§1ἀλλʼ ἔγωγε, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, ὅπερ καὶ πρὸς τοὺς παρακαθημένους ἀρτίως ἔλεγον, θαυμάζω εἰ μὴ προσίστανται ἤδη ὑμῖν αἱ τοιαῦται εἰσαγγελίαι.
, men of the jury, as I was just saying to those sitting near me, I wonder that these impeachments (eisangeliai) are not already offensive to you.
τὸ μὲν γὰρ πρότερον εἰσηγγέλλοντο παρʼ ὑμῖν Τιμόμαχος καὶ Λεωσθένης καὶ Καλλίστρατος καὶ Φίλων ὁ ἐξ Ἀναίων καὶ Θεότιμος ὁ Σηστὸν ἀπολέσας καὶ ἕτεροι τοιοῦτοι· καὶ οἱ μὲν αὐτῶν ναῦς αἰτίαν ἔχοντες προδοῦναι, οἱ δὲ πόλεις Ἀθηναίων, ὁ δὲ ῥήτωρ ὢν λέγειν μὴ τὰ ἄριστα τῷ δήμῳ. §2καὶ οὔτε τούτων πέντε ὄντων οὐδεὶς ὑπέμεινε τὸν ἀγῶνα, ἀλλʼ αὐτοὶ ᾤχοντο φεύγοντες ἐκ τῆς πόλεως, οὔτʼ ἄλλοι πολλοὶ τῶν εἰσαγγελλομένων, ἀλλʼ ἦν σπάνιον ἰδεῖν ἀπʼ εἰσαγγελίας τινὰ κρινόμενον ὑπακούσαντα εἰς τὸ δικαστήριον· οὕτως ὑπὲρ μεγάλων ἀδικημάτων καὶ περιφανῶν αἱ εἰσαγγελίαι τότε ἦσαν.
For formerly, Timomachus, Leosthenes, Callistratus, Philon of Anaia, Theotimus who lost Sestos, and others of that kind were impeached before you; and some of them were accused of betraying ships, others of betraying Athenian cities, and one, being an orator, of speaking what was not best for the people. none of these five awaited their trial, but they themselves fled the city, nor did many others of those impeached; rather, it was rare to see anyone tried on an impeachment who stayed to face the court; so major and manifest were the offenses for which impeachments were then brought.
νυνὶ δὲ τὸ γιγνόμενον ἐν τῇ πόλει πάνυ καταγέλαστόν ἐστιν. §3Διογνίδης μὲν καὶ Ἀντίδωρος ὁ μέτοικος εἰσαγγέλλονται ὡς πλέονος μισθοῦντες τὰς αὐλητρίδας ἢ ὁ νόμος κελεύει, Ἀγασικλῆς δʼ ὁ ἐκ Πειραιέως ὅτι εἰς Ἁλιμουσίους ἐνεγράφη, Εὐξένιππος δʼ ὑπὲρ τῶν ἐνυπνίων ὧν φησιν ἑωρακέναι·
But now, what is happening in the city is utterly ridiculous. and Antidorus the metic are impeached for hiring out flute-girls at a higher rate than the law permits; Agasicles of Piraeus because he was registered among the Halimousians; and Euxenippus on account of the dreams which he says he saw.
ὧν οὐδεμία δήπου τῶν αἰτιῶν τούτων οὐδὲν κοινωνεῖ τῷ εἰσαγγελτικῷ νόμῳ. §4καίτοι, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, ἐπὶ τῶν δημοσίων ἀγώνων οὐ χρὴ τοὺς δικαστὰς πρότερον τὰ καθʼ ἕκαστα τῆς κατηγορίας ὑπομένειν ἀκούειν, πρὶν ἂν αὐτὸ τὸ κεφάλαιον τοῦ ἀγῶνος καὶ τὴν ἀντιγραφὴν ἐξετάσωσιν εἰ ἔστιν ἐκ τῶν νόμων ἢ μή· οὐ μὰ Δία οὐχ ὥσπερ ἐν τῇ κατηγορίᾳ Πολύευκτος ἔλεγεν, οὐ φάσκων δεῖν τοὺς ἀπολογουμένους ἰσχυρίζεσθαι τῷ εἰσαγγελτικῷ νόμῳ, ὃς κελεύει κατὰ τῶν ῥητόρων αὐτῶν τὰς εἰσαγγελίας εἶναι περὶ τοῦ λέγειν μὴ [οὐ] τὰ ἄριστα τῷ δήμῳ, οὐ κατὰ πάντων Ἀθηναίων. §5ἐγὼ δὲ οὔτε πρότερον οὐδενὸς ἂν μνησθείην ἢ τούτου, οὔτε πλείους οἶμαι δεῖν λόγους ποιεῖσθαι περὶ ἄλλου τινὸς ἢ ὅπως ἐν δημοκρατίᾳ κύριοι οἱ νόμοι ἔσονται, καὶ αἱ εἰσαγγελίαι καὶ αἱ ἄλλαι κρίσεις κατὰ τοὺς νόμους εἰσίασιν εἰς τὸ δικαστήριον.
