§7.1326aδεῖ τὴν ὕλην ὑπάρχειν ἐπιτηδείαν οὖσαν πρὸς τὴν ἐργασίαν (ὅσῳ γὰρ ἂν αὕτη τυγχάνῃ παρεσκευασμένη βέλτιον, ἀνάγκη καὶ τὸ γιγνόμενον ὑπὸ τῆς τέχνης εἶναι κάλλιον), οὕτω καὶ τῷ πολιτικῷ καὶ τῷ νομοθέτῃ δεῖ τὴν οἰκείαν ὕλην ὑπάρχειν ἐπιτηδείως ἔχουσαν.
the material must be present, being suitable for the work (for the better prepared this material happens to be, the more beautiful the product of the art must also be), so also the politician and the lawgiver must have their proper material present in a suitable condition.
ἔστι δὲ πολιτικῆς χορηγίας πρῶτον τό τε πλῆθος τῶν ἀνθρώπων, πόσους τε καὶ ποίους τινὰς ὑπάρχειν δεῖ φύσει, καὶ κατὰ τὴν χώραν ὡσαύτως, πόσην τε εἶναι καὶ ποίαν τινὰ ταύτην.
And the first of the political resources is the number of people, both how many and of what sort they ought to be by nature, and similarly with regard to the territory, how large and of what sort it should be.
οἴονται μὲν οὖν οἱ πλεῖστοι προσήκειν μεγάλην εἶναι τὴν εὐδαίμονα πόλιν· εἰ δὲ τοῦτʼ ἀληθές, ἀγνοοῦσι ποία μεγάλη καὶ ποία μικρὰ πόλις.
Now, most people think that a happy city must be great; but even if this is true, they are ignorant of what kind of city is great and what kind is small.
κατʼ ἀριθμοῦ γὰρ πλῆθος τῶν ἐνοικούντων κρίνουσι τὴν μεγάλην, δεῖ δὲ μᾶλλον μὴ εἰς τὸ πλῆθος εἰς δὲ δύναμιν ἀποβλέπειν.
For they judge a great city by the number of its inhabitants, whereas they ought rather to look not to the number but to its capacity.
ἔστι γάρ τι καὶ πόλεως ἔργον, ὥστε τὴν δυναμένην τοῦτο μάλιστʼ ἀποτελεῖν, ταύτην οἰητέον εἶναι μεγίστην, οἷον Ἱπποκράτην οὐκ ἄνθρωπον ἀλλʼ ἰατρὸν εἶναι μείζω φήσειεν ἄν τις τοῦ διαφέροντος κατὰ τὸ μέγεθος τοῦ σώματος.
For a city also has a certain function, so that the one that is most capable of fulfilling this function must be deemed the greatest, just as one would say that Hippocrates, not as a human being but as a physician, is greater than someone who surpasses him in bodily size.
οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ κἂν εἰ δεῖ κρίνειν πρὸς τὸ πλῆθος ἀποβλέποντας, οὐ κατὰ τὸ τυχὸν πλῆθος τοῦτο ποιητέον (ἀναγκαῖον γὰρ ἐν ταῖς πόλεσιν ἴσως ὑπάρχειν καὶ δούλων ἀριθμὸν πολλῶν καὶ μετοίκων καὶ ξένων), ἀλλʼ ὅσοι πόλεώς εἰσι μέρος καὶ ἐξ ὧν συνίσταται πόλις οἰκείων μορίων· ἡ γὰρ τούτων ὑπεροχὴ τοῦ πλήθους μεγάλης πόλεως σημεῖον, ἐξ ἧς δὲ βάναυσοι μὲν ἐξέρχονται πολλοὶ τὸν ἀριθμὸν ὁπλῖται δὲ ὀλίγοι, ταύτην ἀδύνατον εἶναι μεγάλην· οὐ γὰρ ταὐτὸν μεγάλη τε πόλις καὶ πολυάνθρωπος.
Nevertheless, even if we must judge by looking to the number, this must not be done according to any random multitude (for there must probably exist in cities a great number of slaves, metics, and foreigners), but rather according to those who are a part of the city and the proper components out of which the city is established; for the superiority of these in number is the sign of a great city, whereas a city from which many artisans emerge in number but few heavy-armed soldiers is impossible to be great; for a great city is not the same as a populous one.
ἀλλὰ μὴν καὶ τοῦτό γε ἐκ τῶν ἔργων φανερόν, ὅτι χαλεπόν, ἴσως δʼ ἀδύνατον, εὐνομεῖσθαι τὴν λίαν πολυάνθρωπον· τῶν γοῦν δοκουσῶν πολιτεύεσθαι καλῶς οὐδεμίαν ὁρῶμεν οὖσαν ἀνειμένην πρὸς τὸ πλῆθος.
Furthermore, this is also clear from the facts themselves, that it is difficult, and perhaps impossible, for an overly populous city to be well-governed; at any rate, of those cities that seem to be well-governed, we see none that is unlimited with regard to its population.
τοῦτο δὲ δῆλον καὶ διὰ τῆς τῶν λόγων πίστεως.
And this is also clear through the proof of argument.
ὅ τε γὰρ νόμος τάξις τίς ἐστι, καὶ τὴν εὐνομίαν ἀναγκαῖον εὐταξίαν εἶναι, ὁ δὲ λίαν ὑπερβάλλων ἀριθμὸς οὐ δύναται μετέχειν τάξεως· θείας γὰρ δὴ τοῦτο δυνάμεως ἔργον, ἥτις καὶ τόδε συνέχει τὸ πᾶν.
For law is a kind of order, and good law must necessarily be good order, but an excessively exceeding number cannot share in order; for this is indeed the work of a divine power, which also holds together this universe.
διὸ καὶ πόλιν ἧς μετὰ μεγέθους ὁ λεχθεὶς ὅρος ὑπάρχει, ταύτην εἶναι καλλίστην ἀναγκαῖον· ἐπεὶ τό γε καλὸν ἐν πλήθει καὶ μεγέθει εἴωθε γίνεσθαι, ἀλλʼ ἔστι τι καὶ πόλεως μεγέθους μέτρον, ὥσπερ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων πάντων, ζῴων φυτῶν ὀργάνων·
Therefore, the city in which the aforementioned limit is present along with size must also be the most beautiful; since beauty is accustomed to arise in multitude and size, yet there is also a certain measure for the size of a city, just as for all other things, such as animals, plants, and tools.
καὶ γὰρ τούτων ἕκαστον οὔτε λίαν μικρὸν οὔτε κατὰ μέγεθος ὑπερβάλλον ἕξει τὴν αὑτοῦ δύναμιν, ἀλλʼ ὁτὲ μὲν ὅλως ἐστερημένον ἔσται τῆς φύσεως ὁτὲ δὲ φαύλως ἔχον, οἷον πλοῖον σπιθαμιαῖον μὲν οὐκ ἔσται πλοῖον ὅλως, οὐδὲ δυοῖν σταδίοιν,
For each of these will have its own capacity neither when it is excessively small nor when it is exceeding in size, but at one time it will be completely deprived of its nature, and at another it will be in a bad state, just as a ship of a span's length will not be a ship at all, nor will one of two stades.