§1οὐδʼ ἡγούμενος ἀκριβῆ νῦν τὴν δοκιμασίαν αὐτοὺς διὰ τὸν χρόνον ποιήσεσθαι, ἐπεὶ σύνοισθα πολλὰ καὶ δεινὰ εἰς αὐτοὺς ἐξημαρτηκώς, ὧν ἐπιλελῆσθαι καὶ οὐδʼ ἀναμνησθήσεσθαι ἐνίους αὐτῶν νομίζεις.
not even thinking that they will now conduct a strict scrutiny because of the lapse of time, since you are conscious of having committed many dreadful wrongs against them, some of which you believe they have forgotten and will not even remember.
ὃ δὴ ἔγωγε καὶ ἀγανακτῶ, εἰ ταύτῃ τῇ ἐλπίδι εἰς ὑμᾶς ἥκει πιστεύων, ὥσπερ ἄλλων μέν τινων ὄντων τῶν ἠδικημένων, ἑτέρων δὲ τῶν ταῦτα διαψηφιουμένων, ἀλλʼ οὐκ ἀμφότερα τῶν αὐτῶν καὶ πεπονθότων καὶ ἀκουσομένων.
This is indeed what I am indignant at, if he has come to you trusting in this hope, as if those who were wronged were some other people, and those who will vote on these matters were different, and not both belonging to the same people who have suffered and will hear the case.
§2αἴτιοι δὲ τούτων ὑμεῖς ἐστε· οὐ γὰρ ἐνθυμεῖσθε ὅτι οὗτοι μέν, ὅτε ἡ πόλις ὑπὸ Λακεδαιμονίων ἤρχετο, οὐδὲ τῆς αὐτῆς δουλείας ὑμῖν μεταδοῦναι ἠξίωσαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς πόλεως ἐξήλασαν· ὑμεῖς δʼ ἐλευθέραν αὐτὴν ποιήσαντες οὐ μόνον τῆς ἐλευθερίας αὐτοῖς ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῦ δικάζειν καὶ τοῦ ἐκκλησιάζειν περὶ τῶν κοινῶν μετέδοτε, ὥστε εἰκότως ὑμῶν ταύτην τὴν εὐήθειαν καταγιγνώσκουσιν.
And you are responsible for this; for you do not bear in mind that these men, when the city was ruled by the Lacedaemonians, did not even deign to share the same slavery with you, but even drove you out of the city; whereas you, having made it free, shared with them not only freedom but also the right to act as judges and to attend the assembly concerning public affairs, so that they naturally condemn this simplicity of yours.
§3ὧν εἷς οὗτος ὢν οὐκ ἀγαπᾷ εἴ τις αὐτὸν ἐᾷ τούτων μετέχειν, ἀλλὰ καὶ πρὶν ἐκείνων δοῦναι δίκην πάλιν ἄρχειν ἀξιοῖ.
And this man, being one of them, is not content if someone allows him to participate in these things, but even before paying the penalty for those deeds, he demands to rule again.
καὶ νυνὶ αὐτὸν ἀκούω ὑπὲρ μὲν τῶν αὐτοῦ κατηγορουμένων διὰ βραχέων ἀπολογήσεσθαι, ἐπισύροντα τὰ πράγματα καὶ διακλέπτοντα τῇ ἀπολογίᾳ τὴν κατηγορίαν, λέξειν δὲ ὡς πολλὰ εἰς τὴν πόλιν ἀνηλώκασι καὶ φιλοτίμως λελῃτουργήκασι καὶ νίκας πολλὰς καὶ καλὰς ἐν δημοκρατίᾳ νενικήκασι, καὶ ὅτι αὐτὸς κόσμιός ἐστι καὶ οὐχ ὁρᾶται ποιῶν ἃ ἕτεροι ἐνταῦθα τολμῶσιν, ἀλλὰ τὰ ἑαυτοῦ πράττειν ἀξιοῖ.
And now I hear that, concerning the charges brought against him, he will make a brief defense, brushing over the matters and smuggling away the accusation with his defense, and that he will say they have spent much on the city, performed public liturgies with public spirit, and won many glorious victories under the democracy, and that he himself is orderly and is not seen doing what others here dare to do, but demands only to mind his own business.
§4ἐγὼ δὲ πρὸς τούτους τοὺς λόγους οὐ χαλεπὸν οἶμαι ἀντειπεῖν·
But against these arguments, I think it is not difficult to reply.
πρὸς μὲν τὰς λῃτουργίας, ὅτι κρείττων ἦν ὁ πατὴρ αὐτοῦ μὴ λῃτουργήσας ἢ τοσαῦτα τῶν ἑαυτοῦ ἀναλώσας· διὰ γὰρ ταῦτα πιστευθεὶς ὑπὸ τοῦ δήμου κατέλυσε τὴν δημοκρατίαν, ὥστʼ εἶναι ταῦτα τὰ ἔργα ἀειμνηστότερα ἢ τὰ ἐκ τῶν λῃτουργιῶν αὐτῷ ἀναθήματα·
Regarding the liturgies, his father would have been better off not performing them, rather than spending so much of his own property; for having been trusted by the people because of these very things, he overthrew the democracy, so that these deeds are more unforgettably remembered than the votive offerings he dedicated from his liturgies.
