presence of many witnesses, both men and boys, both free men and slaves, from whom, if indeed anyone had done any wrong, he would be most clearly manifest, and if anyone accused one who did no wrong, he would be most of all refuted.