§2.1274aἔοικε δὲ Σόλων ἐκεῖνα μὲν ὑπάρχοντα πρότερον οὐ καταλῦσαι, τήν τε βουλὴν καὶ τὴν τῶν ἀρχῶν αἵρεσιν, τὸν δὲ δῆμον καταστῆσαι, τὰ δικαστήρια ποιήσας ἐκ πάντων.
Solon seems, while not dissolving those things existing beforehand—namely the council and the election of offices—to have established the democracy by making the courts from all citizens.
διὸ καὶ μέμφονταί τινες αὐτῷ· λῦσαι γὰρ θάτερα, κύριον ποιήσαντα τὸ δικαστήριον πάντων, κληρωτὸν ὄν.
Therefore some indeed criticize him; for they say that he dissolved the other elements by making the court, which was appointed by lot, master of all.
ἐπεὶ γὰρ τοῦτʼ ἴσχυσεν, ὥσπερ τυράννῳ τῷ δήμῳ χαριζόμενοι τὴν πολιτείαν εἰς τὴν νῦν δημοκρατίαν μετέστησαν· καὶ τὴν μὲν ἐν Ἀρείῳ πάγῳ βουλὴν Ἐφιάλτης ἐκόλουσε καὶ Περικλῆς, τὰ δὲ δικαστήρια μισθοφόρα κατέστησε Περικλῆς, καὶ τοῦτον δὴ τὸν τρόπον ἕκαστος τῶν δημαγωγῶν προήγαγεν αὔξων εἰς τὴν νῦν δημοκρατίαν.
For when this court became powerful, as if flattering the people like a tyrant, they changed the constitution to the present democracy; and Ephialtes and Pericles curtailed the council in Areopagus, and Pericles established paid courts, and indeed in this way each of the demagogues led the democracy forward, increasing its power, to the present state.
φαίνεται δʼ οὐ κατὰ τὴν Σόλωνος γενέσθαι τοῦτο προαίρεσιν, ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον ἀπὸ συμπτώματος (τῆς ναυαρχίας γὰρ ἐν τοῖς Μηδικοῖς ὁ δῆμος αἴτιος γενόμενος ἐφρονηματίσθη καὶ δημαγωγοὺς ἔλαβε φαύλους ἀντιπολιτευομένων τῶν ἐπιεικῶν), ἐπεὶ Σόλων γε ἔοικε τὴν ἀναγκαιοτάτην ἀποδιδόναι τῷ δήμῳ δύναμιν, τὸ τὰς ἀρχὰς αἱρεῖσθαι καὶ εὐθύνειν (μηδὲ γὰρ τούτου κύριος ὢν ὁ δῆμος δοῦλος ἂν εἴη καὶ πολέμιος), τὰς δʼ ἀρχὰς ἐκ τῶν γνωρίμων καὶ τῶν εὐπόρων κατέστησε πάσας, ἐκ τῶν πεντακοσιομεδίμνων καὶ ζευγιτῶν καὶ τρίτου τέλους τῆς καλουμένης ἱππάδος· τὸ δὲ τέταρτον τὸ θητικόν, οἷς οὐδεμιᾶς ἀρχῆς μετῆν.
But this seems to have happened not according to Solon's intention, but rather by accident (for the people, having been the cause of the naval supremacy in the Persian Wars, became high-spirited and took bad demagogues because the decent citizens opposed them in politics); since Solon at least seems to assign to the people the most necessary power, namely to elect the magistrates and hold them to account (for if the people were not masters of even this, they would be a slave and an enemy); but he established all the offices from the notables and the wealthy, from the pentakosiomedimnoi and the zeugitai and the third class of the so-called knights; and the fourth class was the thetes, to whom no office belonged.
νομοθέται δʼ ἐγένοντο Ζάλευκός τε Λοκροῖς τοῖς ἐπιζεφυρίοις, καὶ Χαρώνδας ὁ Καταναῖος τοῖς αὑτοῦ πολίταις καὶ ταῖς ἄλλαις ταῖς Χαλκιδικαῖς πόλεσι ταῖς περὶ Ἰταλίαν καὶ Σικελίαν.
