§1οὔ μοι δοκεῖ χρῆναι ὀργίζεσθαι ὑμᾶς τῷ ὀνόματι τῷ τῶν τετρακοσίων, ἀλλὰ τοῖς ἔργοις ἐνίων.
does not seem to me right that you should be angry at the name of the Four Hundred, but rather at the deeds of some of them.
οἱ μὲν γὰρ ἐπιβουλεύσαντες ἦσαν αὐτῶν, οἱ δʼ ἵνα μήτε τὴν πόλιν μηδὲν κακὸν ἐργάσαιντο μήθʼ ὑμῶν μηδένα, ἀλλʼ εὖνοι ὄντες εἰσῆλθον εἰς τὸ βουλευτήριον, ὧν εἷς ὢν οὑτοσὶ τυγχάνει Πολύστρατος. §2οὗτος γὰρ ᾑρέθη μὲν ὑπὸ τῶν φυλετῶν ὡς χρηστὸς ὢν ἀνὴρ καὶ περὶ τοὺς δημότας καὶ περὶ τὸ πλῆθος τὸ ὑμέτερον·
For some of them were plotters, while others entered the council chamber with the intention of doing no harm either to the city or to any of you, but rather out of goodwill, of whom Polystratus here happens to be one. he was chosen by his tribesmen as being a good man both towards his fellow demesmen and towards your democracy.
κατηγοροῦσι δὲ αὐτοῦ ὡς οὐκ εὔνους ἦν τῷ πλήθει τῷ ὑμετέρῳ, αἱρεθεὶς ὑπὸ τῶν φυλετῶν, οἳ ἄριστʼ ἂν διαγνοῖεν περὶ σφῶν αὐτῶν ὁποῖοί τινές εἰσιν. §3οὗτος δὲ τίνος ἂν ἕνεκα ὀλιγαρχίας ἐπεθύμησε;
Yet they accuse him of not being well-disposed to your democracy, though he was chosen by his tribesmen, who would best judge what kind of people they are themselves. for what reason would he have desired an oligarchy?
πότερον ὡς ἡλικίαν εἶχε λέγων τι διαπράττεσθαι παρʼ ὑμῖν, ἢ τῷ σώματι πιστεύων, ἵνα ὑβρίζοι εἰς τῶν ὑμετέρων τινά;
Was it because he was of an age to achieve something by speaking among you, or because he trusted in his bodily strength so that he might commit outrages against some of you?
ἀλλʼ ὁρᾶτε αὐτοῦ τὴν ἡλικίαν, ᾗ καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους ἱκανός ἐστιν ἀποτρέπειν τούτων. §4ὅστις μὲν οὖν ἄτιμος ὤν, κακόν τι ἐργασάμενος ἐν τῷ πρόσθεν χρόνῳ, ἑτέρας πολιτείας ἐπεθύμησε, διὰ τὰ πρόσθεν ἁμαρτήματα αὑτοῦ ἕνεκʼ ἂν ἔπραττε·
But look at his age, which is sufficient to deter even others from such things., anyone who, being disenfranchised and having done some evil in the past, desired a different constitution, would have acted for his own sake because of his past offenses.
τούτῳ δὲ τοιοῦτον οὐδὲν ἡμάρτητο, ὥστε αὑτοῦ ἕνεκα μισεῖν τὸ πλῆθος τὸ ὑμέτερον, ἢ τῶν παίδων.
But he had committed no such offense that he should hate your democracy for his own sake, nor did he have reason to do so for the sake of his children.
ὁ μὲν γὰρ ἐν Σικελίᾳ ἦν, οἱ δʼ ἐν Βοιωτοῖς· ὥστε μηδὲ τούτων ἕνεκα ἑτέρας πολιτείας ἐπιθυμῆσαι. §5καὶ κατηγοροῦσι μὲν αὐτοῦ ὡς πολλὰς ἀρχὰς ἦρξεν, ἀποδεῖξαι δὲ οὐδεὶς οἷός τέ ἐστιν ὡς οὐ καλῶς ἦρξεν.
For one of them was in Sicily, and the others were in Boeotia; so that not even for their sakes would he have desired a different constitution. also accuse him of having held many offices, but no one is able to prove that he did not hold office well.
ἐγὼ δʼ ἡγοῦμαι οὐ τούτους ἀδικεῖν ἐν τοῖς πράγμασιν ἐκείνοις, ἀλλʼ εἴ τις ὀλίγας ἄρξας ἀρχὰς μὴ τὰ ἄριστα ἦρξε τῇ πόλει.
But I believe that those who did wrong in those affairs were not men of his kind, but rather anyone who, having held few offices, did not govern in the best interest of the city.
οὐ γὰρ οἱ καλῶς ἄρχοντες προὐδίδοσαν τὴν πόλιν, §6ἀλλʼ οἱ μὴ δικαίως.
