§5.10.1ταῦτʼ εἰπὼν καὶ φυλακὴν τοῖς μειρακίοις ἐπιστήσας ἐκάλει τὸν δῆμον εἰς ἐκκλησίαν.
Having said this and having placed a guard over the youths, he summoned the people to an assembly.
πληρωθείσης δὲ τῆς ἀγορᾶς ὄχλου· περιβόητον γὰρ ἀνὰ τὴν πόλιν ὅλην τὸ περὶ τοὺς παῖδας αὐτοῦ πάθος ἐγεγόνει· προελθών τε καὶ τοὺς ἐντιμοτάτους τῶν ἐν τῷ συνεδρίῳ §5.10.2παραστησάμενος ἔλεξε τοιάδε· ἐβουλόμην μὲν ἄν, ὦ πολῖται, Κολλατῖνον τουτονὶ τὸν συνάρχοντα περὶ πάντων μοι ταὐτὰ φρονεῖν καὶ μὴ τῷ λόγῳ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῖς ἔργοις μισεῖν τοὺς τυράννους καὶ πολεμεῖν·
When the forum was filled with a crowd—for the misfortune concerning his children had become notorious throughout the whole city—he came forward, and having placed the most honorable of those in the senate beside him, spoke as follows: "I could have wished, citizens, that this Collatinus, my colleague, were of the same mind as myself about all things, and hated and made war upon the tyrants not in word only, but also in deed.
ἐπεὶ δὲ τἀναντία φρονῶν γέγονέ μοι καταφανὴς καὶ ἔστιν οὐ μόνον τῇ φύσει Ταρκυνίων συγγενής, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῇ προαιρέσει, διαλλαγάς τε πράττων πρὸς αὐτοὺς καὶ ἀντὶ τῶν κοινῇ συμφερόντων τὸ ἑαυτοῦ σκοπῶν λυσιτελές, αὐτός τε κωλύειν αὐτὸν παρεσκεύασμαι πράττειν ἃ κατὰ νοῦν ἔχει πονηρὰ ὄντα, καὶ ὑμᾶς ἐπὶ τούτῳ παρεκάλεσα·
But since he has become manifest to me as being of the opposite mind, and is not only by birth a kinsman of the Tarquins, but also by choice, negotiating a reconciliation with them and looking to his own advantage instead of the public interest, I myself have prepared to prevent him from carrying out the wicked designs he has in mind, and for this purpose I have summoned you.
φράσω δʼ ὑμῖν πρῶτον μὲν, ἐν οἷς ἐγένετο κινδύνοις τὰ πράγματα τῆς πόλεως, ἔπειτα πῶς αὐτοῖς ἑκάτερος ἡμῶν κέχρηται.
I will tell you first in what dangers the affairs of the city stood, and then how each of us has dealt with them.
§5.10.3τῶν πολιτῶν τινες συνελθόντες εἰς τὴν Ἀκυλλίων οἰκίαν τῶν ἐκ τῆς Κολλατίνου γεγονότων ἀδελφῆς, ἐν οἷς ἦσαν οἵ τʼ ἐμοὶ παῖδες ἀμφότεροι καὶ οἱ τῆς γυναικὸς ἀδελφοὶ τῆς ἐμῆς καὶ ἄλλοι τινὲς ἅμα τούτοις οὐκ ἀφανεῖς, συνθήκας ἐποιήσαντο πρὸς ἀλλήλους καὶ συνώμοσαν ἀποκτείναντες ἐμὲ καταγαγεῖν Ταρκύνιον ἐπὶ τὴν ἀρχήν·
Certain of the citizens, having assembled at the house of the Aquillii, who were born of Collatinus' sister, among whom were both my sons and the brothers of my wife, and certain others of no obscure rank along with them, made agreements with one another and conspired to put me to death and restore Tarquin to power.
ἐπιστολάς τε περὶ τούτων γράψαντες αὐτογράφους καὶ ταῖς ἑαυτῶν σφραγῖσι κατασημηνάμενοι πέμπειν πρὸς τοὺς φυγάδας ἔμελλον.
Having written letters with their own hands concerning these matters and sealed them with their own signets, they were about to send them to the exiles.
§5.10.4ταῦθʼ ἡμῖν θεῶν τινος εὐνοίᾳ καταφανῆ γέγονεν ὑπὸ τοῦδε μηνυθέντα τοῦ ἀνδρός· ἔστι δʼ Ἀκυλλίων δοῦλος, παρʼ οἷς καταγόμενοι τῇ παρελθούσῃ νυκτὶ τὰς ἐπιστολὰς ἔγραψαν· καὶ τῶν γραμμάτων γεγόναμεν αὐτῶν ἐγκρατεῖς.
These things have become manifest to us by the favor of some god, being disclosed by this man, who is a slave of the Aquillii, at whose house they stayed and wrote the letters last night; and we have got possession of the letters themselves.
Τῖτον μὲν οὖν ἐγὼ καὶ Τιβέριον τοὺς ἐμοὺς παῖδας τετιμώρημαι· καὶ οὐδὲν καταλέλυται διὰ τὴν ἐμὴν ἐπιείκειαν οὔτε νόμος οὔθʼ ὅρκος·
I, therefore, have punished my sons, Titus and Tiberius, and neither law nor oath has been broken through my leniency.
