§3αἰτία δʼ οἶμαι καὶ ἀρχὴ τῆς τοσαύτης μεταβολῆς ἐγένετο ἡ πάντων κρατοῦσα Ῥώμη πρὸς ἑαυτὴν ἀναγκάζουσα τὰς ὅλας πόλεις ἀποβλέπειν καὶ ταύτης δὲ αὐτῆς οἱ δυναστεύοντες κατʼ ἀρετὴν καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ κρατίστου τὰ κοινὰ διοικοῦντες, εὐπαίδευτοι πάνυ καὶ γενναῖοι τὰς κρίσεις γενόμενοι, ὑφʼ ὧν κοσμούμενον τό τε φρόνιμον τῆς πόλεως μέρος ἔτι μᾶλλον ἐπιδέδωκεν καὶ τὸ ἀνόητον ἠνάγκασται νοῦν ἔχειν.
And the cause and beginning of so great a change was, I believe, Rome, which rules over all and forces all the cities to look towards herself, and also within this [Rome] herself, those who hold power according to virtue and govern public affairs from the best [intentions], having become very well-educated and noble in their judgments; by whom being guided and adorned, the prudent part of the city has made even more progress, while the senseless part has been forced to have sense.
τοιγάρτοι πολλαὶ μὲν ἱστορίαι σπουδῆς ἄξιαι γράφονται τοῖς νῦν, πολλοὶ δὲ λόγοι πολιτικοὶ χαρίεντες ἐκφέρονται φιλόσοφοί τε συντάξεις οὐ μὰ Δία εὐκαταφρόνητοι ἄλλαι τε πολλαὶ καὶ καλαὶ πραγματεῖαι καὶ Ῥωμαίοις καὶ Ἕλλησιν εὖ μάλα διεσπουδασμέναι προεληλύθασί τε καὶ προελεύσονται κατὰ τὸ εἰκός.
Therefore, many histories worthy of study are written by men of today, and many graceful political speeches are published, and, by Zeus, not-to-be-despised philosophical treatises, and many other beautiful works, fully and seriously studied by both Romans and Greeks, have come forth and will, in all probability, come forth.
καὶ οὐκ ἂν θαυμάσαιμι τηλικαύτης μεταβολῆς ἐν τούτῳ τῷ βραχεῖ χρόνῳ γεγενημένης, εἰ μηκέτι χωρήσει προσωτέρω μιᾶς γενεᾶς ὁ ζῆλος ἐκεῖνος τῶν ἀνοήτων λόγων· τὸ γὰρ ἐκ παντὸς εἰς ἐλάχιστον συναχθὲν ῥᾴδιον ἐξ ὀλίγου μηδὲ εἶναι.
And I would not wonder, since so great a change has occurred in this short time, if that zeal for senseless speeches should no longer proceed further than one generation; for that which has been contracted from the whole to the smallest is easy to cease to exist in a short time.
§4ἀλλὰ γὰρ τὸ μὲν εὐχαριστεῖν τῷ μεταβάλλοντι τὰ πράγματα χρόνῳ καὶ τὸ τοὺς τὰ κράτιστα προαιρουμένους ἐπαινεῖν καὶ τὸ τὰ μέλλοντα ἐκ τῶν γεγονότων εἰκάζειν καὶ πάντα τὰ παραπλήσια τούτοις, ἃ κἂν ὁ τυχὼν εἰπεῖν δύναιτο, ἀφήσω, ἐξ ὧν δʼ ἂν ἔτι μείζω λάβοι τὰ κρείττονα ἰσχύν, ταῦτα πειράσομαι λέγειν, ὑπόθεσιν τοῦ λόγου κοινὴν καὶ φιλάνθρωπον καὶ πλεῖστα δυναμένην ὠφελῆσαι λαβών.
But indeed, as for giving thanks to time which changes affairs, and praising those who choose the best paths, and guessing the future from past events, and all things similar to these, which even any ordinary person could say, I shall let them pass; but those things from which the better might receive yet greater strength, these I shall try to state, having taken a theme for my discourse that is common, philanthropic, and capable of bringing the greatest benefit.
