§13.19.1οἱ δὲ Συρακόσιοι πεντήκοντα μὲν τὰς καταλειφθείσας ναῦς ἀναψάμενοι κατήγαγον εἰς τὴν πόλιν, ἐκβιβάσαντες δʼ ἐκ τῶν τριήρων ἅπαντας καὶ καθοπλίσαντες, μετὰ πάσης τῆς δυνάμεως ἠκολούθουν τοῖς Ἀθηναίοις, ἐξαπτόμενοι καὶ βαδίζειν εἰς τοὔμπροσθεν διακωλύοντες. §13.19.2ἐπὶ τρεῖς δʼ ἡμέρας ἐπακολουθοῦντες καὶ πανταχόθεν περιλαμβάνοντες ἀπεῖργον εὐθυπορεῖν πρὸστὴν σύμμαχον Κατάνην, παλινοδίαν δὲ καταναγκάσαντες ποιήσασθαι διὰ τοῦ Ἐλωρίου πεδίου, πρὸς τῷ Ἀσινάρῳ ποταμῷ περικυκλώσαντες ἀπέκτειναν μὲν μυρίους ὀκτακισχιλίους, ἐζώγρησαν δὲ ἑπτακισχιλίους, ἐν οἷς καὶ τοὺς στρατηγοὺς Δημοσθένην καὶ Νικίαν· οἱ δὲ λοιποὶ διηρπάσθησαν ὑπὸ τῶν στρατιωτῶν. §13.19.3οἱ γὰρ Ἀθηναῖοι πάντοθεν ἀποκλειομένης τῆς σωτηρίας ἠναγκάσθησαν τὰ ὅπλα καὶ ἑαυτοὺς παραδοῦναι τοῖς πολεμίοις.
The Syracusans, on their part, tied up and towed the fifty abandoned ships to the city, and having disembarked all the men from the triremes and fully armed them, they pursued the Athenians with their entire force, attacking them and preventing them from marching forward. Pursuing them for three days and surrounding them on all sides, they prevented them from making a direct march to their ally Catana, and having forced them to make a retreat through the Elorine Plain, they encircled them at the Asinarus River and killed eighteen thousand, while capturing seven thousand, among whom were also the generals Demosthenes and Nicias; the rest were plundered by the soldiers. For the Athenians, with their path to safety cut off on every side, were forced to surrender their arms and themselves to the enemy.
τούτων δὲ πραχθέντων οἱ Συρακόσιοι στήσαντες δύο τρόπαια, καὶ τὰ τῶν στρατηγῶν ὅπλα πρὸς ἑκάτερον προσηλώσαντες, ἀνέστρεψαν εἰς τὴν πόλιν. §13.19.4τότε μὲν οὖν τοῖς θεοῖς ἔθυσαν πανδημεί, τῇ δʼ ὑστεραίᾳ συναχθείσης ἐκκλησίας ἐβουλεύοντο, πῶς χρήσονται τοῖς αἰχμαλώτοις.
When this was done, the Syracusans, having set up two trophies and nailed the arms of the generals to each, returned to the city. At that time, then, they offered sacrifices to the gods with the whole populace participating, and on the next day, when the assembly was gathered, they deliberated on how they should treat the prisoners.
Διοκλῆς δέ τις, τῶν δημαγωγῶν ἐνδοξότατος ὤν, ἀπεφήνατο γνώμην ὡς δέοι τοὺς μὲν στρατηγοὺς τῶν Ἀθηναίων μετʼ αἰκίας ἀνελεῖν, τοὺς δʼ ἄλλους αἰχμαλώτους ἐν μὲν τῷ παρόντι τεθῆναι πάντας εἰς τὰς λατομίας, μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα τοὺς μὲν συμμαχήσαντας τοῖς Ἀθηναίοις λαφυροπωλῆσαι, τοὺς δʼ Ἀθηναίους ἐργαζομένους ἐν τῷ δεσμωτηρίῳ λαμβάνειν ἀλφίτων δύο κοτύλας. §13.19.5ἀναγνωσθέντος δὲ τοῦ ψηφίσματος Ἑρμοκράτης παρελθὼν εἰς τὴν ἐκκλησίαν ἐνεχείρει λέγειν, ὡς κάλλιόν ἐστι τοῦ νικᾶν τὸ τὴν νίκην ἐνεγκεῖν ἀνθρωπίνως. §13.19.6θορυβοῦντος δὲ τοῦ δήμου καὶ τὴν δημηγορίαν οὐχ ὑπομένοντος, Νικόλαός τις,ἐστερημένος ἐν τῷ πολέμῳ δυεῖν υἱῶν, ἀνέβαινεν ἐπὶ τὸ βῆμα κατεχόμενος ὑπὸ τῶν οἰκετῶν διὰ τὸ γῆρας·
A certain Diocles, who was the most famous of the demagogues, declared his opinion that they should put the Athenian generals to death with torture, and for the present place all the other prisoners in the stone quarries, and after this sell the allies of the Athenians into slavery, while the Athenians themselves, working in the prison, should receive two cotylae of barley-meal. When this decree was read, Hermocrates came forward to the assembly and attempted to speak, arguing that to bear victory humanely is more noble than to conquer. But as the populace was clamoring and would not tolerate his speech, a certain Nicolaus, who had been deprived of his two sons in the war, ascended the speaker's platform, supported by his domestic servants because of his old age.
ὃν ὡς εἶδεν ὁ δῆμος, ἔληξε τοῦ θορύβου, νομίζων κατηγορήσειν τῶν αἰχμαλώτων.
When the populace saw him, they ceased their clamor, believing that he would speak against the prisoners.
γενομένης οὖν σιωπῆς ὁ πρεσβύτερος ἐντεῦθεν ἤρξατο τῶν λόγων.
Silence having thus been established, the old man began his speech from there.