§5πρὸς δὲ τὴν ἡσυχιότητα τὴν τούτου, ὅτι οὐ νῦν δεῖ αὐτὸν ἐξετάζειν εἰ σώφρων ἐστίν, ὅτʼ αὐτὸν οὐκ ἔξεστιν ἀσελγαίνειν, ἀλλʼ ἐκεῖνον τὸν χρόνον σκοπεῖν, ἐν ᾧ ἐξὸν ὁποτέρως ἐβούλετο ζῆν εἵλετο παρανόμως πολιτευθῆναι.
And against his quietness, that we must not examine now whether he is self-controlled, when he is not permitted to act outrageously, but we must consider that time when, although it was allowed to live in whichever way he wished, he chose to behave lawlessly in public life.
τοῦ μὲν γὰρ νῦν μηδὲν ἐξαμαρτάνειν οἱ κωλύσαντες αἴτιοι, τῶν δὲ τότε γενομένων ὁ τούτου τρόπος καὶ οἱ τούτῳ ἐπιτρέπειν ἀξιοῦντες.
For of his committing no wrong now, those who prevent him are the cause, but of what happened then, his own character and those who chose to permit him are responsible.
ὥστʼ ἐὰν ἐκ τούτων δοκιμάζεσθαι ἀξιοῖ, ταῦτα χρὴ ὑπολαμβάνειν, μὴ εὐήθεις αὐτῷ εἶναι δοκῆτε.
So, if he demands to be approved based on these things, you must understand these points, lest you seem to him to be fools.
§6ἐὰν δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τοιόνδε λόγον τράπωνται, ὡς ὁ χρόνος οὐκ ἐγχωρεῖ ἄλλον ἀποκληρῶσαι, ἀλλὰ ἀνάγκη, ἐὰν αὐτὸν ἀποδοκιμάσητε, ἄθυτα τὰ πάτρια ἱερὰ γίγνεσθαι, τάδʼ ἐνθυμήθητε, ὅτι πάλαι ὁ χρόνος ἤδη παρελήλυθεν.
And if they turn to such an argument, that the time does not allow for another to be chosen by lot, but it is necessary, if you reject him, that the ancestral sacrifices remain unperformed, bear this in mind: that the time has already long since passed.
ἡ γὰρ αὔριον ἡμέρα μόνη λοιπὴ τοῦ ἐνιαυτοῦ ἐστιν, ἐν δὲ ταύτῃ τῷ Διὶ τῷ σωτῆρι θυσία γίγνεται, δικαστήριον δὲ παρὰ τοὺς νόμους ἀδύνατον πληρωθῆναι.
For tomorrow is the only day left of the year, and on it the sacrifice to Zeus the Savior takes place, and it is impossible for a court to be impaneled contrary to the laws.
§7εἰ δὲ ταῦτα πάνθʼ οὗτος ὥστε γενέσθαι διαπέπρακται, τί προσδοκῆσαι δεῖ δοκιμασθέντʼ αὐτὸν ποιήσειν, εἰ τὴν ἐξιοῦσαν ἀρχὴν πέπεικεν αὐτοῦ ἕνεκα παρανομῆσαι;
And if this man has managed all these things so that they would happen, what must we expect him to do once he has passed the scrutiny, if for his own sake he has persuaded the outgoing magistrates to break the law?
ἆρʼ ἂν ὀλίγα τοιαῦτα ἐν τῷ ἐνιαυτῷ διαπράξασθαι;
Would he perform only a few such deeds during the year?
ἐγὼ μὲν γὰρ οὐκ ἂν οἶμαι.
For I, indeed, do not think so.
§8ἔστι δʼ ὑμῖν οὐ τοῦτο μόνον σκεπτέον, ἀλλὰ καὶ πότερον εὐσεβέστερον τὸν βασιλέα καὶ τοὺς συνάρχοντας τὰ ὑπὲρ τοῦ μέλλοντος ἄρξειν ἱερὰ θῦσαι, ὡς καὶ πρότερον ἤδη γεγένηται, ἢ καὶ τοῦτον, ὃν οὐδὲ καθαρὸν εἶναι τὰς χεῖρας οἱ εἰδότες μεμαρτυρήκασι, καὶ πότερον ὑμεῖς ὠμόσατε εἰς τὴν ἀρχὴν ἀδοκίμαστον καταστήσειν, ἢ δοκιμάσαντες τὸν ἄξιον τῆς ἀρχῆς στεφανώσειν.
And you must consider not only this, but also whether it is more pious for the King and his fellow magistrates to offer the sacrifices on behalf of the one who is about to rule, as has indeed happened before, or even this man, whose hands those who know have testified are not even clean; and whether you swore to establish an unscrutinized person into the office, or, after scrutinizing, to crown the one who is worthy of the office.
ταῦτα γὰρ σκοπεῖσθε· κἀκεῖνο δʼ ἐνθυμεῖσθε,
For consider these things, and bear that other point in mind...