Zaleucus became a legislator for the Epizephyrian Locrians, and Charondas the Catanaean for his own citizens and for the other Chalcidian cities around Italy and Sicily.
πειρῶνται δέ τινες καὶ συνάγειν ὡς Ὀνομακρίτου μὲν γενομένου πρώτου δεινοῦ περὶ νομοθεσίαν, γυμνασθῆναι δʼ αὐτὸν ἐν Κρήτῃ, Λοκρὸν ὄντα καὶ ἐπιδημοῦντα, κατὰ τέχνην μαντικήν· τούτου δὲ γενέσθαι Θάλητα ἑταῖρον, Θάλητος δʼ ἀκροατὴν Λυκοῦργον καὶ Ζάλευκον, Ζαλεύκου δὲ Χαρώνδαν.
Some indeed try to connect them, saying that Onomacritus became the first skilled in legislation, and that he trained in Crete, being a Locrian and visiting there for the art of divination; and Thales became his companion, and Lycurgus and Zaleucus became hearers of Thales, and Charondas of Zaleucus.
ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν λέγουσιν ἀσκεπτότερον τῶν χρόνων ἔχοντες.
But they say these things with too little consideration for chronology.
ἐγένετο δὲ καὶ Φιλόλαος ὁ Κορίνθιος νομοθέτης Θηβαίοις.
And Philolaus the Corinthian also became a legislator for the Thebans.
ἦν δʼ ὁ Φιλόλαος τὸ μὲν γένος τῶν Βακχιαδῶν, ἐραστὴς δὲ γενόμενος Διοκλέους τοῦ νικήσαντος Ὀλυμπίασιν, ὡς ἐκεῖνος τὴν πόλιν ἔλιπε διαμισήσας τὸν ἔρωτα τὸν τῆς μητρὸς Ἀλκυόνης, ἀπῆλθεν εἰς Θήβας· κἀκεῖ τὸν βίον ἐτελεύτησαν ἀμφότεροι.
Philolaus was by race of the Bacchiadae, and having become the lover of Diocles, the victor at Olympia, when Diocles left his city because he loathed the passion of his mother Alcyone, Philolaus went away with him to Thebes; and there they both ended their lives.
καὶ νῦν ἔτι δεικνύουσι τοὺς τάφους αὐτῶν ἀλλήλοις μὲν εὐσυνόπτους ὄντας, πρὸς δὲ τὴν τῶν Κορινθίων χώραν τὸν μὲν σύνοπτον τὸν δʼ οὐ σύνοπτον· μυθολογοῦσι γὰρ αὐτοὺς οὕτω τάξασθαι τὴν ταφήν, τὸν μὲν Διοκλέα διὰ τὴν ἀπέχθειαν τοῦ πάθους, ὅπως μὴ ἄποπτος ἔσται ἡ Κορινθία ἀπὸ τοῦ χώματος, τὸν δὲ Φιλόλαον ὅπως ἄποπτος.
And even now they still point out their tombs, which are easily visible from each other, but with respect to the territory of the Corinthians, one is visible and the other is not visible; for they tell a story that they themselves arranged their burial in this way: Diocles, because of his hatred of the passion, so that the Corinthian land should not be visible from his mound, and Philolaus so that it should be visible.
§2.1274bᾤκησαν μὲν οὖν διὰ τὴν τοιαύτην αἰτίαν παρὰ τοῖς Θηβαίοις, νομοθέτης δʼ αὐτοῖς ἐγένετο Φιλόλαος περί τʼ ἄλλων τινῶν καὶ περὶ τῆς παιδοποιίας, οὓς καλοῦσιν ἐκεῖνοι νόμους θετικούς· καὶ τοῦτʼ ἐστὶν ἰδίως ὑπʼ ἐκείνου νενομοθετημένον, ὅπως ὁ ἀριθμὸς σῴζηται τῶν κλήρων.
They settled then among the Thebans for such a reason, and Philolaus became a legislator for them concerning certain other matters and concerning the adoption of children, which those people call "adoptive laws"; and this has been specially legislated by him, so that the number of allotments should be preserved.
