§473σαφῶς εἴσεσθε.
you will know clearly.
οὔτε Θηβαίοις ἔνεστι δή που βοηθεῖν κατὰ τοῦτον τὸν λόγον, ἐπερσίκασι γάρ· οὔτε Λακεδαιμονίοις, ὅτι καὶ αὐτοὶ τὰ τοῦ Πέρσου κακὰ ζηλοῦσι, καὶ τῆς ἐκείνου πονηρίας καὶ ἀπιστίας κληρονόμους εἶναι προσῆκον οὐδαμῶς ὑμῖν ἐστιν.
On the one hand, it is surely not possible to help the Thebans according to this argument, for they have sided with the Persians; nor on the other hand to help the Lacedaemonians, because they themselves also emulate the bad policies of the Persian, and it is in no way fitting for you to be heirs to his wickedness and faithlessness.
οὔτε γὰρ δή που μισεῖν τὴν Ἑλλάδα φήσαιτʼ ἂν, ὥστε ὡς ἀσθενεστάτην ζητεῖν ποιεῖν ὥσπερ ἐκεῖνος, οὔτʼ ἀνεκτὸν μεταβαλλομένους φαίνεσθαι.
For you would surely not say that you hate Greece, so as to seek to make her as weak as possible just as he did, nor is it tolerable that you should appear to change sides.
τὸ δʼ ἐπὶ σφῶν αὐτῶν ἐᾶσαι κριθῆναι τοὺς διενηνεγμένους ἀνεπίφθονον, καὶ οὐδʼ ἂν εἷς ὑμῖν νεμεσήσαι.
To allow those who are in conflict to decide the matter on their own is free from reproach, and not a single person would be angry with you.
εἶτα καὶ βασιλεὺς μὲν οὐκ αὐτὸς καταβαίνων, οὐδὲ τῷ σώματι κινδυνεύων, ἀλλʼ ἀπὸ χρημάτων συνετέλει τοῖς πράγμασι πολλῶν εὐπορῶν, καὶ ὕπαρχον κατέπεμψεν ἂν, ὄντων οὐκ ὀλίγων αὐτῷ· καὶ ταῦτʼ ἦν ὁ τοῦ βασιλέως πόλεμος, Φαρνάβαζος, Πισσούθνης, Τισσαφέρνης, ψευδολογία, χρυσίον, τὰ τοιαῦτα.
Furthermore, while the King did not come down in person, nor risk his own life, but contributed to affairs from his abundant money, and would send down a governor, since he had not a few of them; and these things were the King's war: Pharnabazus, Pissouthnes, Tissaphernes, falsehood, gold, and suchlike.
ἡμεῖς δʼ εἰ πρὸς τοὺς ἑτέρους ἐπικλίναιμεν, τοῦθʼ ὃ ἐκεῖνος διὰ τούτων ἐφυλάττετο πεισόμεθα.
But if we should lean towards one of the two sides, we shall suffer the very thing which he, by these means, guarded against.
ὁ μὲν γὰρ ὅπως μὴ διʼ αὑτοῦ ποτε κινδυνεύσῃ προεωρᾶτο, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο πόρρωθεν ἔτριβε τὰ πράγματα· ἡμεῖς δʼ αὐτῷ τοὐναντίον τοῖς σώμασι καὶ τῇ χώρᾳ καὶ πάσαις ὡς εἰπεῖν ταῖς ἀφορμαῖς ἀποκινδυνεύσομεν.
For he indeed looked ahead in order that he might never run a risk in his own person, and because of this, wore out the affairs from afar; but we, on the contrary, shall run risks in our own persons, with our land, and, so to speak, with all our resources.
οὐ γὰρ ἔστι διʼ ἄλλων πολεμεῖν ἡμῖν, οὐδʼ ἄνω τοῦ πολέμου καθημένοις ἐπαρκεῖν τοῖς πράγμασιν, οὐδʼ ἐξ ἀκοῆς εἰδέναι περὶ αὐτῶν, οὐδʼ ἐκ περιουσίας, οὐδʼ ἐν τρυφῆς μέρει μετέχειν τῶν γιγνομένων, μέτρῳ τῇ βουλήσει χρωμένους, ἀλλὰ παρεῖναι δεῖ καὶ συμπονεῖν, καὶ μηδὲν ἔλαττον τῶν ἐξ ἀρχῆς συμπεπτωκότων κινδυνεύειν, οὐχ ὕπαρχον ὅταν βουλώμεθα ἀποστεῖλαι.