Ἀκυλλίους δὲ Κολλατῖνος ἀφαιρεῖταί μου καί φησιν οὐκ ἐάσειν ὅμοια τοῖς ἐμοῖς παισὶ βουλεύσαντας τῶν ὁμοίων ἐκείνοις τυχεῖν.
But Collatinus rescues the Aquillii from me, and says he will not allow those who planned the same things as my children to meet with the same fate.
§5.10.5εἰ δʼ οὗτοι μηδεμίαν ὑφέξουσι δίκην, οὐδὲ τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς τῆς ἐμῆς γυναικὸς οὐδὲ τοὺς ἄλλους προδότας τῆς πατρίδος ἐξέσται μοι κολάσαι.
If these men pay no penalty, it will not be permitted to me to punish either my wife's brothers or the other traitors of their country.
τί γὰρ δὴ δίκαιον πρὸς αὐτοὺς ἕξω λέγειν, ἂν τούτους ἀφῶ;
For what justice shall I have to speak to them if I let these go?
τίνος οὖν ταῦτα μηνύματα τίθεσθε;
What indication, then, do you consider these things to be?
πότερα τῆς πρὸς τὴν πόλιν εὐνοίας ἢ τῶν πρὸς τοὺς τυράννους διαλλαγῶν, καὶ πότερα τῆς ἐμπεδώσεως τῶν ὅρκων, οὓς ἀφʼ ἡμῶν ἀρξάμενοι πάντες ὠμόσατε, ἢ τῆς συγχύσεώς τε καὶ ἐπιορκίας;
Whether of goodwill toward the city or of reconciliation with the tyrants? And whether of the confirmation of the oaths, which all of you swore beginning from us, or of their violation and perjury?
§5.10.6καὶ εἰ μὲν ἔλαθεν ἡμᾶς, ταῖς ἀραῖς ἔνοχος ἦν ἂν καὶ θεοῖς ὑπέσχεν, οὓς ἐπιώρκει, δίκας· ἐπειδὴ δὲ καταφανὴς γέγονεν, ὑφʼ ἡμῶν αὐτὸν προσήκει κολασθῆναι, ὅς γʼ ὀλίγαις μὲν ἡμέραις πρότερον τὰ χρήματα τοῖς τυράννοις ὑμᾶς ἔπεισεν ἀποδοῦναι, ἵνα μὴ κατὰ τῶν ἐχθρῶν ἡ πόλις αὐτοῖς ἔχῃ χρῆσθαι πρὸς τὸν πόλεμον, ἀλλὰ κατὰ τῆς πόλεως οἱ ἐχθροί· νῦν δὲ τοὺς ἐπὶ καθόδῳ τῶν τυράννων συνομοσαμένους ἀφεῖσθαι τῆς τιμωρίας οἴεται δεῖν, ἐκείνοις αὐτοὺς δηλονότι χαριζόμενος, ἵνʼ, ἐὰν ἄρα κατέλθωσιν εἴτʼ ἐκ προδοσίας εἴτε πολέμῳ, ταύτας προφερόμενος τὰς χάριτας ἁπάντων ὡς φίλος ὅσων ἂν αἱρῆται παρʼ αὐτῶν τυγχάνῃ.
And if indeed he had escaped our notice, he would have been liable to the curses and would have paid the penalty to the gods whom he perjured; but since he has become manifest, it is fitting that he be punished by us, who indeed a few days before persuaded you to restore their property to the tyrants, so that the city might not have it to use in the war against its enemies, but rather the enemies against the city; and now he thinks that those who conspired for the return of the tyrants ought to be released from punishment, clearly currying favor with them, so that if they should return, whether by treachery or by war, he may, by alleging these favors, obtain from them whatever he chooses as a friend.
§5.10.7ἔπειτʼ ἐγὼ τῶν ἐμῶν οὐ φεισάμενος τέκνων σοῦ φείσομαι, Κολλατῖνε, ὃς τὸ μὲν σῶμα παρʼ ἡμῖν ἔχεις, τὴν δὲ ψυχὴν παρὰ τοῖς πολεμίοις, καὶ τοὺς μὲν προδότας τῆς πατρίδος σώζεις, ἐμὲ δὲ τὸν ὑπὲρ αὐτῆς ἀγωνιζόμενον ἀποκτενεῖς;
Shall I then, who did not spare my own children, spare you, Collatinus, who have your body with us but your soul with the enemy, and who save the traitors of your country but would kill me who am fighting for it?
πόθεν;
Far from it!
πολλοῦ γε καὶ δεῖ·
It is impossible.
ἀλλʼ ἵνα μηδὲν ἔτι τοιοῦτον ἐξεργάσῃ, τὴν μὲν ἀρχὴν ἀφαιροῦμαί σε καὶ πόλιν ἑτέραν κελεύω μεταλαβεῖν·
But so that you may do nothing of the sort again, I strip you of your office and command you to depart to another city.
ὑμῖν δʼ, ὦ πολῖται, ψῆφον ἀναδώσω καλέσας αὐτίκα μάλα τοὺς λόχους, ἵνα διαγνῶσιν, εἰ χρὴ ταῦτʼ εἶναι κύρια·
And to you, citizens, I shall submit a vote, having immediately summoned the centuries, so that they may decide whether these actions ought to be valid.
εὖ δʼ ἴστε δυεῖν θάτερον ἢ Κολλατῖνον ἕξοντες ὕπατον ἢ Βροῦτον.
Rest assured of one of two things: you shall have either Collatinus as consul, or Brutus."