Χαρώνδου δʼ ἴδιον μὲν οὐδέν ἐστι πλὴν αἱ δίκαι τῶν ψευδομαρτυριῶν (πρῶτος γὰρ ἐποίησε τὴν ἐπίσκηψιν), τῇ δʼ ἀκριβείᾳ τῶν νόμων ἐστὶ γλαφυρώτερος καὶ τῶν νῦν νομοθετῶν.
Of Charondas there is nothing peculiar except the lawsuits concerning false witness (for he was the first to make the indictment), but in the precision of his laws he is more refined even than the present legislators.
Φαλέου δʼ ἴδιον ἡ τῶν οὐσιῶν ἀνομάλωσις, Πλάτωνος δʼ ἥ τε τῶν γυναικῶν καὶ παίδων καὶ τῆς οὐσίας κοινότης καὶ τὰ συσσίτια τῶν γυναικῶν, ἔτι δʼ ὁ περὶ τὴν μέθην νόμος, τὸ τοὺς νήφοντας συμποσιαρχεῖν, καὶ τὴν ἐν τοῖς πολεμικοῖς ἄσκησιν ὅπως ἀμφιδέξιοι γίνωνται κατὰ τὴν μελέτην, ὡς δέον μὴ τὴν μὲν χρήσιμον εἶναι τοῖν χεροῖν τὴν δὲ ἄχρηστον.
Of Phaleas, the equalization of properties is peculiar, and of Plato, the community of women and children and property, and the common meals of women; and further the law concerning drunkenness, that the sober should preside over symposia, and the training in military affairs so that they become ambidextrous through practice, on the ground that it is necessary that one of the two hands should not be useful and the other useless.
Δράκοντος δὲ νόμοι μὲν εἰσί, πολιτείᾳ δʼ ὑπαρχούσῃ τοὺς νόμους ἔθηκεν· ἴδιον δʼ ἐν τοῖς νόμοις οὐδὲν ἔστιν ὅ τι καὶ μνείας ἄξιον, πλὴν ἡ χαλεπότης διὰ τὸ τῆς ζημίας μέγεθος.
Of Draco there are laws, but he laid down his laws for an already existing constitution; and there is nothing in his laws that is peculiar and worthy of mention, except the severity due to the greatness of the penalty.
ἐγένετο δὲ καὶ Πιττακὸς νόμων δημιουργὸς ἀλλʼ οὐ πολιτείας· νόμος δʼ ἴδιος αὐτοῦ τὸ τοὺς μεθύοντας, ἄν τι πταίσωσι, πλείω ζημίαν ἀποτίνειν τῶν νηφόντων· διὰ γὰρ τὸ πλείους ὑβρίζειν μεθύοντας ἢ νήφοντας οὐ πρὸς τὴν συγγνώμην ἀπέβλεψεν, ὅτι δεῖ μεθύουσιν ἔχειν μᾶλλον, ἀλλὰ πρὸς τὸ συμφέρον.
Pittacus also became a creator of laws but not of a constitution; and his own peculiar law is that those who are drunk, if they commit any offense, pay a greater penalty than the sober; for because more people commit outrages when drunk than when sober, he did not look to the excuse that one ought to have more indulgence for the drunk, but to utility.
ἐγένετο δὲ καὶ Ἀνδροδάμας Ῥηγῖνος νομοθέτης Χαλκιδεῦσι τοῖς ἐπὶ Θρᾴκης, οὗ τὰ περί τε τὰ φονικὰ καὶ τὰς ἐπικλήρους ἐστίν· οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ ἴδιόν γε οὐδὲν αὐτοῦ λέγειν ἔχοι τις ἄν.
And Androdamas of Rhegium also became a legislator for the Chalcidians in Thrace, whose laws are concerning homicide and heiresses; nevertheless, one would not be able to say anything peculiar of his.
τὰ μὲν οὖν περὶ τὰς πολιτείας, τάς τε κυρίας καὶ τὰς ὑπὸ τινῶν εἰρημένας, ἔστω τεθεωρημένα τὸν τρόπον τοῦτον.
Let, then, the matters concerning constitutions, both the authoritative ones and those spoken of by some, be considered examined in this way.