ἔστι δὲ ἥδε, τίνες εἰσὶν ἀξιολογώτατοι τῶν ἀρχαίων ῥητόρων τε καὶ συγγραφέων καὶ τίνες αὐτῶν ἐγένοντο προαιρέσεις τοῦ τε βίου καὶ τῶν λόγων καὶ τί παρʼ ἑκάστου δεῖ λαμβάνειν ἢ φυλάττεσθαι, καλὰ θεωρήματα καὶ ἀναγκαῖα τοῖς ἀσκοῦσι τὴν πολιτικὴν φιλοσοφίαν καὶ οὐ δήπου μὰ Δία κοινὰ οὐδὲ κατημαξευμένα τοῖς πρότερον.
And it is this: who are the most noteworthy of the ancient orators and prose writers, and what were their choices both of life and of speeches, and what one ought to take or guard against from each of them—beautiful and necessary considerations for those who practice political philosophy, and by Zeus, surely not common or well-worn by those of former times.
ἐγὼ γοῦν οὐδεμιᾷ τοιαύτῃ περιτυχὼν οἶδα γραφῇ, πολλὴν ζήτησιν αὐτῶν ποιησάμενος.
I, at least, do not know of having met with any such writing, though I have made a great search for them.
οὐ μέντοι διαβεβαιοῦμαι γε ὡς δὴ καὶ σαφῶς εἰδώς· τάχα γὰρ ἂν εἶέν τινες αἱ ἐμὲ διαλανθάνουσαι τοιαῦται γραφαί, τὸ δὲ τῆς ἀπάντων ἱστορίας ὅρον ἑαυτὸν ποιεῖν καὶ περὶ τοῦ μὴ γεγονέναι τι τῶν δυνατῶν γενέσθαι λέγειν αὔθαδες πάνυ καὶ οὐ πόρρω μανίας.
However, I do not make any positive assertion as if indeed knowing clearly; for perhaps there might be some such writings that escape my notice, since to make oneself the measure of all history and to declare that nothing of possible things has happened is altogether arrogant and not far from madness.
περὶ μὲν οὖν τούτων οὐδὲν ἔχω, καθάπερ ἔφην, διαβεβαιοῦσθαι.
Concerning these things, then, I have nothing to assert positively, as I said.
τῶν δὲ ῥητόρων τε καὶ συγγραφέων, ὑπὲρ ὧν ὁ λόγος, πολλῶν πάνυ ὄντων καὶ ἀγαθῶν τὸ μὲν ὑπὲρ ἁπάντων γράφειν μακροῦ λόγου δεόμενον ὁρῶν ἐάσω, τοὺς δὲ χαριεστάτους ἐξ αὐτῶν προχειρισάμενος κατὰ τὰς ἡλικίας ἐρῶ περὶ ἑκάστου, νῦν μὲν περὶ τῶν ῥητόρων, ἐὰν δὲ ἐγχωρῇ, καὶ περὶ τῶν ἱστορικῶν.
But since the orators and writers about whom our discourse is concerned are very many and excellent, seeing that to write about all requires a long discourse, I shall let that be, and having selected the most graceful among them, I shall speak about each according to their generations, now indeed about the orators, and if there is room, also about the historians.
ἔσονται δὲ οἱ παραλαμβανόμενοι ῥήτορες τρεῖς μὲν ἐκ τῶν πρεσβυτέρων, Λυσίας Ἰσοκράτης Ἰσαῖος, τρεῖς δʼ ἐκ τῶν ἐπακμασάντων τούτοις, Δημοσθένης Ὑπερείδης Αἰσχίνης, οὓς ἐγὼ τῶν ἄλλων ἡγοῦμαι κρατίστους, καὶ διαιρεθήσεται μὲν εἰς δύο συντάξεις ἡ πραγματεία, τὴν δὲ ἀρχὴν ἀπὸ ταύτης λήψεται τῆς ὑπὲρ τῶν πρεσβυτέρων γραφείσης.
And the orators to be included will be three from the older generation, Lysias, Isocrates, Isaeus, and three from those who flourished after them, Demosthenes, Hyperides, Aeschines, whom I consider the best of all; and the treatise will be divided into two volumes, and its beginning will be taken from this one written about the older generation.
προειρημένων δὴ τούτων ἐπανάγειν καιρὸς ἐπὶ τὰ προκείμενα.
Now that these things have been said beforehand, it is time to return to the matters before us.