§6.774ΑΘ. περὶ γάμων δὴ ταῦτʼ ἔστω παραμύθια λεγόμενα, καὶ δὴ καὶ τὰ ἔμπροσθε τούτων ῥηθέντα, ὡς χρὴ τῆς ἀειγενοῦς φύσεως ἀντέχεσθαι τῷ παῖδας παίδων καταλείποντα ἀεὶ τῷ θεῷ ὑπηρέτας ἀνθʼ αὑτοῦ παραδιδόναι.
ATH.: Concerning marriages, let these be the words of persuasion spoken, and indeed also what was said before these, namely, that one must cling to the everlasting nature by always leaving children's children to hand over servants to God in place of oneself.
πάντα οὖν ταῦτα καὶ ἔτι πλείω τις ἂν εἴποι περὶ γάμων, ὡς χρὴ γαμεῖν, προοιμιαζόμενος ὀρθῶς· ἂν δʼ ἄρα τις μὴ πείθηται ἑκών, ἀλλότριον δὲ αὑτὸν καὶ ἀκοινώνητον ἐν τῇ πόλει ἔχῃ καὶ ἄγαμος ὢν γένηται πεντεκαιτριακοντούτης, ζημιούσθω κατʼ ἐνιαυτὸν ἕκαστον, ὁ μέγιστον μὲν τίμημα κεκτημένος ἑκατὸν δραχμαῖς, ὁ δὲ τὸ δεύτερον ἑβδομήκοντα, τρίτον δὲ ἑξήκοντα, ὁ δὲ τὸ τέταρτον τριάκοντα.
All these things, then, and even more, someone might say about marriages, how one ought to marry, by way of introducing the subject correctly; but if someone after all does not obey voluntarily, but keeps himself alienated and unsharing in the city and remains unmarried when he reaches the age of thirty-five, let him be fined every year: he who possesses the highest property qualification, a hundred drachmae; he who has the second, seventy; the third, sixty; and he who has the fourth, thirty.
τοῦτο δʼ ἔστω τῆς Ἥρας ἱερόν.
And let this be sacred to Hera.
ὁ δὲ μὴ ἐκτίνων κατʼ ἐνιαυτὸν δεκαπλάσιον ὀφειλέτω· πραττέσθω δὲ ὁ ταμίας τῆς θεοῦ, μὴ ἐκπράξας δὲ αὐτὸς ὀφειλέτω καὶ ἐν ταῖς εὐθύναις τοῦ τοιούτου λόγον ὑπεχέτω πᾶς.
And let the one who does not pay it annually owe ten times the amount; and let the treasurer of the goddess exact it; and if he does not exact it, let him owe it himself, and in his audits let everyone render an account of such a matter.
εἰς μὲν οὖν χρήματα ὁ μὴ ʼθέλων γαμεῖν ταῦτα ζημιούσθω, τιμῆς δὲ παρὰ τῶν νεωτέρων ἄτιμος πάσης ἔστω, καὶ μηδεὶς ὑπακουέτω μηδὲν αὐτῷ ἑκὼν τῶν νέων· ἐὰν δὲ κολάζειν τινὰ ἐπιχειρῇ, πᾶς τῷ ἀδικουμένῳ βοηθείτω καὶ ἀμυνέτω, μὴ βοηθῶν δὲ ὁ παραγενόμενος δειλός τε ἅμα καὶ κακὸς ὑπὸ τοῦ νόμου πολίτης εἶναι λεγέσθω.
As regards money, then, let the one who does not wish to marry be fined in this way, but as for honor from the younger men, let him be deprived of all honor, and let none of the young obey him in anything voluntarily; and if he attempts to chastise anyone, let everyone help and defend the one who is wronged; and let the bystander who does not help be declared by the law to be both a coward and a bad citizen.
περὶ δὲ προικὸς εἴρηται μὲν καὶ πρότερον, εἰρήσθω δὲ πάλιν ὡς ἴσα ἀντὶ ἴσων ἐστὶν τὸ μήτε λαμβάνοντι μήτʼ ἐκδιδόντι διὰ χρημάτων ἀπορίαν γηράσκειν τοὺς πένητας· τὰ γὰρ ἀναγκαῖα ὑπάρχοντά ἐστι πᾶσι τῶν ἐν ταύτῃ τῇ πόλει, ὕβρις δὲ ἧττον γυναιξὶ καὶ δουλεία ταπεινὴ καὶ ἀνελεύθερος διὰ χρήματα τοῖς γήμασι γίγνοιτο ἄν.
Concerning the dowry, indeed, it has been spoken of before, but let it be said again that it is equal for equal that the poor do not grow old without either receiving or giving in marriage because of a lack of money; for the necessaries of life are available to all who belong to this city, and there would be less insolence for the wives and less lowly and servile slavery on account of money for the husbands.
καὶ ὁ μὲν πειθόμενος ἓν τῶν καλῶν δρῴη τοῦτʼ ἄν· ὁ δὲ μὴ πειθόμενος ἢ διδοὺς ἢ λαμβάνων πλέον ἢ πεντήκοντα ἄξια δραχμῶν ἐσθῆτος χάριν, ὁ δὲ μνᾶς, ὁ δὲ τριῶν ἡμιμναίων, ὁ δὲ δυοῖν μναῖν, ὁ τὸ μέγιστον τίμημα κεκτημένος, ὀφειλέτω μὲν τῷ δημοσίῳ τοσοῦτον ἕτερον, τὸ δὲ δοθὲν ἢ ληφθὲν ἱερὸν ἔστω τῆς Ἥρας τε καὶ τοῦ Διός, πραττόντων δὲ οἱ ταμίαι τούτοιν τοῖν θεοῖν, καθάπερ ἐρρήθη τῶν μὴ γαμούντων πέρι τοὺς ταμίας ἐκπράττειν ἑκάστοτε τοὺς τῆς Ἥρας ἢ παρʼ αὑτῶν ἑκάστους τὴν ζημίαν ἐκτίνειν.
And the one who obeys would be doing this as one of his noble deeds; but the one who does not obey, either giving or receiving more than fifty drachmae's worth for the sake of clothing, or a mina, or three half-minas, or two minae, namely he who possesses the highest property qualification, let him owe to the public treasury another sum of equal value, and let what was given or received be sacred to Hera and Zeus, and let the treasurers of these two deities exact it, just as was said concerning those who do not marry, that the treasurers of Hera must exact it on each occasion, or else pay the fine each from their own pocket.
ἐγγύην δὲ εἶναι κυρίαν πατρὸς μὲν πρῶτον, δευτέραν πάππου, τρίτην δὲ ἀδελφῶν ὁμοπατρίων, ἐὰν δὲ μηδὲ εἷς ᾖ τούτων, τὴν πρὸς μητρὸς μετὰ τοῦτο εἶναι κυρίαν ὡσαύτως· ἐὰν δʼ ἄρα τύχη τις ἀήθης συμβαίνῃ, τοὺς ἐγγύτατα γένους ἀεὶ κυρίους εἶναι μετὰ τῶν ἐπιτρόπων.
Let a betrothal be valid, first, if made by the father; second, by the grandfather; third, by brothers of the same father; and if there is none of these, let the maternal relatives after this be valid in like manner; but if some unusual fortune should occur, let those who are closest in kinship always be valid, along with the guardians.