Humanitext Reader

Lysias · Against Pancleon §1-8

Investigation into Pancleon's status as an alleged slave

Passage 1 of 2 · Greek

Summary

The speaker explains how he brought a lawsuit against Pancleon before the polemarch, believing him to be a resident alien, and details his subsequent investigations among the Deceleans and Plataeans after Pancleon claimed Plataean citizenship, which eventually led to the revelation that Pancleon was actually a runaway slave.

§1πολλὰ μὲν λέγειν, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, περὶ τουτουὶ τοῦ πράγματος οὔτʼ ἂν δυναίμην οὔτε μοι δοκεῖ δεῖν·
I would neither be able, gentlemen of the jury, to speak at length about this matter, nor does it seem to me to be necessary.
ὡς δὲ ὀρθῶς τὴν δίκην ἔλαχον τουτῳὶ Παγκλέωνι οὐκ ὄντι Πλαταιεῖ, τοῦτο ὑμῖν πειράσομαι ἀποδεῖξαι.
But that I rightly brought the suit against this Pancleon here, who is not a Plataean, this I shall try to demonstrate to you.
§2ὡς γὰρ ἀδικῶν με πολὺν χρόνον οὐκ ἐπαύετο, ἐλθὼν ἐπὶ τὸ γναφεῖον, ἐν ᾧ εἰργάζετο, προσεκαλεσάμην αὐτὸν πρὸς τὸν πολέμαρχον, νομίζων μέτοικον εἶναι.
For as he did not cease from wronging me for a long time, I went to the fuller's shop where he was working and summoned him before the polemarch, believing him to be a resident alien.
εἰπόντος δὲ τούτου ὅτι Πλαταιεὺς εἴη, ἠρόμην ὁπόθεν δημοτεύοιτο, παραινέσαντός τινος τῶν παρόντων προσκαλέσασθαι καὶ πρὸς τὴν φυλήν, ἧστινος εἶναι σκήπτοιτο.
But when he said that he was a Plataean, I asked from which deme he was registered, since one of those present advised me to summon him also before the tribe to which he claimed to belong.
ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἀπεκρίνατο ὅτι Δεκελειόθεν, προσκαλεσάμενος αὐτὸν καὶ πρὸς τοὺς τῇ Ἱπποθωντίδι δικάζοντας, §3ἐλθὼν ἐπὶ τὸ κουρεῖον τὸ παρὰ τοὺς Ἑρμᾶς, οἷ Δεκελειεῖς προσφοιτῶσιν, ἠρώτων, οὕς τε ἐξευρίσκοιμι Δεκελειέων ἐπυνθανόμην εἴ τινα γιγνώσκοιεν Δεκελειόθεν δημοτευόμενον Παγκλέωνα.
And when he answered that he was from Decelea, I summoned him also before those who judge for the Hippothontid tribe, and went to the barber's shop near the Herms, where the Deceleans frequent, and asked, and of those Deceleans whom I could find I inquired whether they knew any Pancleon registered as a demesman from Decelea.
ἐπειδὴ δὲ οὐδεὶς ἔφασκεν γιγνώσκειν αὐτόν, πυθόμενος ὅτι καὶ ἑτέρας δίκας τὰς μὲν φεύγοι τὰς δʼ ὠφλήκοι παρὰ τῷ πολεμάρχῳ ἔλαχον καὶ ἐγώ.
When no one claimed to know him, having learned that he was also defending some other lawsuits and had lost others before the polemarch, I too brought my suit.
§4πρῶτον μὲν οὖν ὑμῖν Δεκελειέων οὓς ἠρόμην μάρτυρας παρέξομαι, ἔπειτα δὲ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων τῶν λαχόντων τε δίκας αὐτῷ πρὸς τὸν πολέμαρχον καὶ καταδικασαμένων, ὅσοι τυγχάνουσι παρόντες.
First, therefore, I shall present to you as witnesses those of the Deceleans whom I questioned, and then also those of the others who brought suits against him before the polemarch and won their cases, as many as happen to be present.
καί μοι ἐπίλαβε τὸ ὕδωρ.
And please, stop the water.
§5Μάρτυρες ἐκ μὲν τούτων πεισθεὶς πρὸς τὸν πολέμαρχον αὐτῶ· τὴν δίκην ἔλαχον·
Witnesses Convinced by these facts, I brought the suit against him before the polemarch.
ἐπειδὴ δέ μοι αὐτὴν ἀντεγράψατο μὴ εἰσαγώγιμον εἶναι, περὶ πολλοῦ ποιούμενος μηδενὶ δόξαι ὑβρίζειν βούλεσθαι μᾶλλον ἢ δίκην λαβεῖν ὧν ἠδικήθην, πρῶτον μὲν Εὐθύκριτον, ὃν πρεσβύτατόν τε Πλαταιέων ἐγίγνωσκον καὶ μάλιστα ὠόμην εἰδέναι, ἠρόμην εἴ τινα γιγνώσκοι Ἱππαρμοδώρου ὑὸν Παγκλέωνα Πλαταιέα·
But when he entered a special plea against me that the suit was not admissible, since I made it of great importance not to seem to anyone to wish to behave insolently rather than to get justice for the wrongs I had suffered, I first asked Euthycritus, whom I knew to be the oldest of the Plataeans and whom I thought most likely to know, whether he knew any Pancleon, son of Hipparmodorus, a Plataean.
§6ἔπειτα δέ, ἐπειδὴ ἐκεῖνος ἀπεκρίνατό μοι ὅτι τὸν Ἱππαρμόδωρον μὲν γιγνώσκοι, ὑὸν δὲ ἐκείνῳ οὐδένα οὔτε Παγκλέωνα οὔτε ἄλλον οὐδένα εἰδείη ὄντα, ἠρώτων δὴ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ὅσους ᾔδη Πλαταιέας ὄντας.
And then, when he answered me that he knew Hipparmodorus, but knew of no son of his, neither Pancleon nor anyone else, I indeed asked also as many of the others as I knew to be Plataeans.
πάντες οὖν ἀγνοοῦντες τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ, ἀκριβέστατα ἂν ἔφασάν με πυθέσθαι ἐλθόντα εἰς τὸν χλωρὸν τυρὸν τῇ ἕνῃ καὶ νέα· ταύτῃ γὰρ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τοῦ μηνὸς ἑκάστου ἐκεῖσε συλλέγεσθαι τοὺς Πλαταιέας.
All of them, therefore, being ignorant of his name, said that I would find out most accurately if I went to the green cheese market on the last day of the month; for on that day of each month the Plataeans gather there.
§7ἐλθὼν οὖν εἰς τὸν τυρὸν ταύτῃ τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐπυνθανόμην αὐτῶν, εἴ τινα γιγνώσκοιεν Παγκλέωνα πολίτην σφέτερον.
Having gone, therefore, to the cheese market on that day, I inquired of them whether they knew any Pancleon, their fellow citizen.
καὶ οἱ μὲν ἄλλοι οὐκ ἔφασαν γιγνώσκειν, εἷς δέ τις εἶπεν ὅτι τῶν μὲν πολιτῶν οὐδενὶ εἰδείη τοῦτο ὂν τὸ ὄνομα, δοῦλον μέντοι ἔφη ἑαυτοῦ ἀφεστῶτα εἶναι Παγκλέωνα, §8τήν τε ἡλικίαν λέγων τὴν τούτου καὶ τὴν τέχνην ᾗ οὗτος χρῆται.
And while the others said they did not know him, a certain one said that he knew no one of the citizens by this name, but that Pancleon was indeed his runaway slave, describing both his age and the trade which he practices.
ταῦτʼ οὖν ὡς ἀληθῆ ἐστι, τόν τε Εὐθύκριτον, ὃν πρῶτον ἠρόμην, καὶ τῶν ἄλλων Πλαταιέων ὅσοις προσῆλθον, καὶ τὸν ὃς ἔφη δεσπότης τούτου εἶναι, μάρτυρας παρέξομαι.
Therefore, to prove that these things are true, I shall present as witnesses Euthycritus, whom I first questioned, and as many of the other Plataeans as I approached, and the one who said he was his master.
καί μοι ἐπίλαβε τὸ ὕδωρ.
And please, stop the water.

