§7ἦν δέ, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, ὡς ἔοικεν, ἐνταῦθα ἡ ἐπιβουλὴ καὶ τὸ πλάσμα τὸ μέγα.
It was here, gentlemen of the jury, as it seems, that the conspiracy and the great fabrication lay.
εἰ μὲν γὰρ ἐπʼ ἐλευθερίᾳ καταβάλλοιμι αὐτῶν τὸ ἀργύριον, τοῦτο μόνον ἀπώλλυον ὃ δοίην αὐτῷ, ἀλλʼ οὐδὲν δεινὸν ἔπασχον·
For if I had paid down the money for their freedom, I should have lost only this sum which I gave him, but I should have suffered no other harm.
εἰ δὲ πριαίμην ὠνῇ καὶ πράσει, ὁμολογήσας αὐτῷ τὰ χρέα ἀναδέξεσθαι, ὡς οὐθενὸς ἄξια ὄντα, διὰ τὸ μὴ προειδέναι, καὶ τοὺς πληρωτὰς τῶν ἐράνων ἐν ὁμολογίᾳ λαβών· ὅπερ ἐποίησεν.
But if I should buy them by purchase and sale, having agreed to take over the debts as being worth nothing, because I had no foreknowledge, and having accepted the contributors to the loans in the agreement—which is just what he made me do [I was to suffer disaster].
§8ὡς γὰρ εἰπόντος αὐτοῦ ταῦτα ἐγὼ προσωμολόγησα, εὐθὺς ἐκ τῶν γονάτων λαβὼν τῶν αὑτοῦ γραμματεῖόν τι τὸ ἐγγεγραμμένον ἀνεγίγνωσκεν.
For when he said this and I agreed, he immediately took from his knees a document which had been written and began to read it.
ἦσαν δὲ αὗται συνθῆκαι πρὸς ἐμέ· ὧν ἐγὼ ἀναγιγνωσκομένων μὲν ἤκουον, ἔσπευδον μέντοι ἐφʼ ὃ ἧκον τοῦτο διοικήσασθαι, καὶ σημαίνεται τὰς συνθήκας εὐθὺς ἐν τῇ αὐτῇ οἰκίᾳ ἵνα μηδεὶς τῶν εὖ φρονούντων ἀκούσαι τὰ ἐγγεγραμμένα, προσεγγράψας μετʼ ἐμοῦ Νίκωνα τὸν Κηφισιέα.
These were the agreements made with me; to which, while they were being read, I listened indeed, but I was in a hurry to settle the business for which I had come, and the agreements were signed and sealed immediately in the same house, so that none of those of sound mind might hear what was written, with Nikon of Cephisia being registered along with me.
§9ἐλθόντες δʼ ἐπὶ τὸ μυροπώλιον τὸ μὲν γραμματεῖον τιθέμεθα παρὰ Λυσικλεῖ Λευκονοιεῖ, τὰς δὲ τετταράκοντα μνᾶς ἐγὼ καταβαλὼν τὴν ὠνὴν ἐποιησάμην.
Having gone to the perfume shop, we deposited the document with Lysicles of Leuconoe, and I, having paid down the forty minae, made the purchase.
τούτου δὲ γενομένου προσῄεσάν μοι οἱ χρῆσται οἷς ὠφείλετο παρὰ τῷ Μίδᾳ καὶ οἱ πληρωταὶ τῶν ἐράνων καὶ διελέγοντό μοι· καὶ ἐν τρισὶν μησὶν ἅπαντα τὰ χρέα φανερὰ ἐγεγόνει, ὥστʼ εἶναί μοι σὺν τοῖς ἐράνοις, ὅπερ καὶ ἀρτίως εἶπον, περὶ πέντε τάλαντα.
No sooner had this taken place than the creditors to whom money was owed by Midas and the contributors to the loans came to me and spoke to me; and within three months all the debts had become known, so that, including the loans, as I said just now, my liability was about five talents.
§10ὡς δʼ ᾐσθόμην οὗ ἦν κακοῦ, τότʼ ἤδη τοὺς φίλους καὶ τοὺς οἰκείους συνήγαγον καὶ τὰ ἀντίγραφα τῶν συνθηκῶν ἀνεγιγνώσκομεν·
When I realized what a terrible situation I was in, then at last I gathered my friends and relatives, and we read the copies of the agreements.
ἐν αἷς ἐγέγραπτο μὲν τὸ τοῦ Παγκάλου καὶ τοῦ Πολυκλέους ὄνομα διαρρήδην, καὶ ὅτι μύρων τιμαὶ ὠφείλοντο, ἃ ἦν βραχέα τε καὶ ἐξῆν αὐτοῖς εἰπεῖν ὅτι τὸ μύρον ἄξιον εἴη τοῦ ἀργυρίου τὸ ἐν τῷ ἐργαστηρίῳ, τὰ δὲ πολλὰ τῶν χρεῶν καὶ τὰ μέγιστα οὐκ ἐνεγέγραπτο ἐπʼ ὀνομάτων, ἀλλʼ ἐν προσθήκης μέρει ὡς οὐδὲν ὄντα,
καὶ εἴ τῳ ἄλλῳ ὀφείλει τι Μίδας. §11καὶ τῶν ἐράνων εἷς μὲν οὖν, [Δικαιοκράτης]; , ἐνεγέγραπτο, οὗ ἦσαν λοιπαὶ τρεῖς φοραί· οὗτος μὲν ἐπὶ τοῦ Δικαιοκράτους ὀνόματος ἦν γεγραμμένος, οἱ δʼ ἄλλοι, ἐφʼ οἷς εἰλήφει πάντα ὁ Μίδας, νεοσύλλογοι δʼ ἦσαν, τούτους δʼ οὐκ ἐνέγραψεν ἐν ταῖς συνθήκαις, ἀλλʼ ἀπεκρύψατο.
