§11.14.1ταῦτά σοι πολλάκις ἐβουλήθην ὑποθέσθαι μόνῳ μόνος εἰς λόγους παραγενόμενος καὶ τὰ μὲν ὡς ἀγνοοῦντα διδάξαι, τὰ δʼ ὡς ἁμαρτάνοντα νουθετῆσαι· καὶ παρεγενόμην εἰς τὴν οἰκίαν οὐχ ἅπαξ, ἀπήλασαν δέ με οἱ σοὶ παῖδες ἀπὸ τῶν οἰκείων οὐ σχολὴν ἄγειν σε λέγοντες, ἀλλʼ ἕτερά τινα πράττειν ἀναγκαιότερα, εἰ δή τί σοι τῆς πρὸς τὸ γένος εὐσεβείας ἀναγκαιότερον ἦν.
I often wished to suggest these things to you, coming to meet you alone, man to man, and to teach you some things as to one who is ignorant, and to admonish you in other things as to one who is doing wrong; and I came to your house not once, but your slaves drove me away from the premises, saying that you had no leisure, but were doing certain other things more urgent, if indeed anything was more urgent for you than piety toward your kin.
§11.14.2τάχα δʼ οὐχ ὑπὸ σοῦ κελευσθέντες οἱ παῖδες, ἀλλʼ ἐφʼ ἑαυτῶν γνόντες διέκλεισάν με τῆς εἰσόδου, καὶ βουλοίμην οὕτως τἀληθὲς ἔχειν.
Perhaps, not having been ordered by you, but of their own judgment, the slaves shut me out of the entrance; and I could wish that the truth were so.
τὸ πρᾶγμα δή με ἠνάγκασε τοῦτο διαλεχθῆναι ἐν τῷ συνεδρίῳ πρὸς σὲ περὶ ὧν ἐβουλόμην, ἐπειδὴ μόνῳ πρὸς μόνον οὐκ ἐξεγένετο.
This very circumstance, indeed, compelled me to discourse with you in the senate-chamber about the things I wished, since it was not possible to do so man to man.
καιρὸν δʼ ἔχει πάντη λέγεσθαι τὰ καλὰ καὶ συμφέροντα παρʼ ἀνθρώποις μᾶλλον, Ἄππιε, ἢ §11.14.3μηδαμῇ.
But, Appius, it is in every way more timely that noble and useful things should be spoken among men than not at all.
ἀποδεδωκὼς δή σοι τὰ τοῦ γένους ὀφειλήματα μαρτύρομαι θεούς, ὧν ἱερὰ καὶ βωμοὺς κοιναῖς θυσίαις γεραίρομεν οἱ τῆς Ἀππίου γενεᾶς διάδοχοι, καὶ προγόνων δαίμονας, οἷς μετὰ θεοὺς δευτέρας τιμὰς καὶ χάριτας ἀποδίδομεν κοινάς, ὑπὲρ ἅπαντας δὲ τούτους γῆν, ἣ κατέχει τὸν σὸν μὲν πατέρα, ἐμὸν δʼ ἀδελφόν, ὅτι σοι παρέσχημαι ψυχήν τε καὶ φωνὴν τὴν ἐμαυτοῦ τὰ κράτιστα βουλευομένην, καὶ ἐπανορθῶν τὰς ἀγνοίας σου κατὰ δύναμιν τὴν ἐμὴν ἀξιῶ σε μὴ τοῖς κακοῖς ἰᾶσθαι τὰ κακά, μηδὲ τῶν πλειόνων ὀρεγόμενον καὶ τὰ παρόντα ἀπολέσαι, μηδʼ ἵνα τῶν ἴσων τε καὶ κρειττόνων ἄρχῃς ὑπὸ τῶν ἡττόνων τε καὶ κακιόνων ἄρχεσθαι.
Having thus discharged my duties to our family, I call to witness the gods, whose temples and altars we, the successors of the Appian line, honor with common sacrifices, and the guardian spirits of our ancestors, to whom, after the gods, we pay second honors and common thanks, and above all of these, the earth which holds your father and my brother, that I have offered you my own soul and voice advocating the best counsels, and that, correcting your errors to the best of my power, I demand of you not to cure evils with evils, nor, in grasping for more, to lose also what you have, nor, in order that you may rule over your equals and superiors, to be ruled by your inferiors and worse men.
§11.14.4πολλὰ καὶ περὶ πολλῶν ἔτι σοι λέγειν βουλόμενος ὀκνῶ.
Desiring still to say many things to you and about many matters, I hesitate.
εἰ μὲν γὰρ ἐπὶ τὰ κρείττω βουλεύματα ὀ θεὸς ἄγει σε, καὶ ταῦτα πλείω τῶν ἱκανῶν εἴρηκα, εἰ δʼ ἐπὶ τὰ χείρω, διακενῆς καὶ τὰ λοιπὰ ἐρῶ.
For if God leads you to better counsels, I have spoken even these things more than enough; but if to worse, I shall speak the rest also in vain.
ἔχετε, ὦ βουλή, καὶ ὑμεῖς οἱ προεστηκότες τῆς πόλεως, τὴν ἐμὴν γνώμην καὶ περὶ τοῦ πολέμου τῆς καταλύσεως καὶ περὶ τῶν ἐν τῇ πόλει θορύβων τῆς ἐπανορθώσεως.
You have, O senate, and you who stand at the head of the city, my opinion both concerning the termination of the war and concerning the correction of the disturbances in the city.
εἰ δέ τις ἕτερα τούτων κρείττω ἐρεῖ, τὰ βέλτιστα νικάτω.
And if anyone shall speak other counsels better than these, let the best prevail.