For those who governed well did not betray the city, those who did not govern justly.
οὗτος δὲ πρῶτον μὲν ἄρξας ἐν Ὠρωπῷ οὔτε προέδωκε οὔθʼ ἑτέραν πολιτείαν κατέστησε, τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων ὅσοι ἦρχον καταπροδόντων τὰ πράγματα.
First, when this man held office in Oropus, he neither betrayed it nor established a different constitution, although all the others who held office completely betrayed their posts.
οἱ δʼ οὐχ ὑπέμειναν, καταγνόντες σφῶν αὐτῶν ἀδικεῖν· ὁ δὲ ἡγούμενος μηδὲν ἠδικηκέναι δίκην δίδωσι. §7καὶ τοὺς μὲν ἀδικοῦντας οἱ κατήγοροι ἐκκλέπτουσιν, ἀργύριον λαμβάνοντες· παρʼ ὧν δʼ ἂν μὴ κερδαίνωσιν, ἀδικοῦντας ἀποφαίνουσι.
Those others did not stand their trial, having condemned themselves of wrongdoing; but this man, believing he has done no wrong, stands trial., the accusers smuggle away the wrongdoers by taking money, while those from whom they make no profit, they show to be wrongdoers.
καὶ ὁμοίας τὰς κατηγορίας ποιοῦνται τῶν τε εἰπόντων γνώμην τινὰ ἐν τῇ βουλῇ καὶ τῶν μή.
They make similar accusations against both those who proposed some motion in the council and those who did not.
οὗτος δὲ οὐδὲ γνώμην οὐδεμίαν εἶπε περὶ τοῦ ὑμετέρου πλήθους. §8ἐγὼ δʼ ἡγοῦμαι ἀξίους εἶναι τούτους μηδὲν πάσχειν ὑφʼ ὑμῶν κακόν, εἰ ὑμῖν μὲν εὖνοι ἦσαν, ἐκείνοις δὲ οὐκ ἀπηχθάνοντο.
Yet this man proposed no motion whatsoever concerning your democracy. I think that such men deserve to suffer no harm at your hands, even if they were well-disposed to you but did not make themselves hated by those rulers.
τῶν γὰρ λεγόντων ἐναντία ἐκείνοις οἱ μὲν ἔφευγον οἱ δὲ ἀπέθνῃσκον, ὥστʼ εἴ τις καὶ ἐβούλετο ἐναντιοῦσθαι ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν, τὸ δέος καὶ ὁ φόνος τῶν πεπονθότων ἀπέτρεπε πάντας. §9ὥστε οἱ πολλοὶ πάντα ἀπεγίγνωσκον αὐτῶν· τοὺς μὲν γὰρ ἐξήλαυνον αὐτῶν, τοὺς δὲ ἀπεκτίνυσαν.
For of those who spoke against them, some were exiled and others were put to death, so that even if anyone wished to oppose them on your behalf, fear and the murder of those who suffered deterred everyone., the majority gave up all hope against them; for they drove some of them out, and others they killed.
οἳ δὲ ἐκείνων ἔμελλον ἀκροᾶσθαι καὶ μηδὲν ἐπιβουλεύειν μηδὲ ἐξαγγέλλειν, τούτους ἂν καθίσταντο.
They would establish in office those who were likely to obey them and to plot nothing against them nor to report anything.
ὥστε οὐκ ἂν ῥᾳδίως μετέστη ἂν ὑμῖν ἡ πολιτεία.
Hence your constitution would not easily have been changed.
οὔκουν δίκαιοί εἰσιν, ὧν ὑμῖν εὖνοι ἦσαν, §10τούτων δίκην διδόναι.
Therefore, they are not justified, in return for the goodwill they had towards you, paying the penalty for this.
δεινὸν δέ μοι δοκεῖ εἶναι, εἰ τοῖς εἰποῦσι περὶ τὸ πλῆθος τὸ ὑμέτερον μὴ τὰ ἄριστα ὁ μηδὲν εἰπὼν ταὐτὰ πείσεται, καὶ ἐν μὲν ἑβδομήκοντα ἔτεσιν οὐδὲν ἐξήμαρτεν εἰς ὑμᾶς, ἐν ὀκτὼ δʼ ἡμέραις· καὶ οἱ μὲν τὸν βίον ἅπαντα πονηροὶ ὄντες χρηστοὶ ἐν τῷ λογιστηρίῳ γεγένηται, πείσαντες τοὺς κατηγόρους, οἳ δʼ ἀεὶ ὑμῖν χρηστοὶ ἦσαν, οὗτοι πονηροί.
And it seems to me shocking if the man who said nothing is to suffer the same fate as those who said what was not best concerning your democracy, and if he who committed no offense against you in seventy years is to do so in eight days; and if those who were wicked all their lives have become good in the audit of accounts by persuading the accusers, while those who were always good to you are declared wicked.