In these, the names of Pancalus and Polycles were indeed explicitly written, and that perfume prices were owed, which were small and about which they could say that the perfume in the workshop was worth the money; but the majority of the debts and the largest ones were not written down by name, but under the head of an addition, as if they were nothing, "and if Midas owes anything to anyone else." And indeed, one of the loans, that of [Dikaiocrates], was written down, of which three payments were remaining; this one was written under the name of Dikaiocrates, but the others, on which Midas had received everything, and which were newly collected, he did not write down in the agreements, but concealed them.
§12βουλευομένοις δʼ ἡμῖν ἔδοξεν πορεύεσθαι πρὸς τοῦτον καὶ διαλέγεσθαι.
Having consulted together, we decided to go to him and speak with him.
καὶ καταλαβόντες αὐτὸν πρὸς τοῖς μυροπωλίοις ἠρωτῶμεν εἰ οὐκ αἰσχύνοιτο ψευδόμενος καὶ ἐνεδρεύσας ἡμᾶς ταῖς συνθήκαις, οὐ προειπὼν τὰ χρέα.
And having found him near the perfume shops, we asked him if he was not ashamed of lying and entrapping us in the agreements, not having forewarned us of the debts.
ὁ δʼ ἀπεκρίνατο ἡμῖν ὡς οὔτε τὰ χρέα γιγνώσκοι ἃ λέγομεν, οὔτε προσέχοι ἡμῖν τὸν νοῦν, γραμματεῖόν τʼ εἴη αὐτῷ κείμενον πρὸς ἐμὲ περὶ τούτων.
But he answered us that he neither knew the debts we were talking about, nor was he paying attention to us, and that there was a document deposited for him against me concerning these matters.
πολλῶν δʼ ἀνθρώπων ςυλλεγομένων καὶ ἐπακουόντων τοῦ πράγματος, διὰ τὸ ἐν τῇ ἀγορᾷ τοὺς λόγους γίγνεσθαι, καὶ κατατεμνόντων αὐτόν, κελευόντων τε ἀπάγειν ὡς ἀνδραποδιστήν, τοῦτο μὲν οὐκ ᾠόμεθα δεῖν ποιεῖν, προσεκαλεσάμεθα δὲ αὐτὸν εἰς ὑμᾶς κατὰ τὸν νόμον.
A great crowd having gathered and listening to the matter, because the discussion was taking place in the marketplace, and they were cutting him to pieces and urging us to drag him off as a kidnapper, we did not think we ought to do this, but we summoned him before you according to the law.
πρῶτον μὲν οὖν ὑμῖν τὰς ςυνθήκας ἀναγνώσεται· ἐξ αὐτῶν γὰρ τῶν γεγραμμένων μαθήσεσθε τὴν ἐπιβουλὴν αὐτοῦ τούτου.
First, then, he will read the agreements to you; for from the very words written you will learn the conspiracy of this man.
λέγε τὰς συνθήκας.
Read the agreements.
§13Συνθήκη
τὰ μὲν τοίνυν πεπραγμένα, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, καθʼ ἓν ἕκαστον ἀκηκόατε.
Agreement [Reading of Agreement] Well then, gentlemen of the jury, you have heard each one of the events that took place.
ἐρεῖ δὲ πρὸς ὑμᾶς αὐτίκα μάλα Ἀθηνογένης ὡς ὁ νόμος λέγει, ὅσα ἂν ἕτερος ἑτέρῳ ὁμολογήσῃ κύρια εἶναι.
And Athenogenes will say to you very shortly that the law states that whatever agreements one party makes with another shall be valid.
τά γε δίκαια, ὦ βέλτιστε· τὰ δὲ μὴ τοὐναντίον ἀπαγορεύει μὴ κύρια εἶναι.
Yes, my good sir, the just ones; but the unjust ones, on the contrary, it forbids to be valid.
ἐξ αὐτῶν δέ σοι τῶν νόμων ἐγὼ φανερώτερον ποιήσω.
From the laws themselves, I will make this clearer to you.
καὶ γὰρ οὕτω με διατέθεικας καὶ περίφοβον πεποίηκας μὴ ἀπόλωμαι ὑπὸ σοῦ καὶ τῆς δεινότητος τῆς σῆς, ὥστε τούς τε νόμους ἐξετάζειν καὶ μελετᾶν νύκτα καὶ ἡμέραν, πάρεργα τἄλλα πάντα ποιησάμενον.
For you have reduced me to such a state and made me so terrified of being ruined by you and your cleverness, that I have had to examine and study the laws day and night, making all other things secondary.