For we cannot wage war through others, nor, sitting aloof from the war, assist the affairs, nor know about them by hearsay, nor from a position of surplus, nor participate in what happens as a matter of luxury, using our will as a measure; but we must be present and toil together, and run risks no less than those on whom the misfortune fell from the beginning, having no lieutenant to send out whenever we wish.
καὶ γὰρ εἰ καὶ χρήμασιν, ἔστι μὲν οὐδαμοῦ τοσαῦθʼ ἡμῖν ὥστʼ ἐγχωρεῖν ἀπαλλοτριοῦν εἰς τοσαύτην χρείαν· εἰ δʼ οὖν καὶ τοῦτον τὸν τρόπον τοῖς ἑτέροις συντελέσαιμεν, οὐκ ἔστʼ εἰπεῖν Σοῦσα οὐδʼ Ἐκβάτανα εἶναι, οὐδʼ ἀποκρύψαι δεῖν τὴν θάλατταν ἐτησίαν ὁδὸν βαδίζοντας, ἀλλὰ μιᾶς ἡμέρας καὶ δυοῖν ὁδός ἐστι, τοῖς ἀδικηθεῖσιν ἐμβαλεῖν καὶ ἄγειν καὶ φέρειν ἡμᾶς, ὥστʼ ἐκ τούτων ἀνάγκην εἰς χεῖρας ἐλθεῖν εἶναι· τοῦτο δʼ ἐστὶ τἀκ τῆς δυσπραξίας πράγματα. ἐκέλευον δʼ ἂν καὶ αὐτὸς τοῖς Λακεδαιμονίοις §474ἐπικουρεῖν τῷ τὰ τῶν Θηβαίων ὑπεραίρειν, εἰ μὴ ὅσον πλήθει καὶ ἰσχύϊ τούτους περιεῖναι, τοσοῦτον ἐκείνους ἐπεπείσμην ἀνοίσειν ἀσκήσει.
For even if we should contribute money, we have nowhere so much of it as to allow us to alienate it for such a great need; and if, then, we should contribute to one of the sides in this way, we cannot say that Susa or Ecbatana is [the scene], nor that we must put the sea out of sight as we travel a year's journey, but it is a journey of one or two days for those who have been wronged to invade us, and to plunder and carry us off, so that from this there is a necessity to come to blows; and this is the trouble that comes from misfortune.\nAnd I myself would urge helping the Lacedaemonians surpass the power of the Thebans, if I were not persuaded that, by as much as the latter excel in numbers and strength, by so much the former will make up for it through discipline.
εἰ μὲν γὰρ ἐξ ἴσου καθειστήκεσαν, περὶ τῶν Θηβαίων ἔγωγʼ ἂν ἔδεισα ὡς ἀσθενεστέρων, ἐπεὶ δʼ οἱ Θηβαῖοι καλῶς ποιοῦντες παρεληλύθασιν, ἴσας ἔχειν λαβὰς τὸν πόλεμον ἡγοῦμαι· ἐνεῖναι γὰρ καὶ παρὰ Λακεδαιμονίοις καὶ ὑστέροις ὁρμηθεῖσι μεταδιῶξαι.
For if they stood on equal terms, I for my part would have feared for the Thebans as being weaker; but since the Thebans, fortunately, have surpassed them, I think the war has equal advantages; for it is possible even for the Lacedaemonians, though starting later, to pursue and catch up.
συνέξει δὴ τὸν πόλεμον καὶ ποιήσει τριβὴν τὸ τοὺς μὲν οἷς κατωρθώκασιν ἐπαιρομένους ἐπὶ πᾶν ἀφικέσθαι ζητεῖν, τοὺς δʼ αὖ Λακεδαιμονίους ἀρετῇ καὶ φρονήματι κρείττους ἀξιοῦντας εἶναι μηδὲν πλέον ἂν τούτων ὑπομεῖναι παραδέξασθαι.
What will hold the war together and cause delay is that, on the one hand, those who have succeeded, being elated, seek to reach everything, while on the other hand, the Lacedaemonians, claiming to be superior in courage and pride, would tolerate to accept nothing more than equal from them.