Notes

  1. 1πολλὰ μὲν λέγειν — The infinitive `λέγειν` functions both as a complementary infinitive with `οὔτʼ ἂν δυναίμην` (potential optative) in the first clause, and as the subject/object of `δεῖν` (itself an infinitive depending on the impersonal `δοκεῖ`) in the second. This double dependence links both the inability and the lack of necessity to the act of speaking at length.
  2. 2παραινέσαντός τινος τῶν παρόντων — This is a genitive absolute construction expressing cause ('since one of those present advised...'). The infinitive `προσκαλέσασθαι` depends on `παραινέσαντος`, and the indirect question `ἧστινος εἶναι σκήπτοιτο` ('to which tribe he claimed to belong') is dependent on it, with `σκήπτοιτο` in the optative of indirect discourse due to the leading past tense.
  3. 5περὶ πολλοῦ ποιούμενος μηδενὶ δόξαι ὑβρίζειν βούλεσθαι — A complex nested infinitive construction. The participle `περὶ πολλοῦ ποιούμενος` ('making it of great importance') governs the infinitive `δόξαι` with its dative `μηδενὶ` ('not to seem to anyone'). In turn, `δόξαι` governs `βούλεσθαι`, which itself governs `ὑβρίζειν`. The negative `μή` (in `μηδενὶ`) negates the infinitive `δόξαι` to express the speaker's anxiety to avoid a bad reputation.
  4. 6ἀκριβέστατα ἂν ἔφασάν με πυθέσθαι ἐλθόντα — The particle `ἄν` goes not with the main verb `ἔφασαν` but with the infinitive `πυθέσθαι`, representing a potential past or a conditional apodosis in indirect discourse ('they said that I would find out [if I went]'). The participle `ἐλθόντα` is in the accusative singular masculine to agree with `με`, the subject of the infinitive.
  5. 7δοῦλον μέντοι ἔφη ἑαυτοῦ ἀφεστῶτα εἶναι Παγκλέωνα — An Accusative with Infinitive (AcI) construction introduced by `ἔφη`. `Παγκλέωνα` is the subject accusative, and `δοῦλον` is the predicate. The genitive `ἑαυτοῦ` is an indirect reflexive pronoun referring back to the subject of `ἔφη` (the master). The perfect active participle `ἀφεστῶτα` (from `ἀφίστημι`) functions attributively with `δοῦλον`, meaning 'runaway' or 'in a state of having defected'.

Cite this passage

Lysias, Against Pancleon §1-8. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0540.tlg023.humanitext-grc2:1-8

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