§5.1εἰ δὲ σαφὲς δοκεῖ εἶναι ὡς, εἰ μέλλουσι πᾶσαι αἱ πρόσοδοι ἔκπλεῳ προσιέναι, ὅτι εἰρήνην δεῖ ὑπάρχειν, ἆρʼ οὐκ ἄξιον καὶ εἰρηνοφύλακας καθιστάναι;
If it seems to be clear that, if all the revenues are to come in fully, peace must exist, is it not also worthwhile to establish guardians of peace?
πολὺ γὰρ ἂν καὶ αὕτη αἱρεθεῖσα ἡ ἀρχὴ προσφιλεστέραν καὶ οἰκειοτέραν εἰσαφικνεῖσθαι πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις ποιήσειε τὴν πόλιν.
For this office, having been chosen, would make the city much more dear and appealing for all men to visit.
§5.2εἰ δέ τινες οὕτω γιγνώσκουσιν, ὡς ἐὰν ἡ πόλις εἰρήνην ἄγουσα διατελῇ, ἀδυνατωτέρα τε καὶ ἀδοξοτέρα καὶ ἧττον ὀνομαστὴ ἐν τῇ Ἑλλάδι ἔσται, καὶ οὗτοί γε ὡς ἐμῇ δόξῃ παραγγέλλω σκοποῦσιν.
But if some judge in this way, that if the city continues to keep peace, it will be weaker, more inglorious, and less renowned in Greece, these too, in my opinion, look at the matter incorrectly.
εὐδαιμονέσταται μὲν γὰρ δήπου πόλεις λέγονται, αἳ ἂν πλεῖστον χρόνον ἐν εἰρήνῃ διατελῶσι· πασῶν δὲ πόλεων Ἀθῆναι μάλιστα πεφύκασιν ἐν εἰρήνῃ αὔξεσθαι.
For indeed, those cities are said to be happiest which continue in peace for the longest time; and of all cities, Athens is by nature most suited to grow in peace.
§5.3τίνες γὰρ ἡσυχίαν ἀγούσης τῆς πόλεως οὐ προσδέοιντʼ ἂν αὐτῆς ἀρξάμενοι ἀπὸ ναυκλήρων καὶ ἐμπόρων;
For who, when the city is keeping quiet, would not stand in need of it, beginning with shipowners and merchants?
οὐχ οἱ πολύσιτοι, οὐχ οἱ πολύοινοι;
Is it not those with much corn, those with much wine?
τί δὲ οἱ πολυέλαιοι, τί δὲ οἱ πολυπρόβατοι, οἱ δὲ γνώμῃ καὶ ἀργυρίῳ δυνάμενοι χρηματίζεσθαι;
And what of those with much olive oil, and those with many sheep, and those who are able to make money by their intellect and capital?
§5.4καὶ μὴν χειροτέχναι τε καὶ σοφισταὶ καὶ φιλόσοφοι, οἱ δὲ ποιηταί, οἱ δὲ τὰ τούτων μεταχειριζόμενοι, οἱ δὲ ἀξιοθεάτων ἢ ἀξιακούστων ἱερῶν ἢ ὁσίων ἐπιθυμοῦντες;
Moreover, what of craftsmen, sophists, philosophers, poets, those who handle their works, and those who desire temples or sacred objects worth seeing or hearing?
ἀλλὰ μὴν καὶ οἱ δεόμενοι πολλὰ ταχὺ ἀποδίδοσθαι ἢ πρίασθαι ποῦ τούτων μᾶλλον ἂν τύχοιεν ἢ Ἀθήνησιν;
Furthermore, where indeed would those who need to sell or buy many things quickly find these things better than at Athens?
§5.5εἰ δὲ πρὸς ταῦτα μὲν οὐδεὶς ἀντιλέγει, τὴν δὲ ἡγεμονίαν βουλόμενοί τινες ἀναλαβεῖν τὴν πόλιν, ταύτην διὰ πολέμου μᾶλλον ἢ διʼ εἰρήνης ἡγοῦνται ἂν καταπραχθῆναι, ἐννοησάτωσαν πρῶτον μὲν τὰ Μηδικά, πότερον βιαζόμενοι ἢ εὐεργετοῦντες τοὺς Ἕλληνας ἡγεμονίας τε τοῦ ναυτικοῦ καὶ ἑλληνοταμιείας ἐτύχομεν.
But if no one speaks against these things, yet some who wish the city to recover the hegemony think that this would be accomplished through war rather than through peace, let them consider first the Persian War, whether we obtained the hegemony of the fleet and the position of Hellenotamiae by forcing or by doing good to the Greeks.
§5.6ἔτι δὲ ἐπεὶ ὠμῶς ἄγαν δόξασα προστατεύειν ἡ πόλις ἐστερήθη τῆς ἀρχῆς, οὐ καὶ τότε, ἐπεὶ τοῦ ἀδικεῖν ἀπεσχόμεθα, πάλιν ὑπὸ τῶν νησιωτῶν ἑκόντων προστάται τοῦ ναυτικοῦ ἐγενόμεθα;
Moreover, when the city was deprived of its rule because it was thought to govern too harshly, did we not also then, when we abstained from injustice, become leaders of the fleet again because the islanders willingly desired it?
§5.7οὔκουν καὶ Θηβαῖοι εὐεργετούμενοι ἡγεμονεύειν αὑτῶν ἔδωκαν Ἀθηναίοις;
And did not the Thebans also, because they were well treated, grant to the Athenians to lead them?