εἰ δὲ δή τινων ἔργον δεῖ μιμήσασθαι, τὸ Ἀργείων καλὸν, οἳ παρὰ τὸν πόλεμον τὸν ἡμέτερον καὶ Λακεδαιμονίων τούτων ἡσυχίαν ἄγοντες καὶ νεότητι καὶ κατασκευῇ τῆς χώρας καὶ τοῖς πᾶσιν εὐθένησαν, ἕως συνεφαψάμενοι τῶν πραγμάτων προήκαντο τὴν ὑπάρχουσαν εὐδαιμονίαν καὶ ὁ δῆμος αὐτῶν τότε κατελύθη, καὶ πάλιν ἄλλʼ ἠκολούθησε κακά.
But if indeed we must imitate the deed of any people, the noble deed of the Argives is to be followed, who, during our war with these Lacedaemonians, keeping quiet, flourished in youth, in the cultivation of their land, and in all things, until, by taking a hand in affairs, they threw away their existing prosperity, and their democracy was then overthrown, and other evils followed in turn.
πάντα γὰρ ὡς εἰπεῖν οἱ πόλεμοι φύουσι, πολιτειῶν καταλύσεις, φιλονεικίας, βλάβας, ἃς οὐδʼ ἂν προΐδοιτό τις παντοδαπὰς, ὧν εἴ τινες ἀνθρώπων καὶ ἡμεῖς ἐμπείρως ἐσχηκότες ἐν φυλακῇ δικαίως ἂν εἴημεν.
For almost all wars bring forth downfalls of constitutions, rivalries, and damages of all kinds, which no one could foresee, and if any men have had experience of these, we also have had, and we would justly be on our guard.
ἀκούω δὲ καὶ τοὺς προγόνους ἡμῶν τοὺς ἐπʼ ἐκείνων τῶν καιρῶν ἀποστῆναι Σαλαμῖνος Μεγαρεῦσι χρόνον ἔστιν ὃν, κἄν τις εἴπῃ κομίζεσθαι, τεθνάναι ψήφισμα ποιήσασθαι.
And I hear that our ancestors in those times withdrew from Salamis in favor of the Megarians for a certain time, and made a decree that if anyone should propose to recover it, he should be punished with death.
ὅπου δὲ καὶ τῶν οἰκείων παραχωρῆσαι καὶ προέσθαι ἔσθʼ ὅτε δεῖ καὶ συμφέρει, πῶς ἀλλοτρίων γε κακῶν ἄξιον κληρονομῆναι, καὶ τούτων μὲν ἂν τῶν νῦν καλούντων ἡμᾶς πικρῶς ἔχειν τοῖς ἐμβάλλουσιν εἰς τὴν Ἀττικὴν, εἰ τοῦθʼ ὁποτέροις οὖν αὐτῶν ἐπῆλθε ποιῆσαι, αὐτοὺς δʼ εἰς πόλεμον καὶ ταραχὴν ἀκατάστατον ἡμᾶς αὐτοὺς ἐμβαλεῖν εἰκῆ, καὶ ταῦτʼ εἰδότας ὡς ἄρξασθαι μὲν πολέμου ῥᾴδιον, ἀπαλλαγῆναι δὲ οὐδὲν οὕτω χαλεπόν;
Where, indeed, it is sometimes necessary and advantageous to yield and give up even what is one's own, how is it worthy to inherit the evils of others, and that while these who are now calling upon us would be bitter against those who invade Attica if either of them thought of doing this, we ourselves should throw ourselves blindly into war and unsettled confusion—and that too when we know that it is easy to begin a war, but nothing is so difficult as to get rid of it?
οἱ γὰρ πολλοὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων αἱροῦνται μὲν τοὺς κινδύνους αὑτῶν ὄντες κύριοι, φεύγουσι δʼ ἐπʼ ἄλλοις γενόμενοι· τούτων δʼ οὐδέτερον εὖ φρονούντων ἐστίν.
For most men choose dangers when they are masters of themselves, but flee them when they have come into the power of others; but neither of these is the mark of those who are wise.
ἡμῖν δὲ συχνὸν μὲν χρόνον ἡ χώρα κεκάκωται, πολὺν δʼ
And for us, our land has been ravaged for a considerable time, and for a long...