Surely not one of these accusations has anything in common with the law of impeachment., men of the jury, in public trials the judges ought not to listen to the details of the accusation before they have examined the very main point of the trial and the indictment, to see whether it is according to the laws or not; by Zeus, not as Polyeuctus said in his accusation, claiming that the defendants should not rely on the law of impeachment, which commands that impeachments be brought against the orators themselves for speaking what is not best for the people, and not against all Athenians. my part, I would mention nothing before this, nor do I think one should speak more on any other subject than how, in a democracy, the laws shall be sovereign, and how impeachments and other trials shall enter the court in accordance with the laws.
διὰ τοῦτο γὰρ ὑμεῖς ὑπὲρ ἁπάντων τῶν ἀδικημάτων, ὅσα ἔστιν ἐν τῇ πόλει, νόμους ἔθεσθε χωρὶς περὶ ἑκάστου αὐτῶν. §6ἀσεβεῖ τις περὶ τὰ ἱερά· γραφαὶ ἀσεβείας πρὸς τὸν βασιλέα.
For this reason, you have established laws separately for every single one of all the offenses that exist in the city. someone commits impiety regarding sacred matters, there are indictments for impiety before the King Archon.
— φαῦλός ἐστι πρὸς τοὺς ἑαυτοῦ γονεῖς· ὁ ἄρχων ἐπὶ τούτου κάθηται.
If someone is bad to his own parents, the Archon sits for this.
— παράνομά τις ἐν τῇ πόλει γράφει· θεσμοθετῶν συνέδριον ἔστι.
If someone proposes illegal decrees in the city, there is the court of the Thesmothetae.
— ἀπαγωγῆς ἄξια ποιεῖ· ἀρχὴ τῶν ἕνδεκα καθέστηκε.
If someone does things deserving summary arrest, the office of the Eleven is established.
— τὸν αὐτὸν δὲ τρόπον καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἀδικημάτων ἁπάντων καὶ νόμους καὶ ἀρχὰς καὶ δικαστήρια τὰ προσήκοντα ἑκάστοις αὐτῶν ἀπέδοτε. §7ὑπὲρ τίνων οὖν οἴεσθε δεῖν τὰς εἰσαγγελίας γίγνεσθαι;
In the same manner, for all other offenses, you have assigned the laws, officers, and courts appropriate to each of them. whom, then, do you think impeachments should be brought?
τοῦτʼ ἤδη καθʼ ἕκαστον ἐν τῷ νόμῳ ἐγράψατε, ἵνα μὴ ἀγνοῇ μηδείς· ἐάν τις,
φησί,
τὸν δῆμον τὸν Ἀθηναίων καταλύῃ· — εἰκότως, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί· ἡ γὰρ τοιαύτη αἰτία οὐ παραδέχεται σκῆψιν οὐδεμίαν οὐδενὸς οὐδʼ ὑπωμοσίαν, ἀλλὰ τὴν ταχίστην αὐτὴν δεῖ εἶναι ἐν τῷ δικαστηρίῳ· — §8ἢ
συνίῃ ποι ἐπὶ καταλύσει τοῦ δήμου ἢ ἑταιρικὸν συναγάγῃ, ἢ ἐάν τις πόλιν τινὰ προδῷ ἢ ναῦς ἢ πεζὴν ἢ ναυτικὴν στρατιάν, ἢ ῥήτωρ ὢν μὴ λέγῃ τὰ ἄριστα τῷ δήμῳ τῷ Ἀθηναίων χρήματα λαμβάνων
· τὰ μὲν ἄνω τοῦ νόμου κατὰ πάντων τῶν πολιτῶν γράψαντες (ἐκ πάντων γὰρ καὶ τἀδικήματα ταῦτα γένοιτʼ ἄν), τὸ δὲ τελευταῖον τοῦ νόμου κατʼ αὐτῶν τῶν ῥητόρων, παρʼ οἷς ἔστιν καὶ τὸ γράφειν τὰ ψηφίσματα. §9ἐμαίνεσθε γὰρ ἄν, εἰ ἄλλον τινὰ τρόπον τὸν νόμον τοῦτον ἔθεσθε ἢ οὕτως· εἰ τὰς μὲν τιμὰς καὶ τὰς ὠφελίας ἐκ τοῦ λέγειν οἱ ῥήτορες καρποῦνται, τοὺς δὲ κινδύνους ὑπὲρ αὐτῶν τοῖς ἰδιώταις ἀνεθήκατε.
This you have already written down point by point in the law, so that no one may be ignorant: "If anyone," it says, "attempts to overthrow the Athenian democracy;" — and with good reason, men of the jury; for such a charge does not admit of any excuse or oath for delay, but must itself be brought into court with the utmost speed; —"or conspires anywhere for the overthrow of the democracy, or forms a political association, or if anyone betrays a city, ships, or a land or naval force, or, being an orator, does not speak what is best for the Athenian people while receiving money." The upper part of the law they wrote against all citizens (for these crimes could be committed by anyone), but the last part of the law is against the orators themselves, who have the power to propose decrees. you would have been mad if you had established this law in any other way than this: if, while the orators enjoy the honors and profits from speaking, you had imposed the dangers of it upon ordinary citizens.
ἀλλʼ ὅμως Πολύευκτος οὕτως ἐστὶν ἀνδρεῖος, ὥστε εἰσαγγελίαν διώκων οὐκ ἔφη δεῖν τοὺς φεύγοντας τῷ εἰσαγγελτικῷ νόμῳ χρῆσθαι.
Yet Polyeuctus is so bold that, while prosecuting an impeachment, he said the defendants ought not to use the law of impeachment.