ἀλλὰ μὴν καὶ Λακεδαιμόνιοι οὐ βιασθέντες ὑφʼ ἡμῶν ἀλλʼ εὖ πάσχοντες ἐπέτρεψαν Ἀθηναίοις περὶ τῆς ἡγεμονίας θέσθαι ὅπως βούλοιντο.
Furthermore, the Lacedaemonians too, not forced by us but receiving benefits, permitted the Athenians to arrange concerning the hegemony in whatever way they wished.
§5.8νῦν δέ γε διὰ τὴν ἐν τῇ Ἑλλάδι ταραχὴν παραπεπτωκέναι μοι δοκεῖ τῇ πόλει ὥστε καὶ ἄνευ πόνων καὶ ἄνευ κινδύνων καὶ ἄνευ δαπάνης ἀνακτᾶσθαι τοὺς Ἕλληνας.
But now, indeed, because of the confusion in Greece, it seems to me that an opportunity has fallen to the city to recover the Greeks without labors, without dangers, and without expense.
ἔστι μὲν γὰρ πειρᾶσθαι διαλλάττειν τὰς πολεμούσας πρὸς ἀλλήλας πόλεις, ἔστι δὲ συναλλάττειν, εἴ τινες ἐν αὑταῖς στασιάζουσιν.
For it is possible to try to reconcile the cities that are at war with one another, and it is possible to reconcile them if any are in strife among themselves.
§5.9εἰ δὲ καὶ ὅπως τὸ ἐν Δελφοῖς ἱερὸν αὐτόνομον ὥσπερ πρόσθεν γένοιτο φανεροὶ εἴητʼ ἐπιμελούμενοι, μὴ συμπολεμοῦντες ἀλλὰ πρεσβεύοντες ἀνὰ τὴν Ἑλλάδα, ἐγὼ μὲν οὐδὲν ἂν οἶμαι θαυμαστὸν εἶναι, εἰ καὶ πάντας τοὺς Ἕλληνας ὁμογνώμονάς τε καὶ συνόρκους καὶ συμμάχους λάβοιτε ἐπʼ ἐκείνους, οἵτινες ἐκλιπόντων Φωκέων τὸ ἱερὸν καταλαμβάνειν πειρῷντο.
And if you should be manifest in taking care that the temple at Delphi should become autonomous just as before, not by making war together but by sending embassies throughout Greece, I, for my part, think it would be nothing wonderful if you should get even all the Greeks to be of one mind, bound by oath, and allies against those who, when the Phocians have abandoned it, should try to seize the temple.
§5.10εἰ δὲ καὶ ὅπως ἀνὰ πᾶσαν γῆν καὶ θάλατταν εἰρήνη ἔσται φανεροὶ εἴητε ἐπιμελόμενοι, ἐγὼ μὲν οἶμαι πάντας ἂν εὔχεσθαι μετὰ τὰς ἑαυτῶν πατρίδας Ἀθήνας μάλιστα σῴζεσθαι.
And if you should be manifest in taking care that there shall be peace throughout all land and sea, I, for my part, think that all would pray that, next to their own fatherlands, Athens most of all should be preserved.
§5.11εἰ δέ τις αὖ εἰς χρήματα κερδαλεώτερον νομίζει εἶναι τῇ πόλει πόλεμον ἢ εἰρήνην, ἐγὼ μὲν οὐκ οἶδα πῶς ἂν ἄμεινον ταῦτα κριθείη ἢ εἴ τις τὰ προγεγενημένα ἐπανασκοποίη τῇ πόλει πῶς ἀποβέβηκεν.
But if someone, on the other hand, thinks that war is more profitable for the city in respect of money than peace, I do not know how this could be better judged than if one should review the things that have happened to the city in the past, how they turned out.
§5.12εὑρήσει γὰρ τό τε παλαιὸν ἐν εἰρήνῃ μὲν πάνυ πολλὰ χρήματα εἰς τὴν πόλιν ἀνενεχθέντα, ἐν πολέμῳ δὲ πάντα ταῦτα καταδαπανηθέντα· γνώσεται δʼ, ἢν σκοπῇ, καὶ ἐν τῷ νῦν χρόνῳ διὰ μὲν τὸν πόλεμον καὶ τῶν προσόδων πολλὰς ἐκλιπούσας καὶ τὰς εἰσελθούσας εἰς παντοδαπὰ καταδαπανηθείσας, ἐπεὶ δὲ εἰρήνη κατὰ θάλατταν γεγένηται, ηὐξημένας τε τὰς προσόδους, καὶ ταύταις ἐξὸν τοῖς πολίταις χρῆσθαι ὅ τι βούλονται.
For he will find that in ancient times, in peace very much money was brought into the city, but in war all this was utterly spent; and he will know, if he considers, that even in the present time, because of the war, many of the revenues have failed, and those that came in were spent on all kinds of things, but since peace has occurred at sea, the revenues have increased, and it is permitted for the citizens to use these for whatever they wish.
§5.13εἰ δέ τίς με ἐπερωτῴη· ἦ καί, ἄν τις ἀδικῇ τὴν πόλιν, λέγεις ὡς χρὴ καὶ πρὸς τοῦτον εἰρήνην ἄγειν; οὐκ ἂν φαίην· ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον λέγω ὅτι πολὺ θᾶττον ἂν τιμωροίμεθα αὐτούς, εἰ μηδένα ὑπάρχοιμεν ἀδικοῦντες· οὐδένα γὰρ ἂν ἔχοιεν σύμμαχον.
And if someone should ask me: "Do you really say that even if someone does injustice to the city, we must keep peace even towards him?" I would not say so; but rather I say that we would punish them much more quickly if we ourselves should begin by doing injustice to no one; for they would have no ally.