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Polybius · The Histories §13.5.1-13.5.7

Heracleides' Deception of Rhodes and the Power of Truth

Passage 790 of 1311 · Greek

Summary

The Rhodian prytaneis suspect Heracleides of being a spy, but clear him after his explanation. The author reflects on the power of Truth to always prevail, and mentions the capability of Damocles, a spy sent to Rome.

§13.5.1Διαπιστοῦντες δʼ οἱ πρυτάνεις ἤδη τῷ Φιλίππῳ διὰ τὴν περὶ τὰ Κρητικὰ κακοπραγμοσύνην, καὶ τὸν Ἡρακλείδην ὑπώπτευον ἐγκάθετον εἶναι.
The prytaneis, already distrusting Philip because of his villainy regarding Cretan affairs, also suspected Heracleides of being an agent planted among them.
— ὁ δʼ εἰσελθὼν ἀπελογίζετο τὰς αἰτίας, §13.5.2διʼ ἃς πεφευγὼς εἴη τὸν Φίλιππον.
But he came forward and explained the reasons for which he had fled from Philip.
— §13.5.3πᾶν γὰρ βουληθῆναι τὸν Φίλιππον ἀναδέξασθαι ἢ καταφανῆ γενέσθαι Ῥοδίοις τὴν ἐν τούτοις αὐτοῦ προαίρεσιν.
For Philip had wished to take any consequence upon himself rather than allow his design in these matters to become manifest to the Rhodians.
ᾗ καὶ τὸν Ἡρακλείδην ἀπέλυσε τῆς ὑποψίας. —
By this explanation, he cleared Heracleides of suspicion.
§13.5.4καί μοι δοκεῖ μεγίστην θεὸν τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ἡ φύσις ἀποδεῖξαι τὴν ἀλήθειαν καὶ μεγίστην αὐτῇ προσθεῖναι δύναμιν.
Indeed, it seems to me that Nature has set forth Truth as the greatest goddess for mankind, and has bestowed upon her the greatest power.
§13.5.5πάντων γοῦν αὐτὴν καταγωνιζομένων, ἐνίοτε καὶ πασῶν τῶν πιθανοτήτων μετὰ τοῦ ψεύδους ταττομένων, οὐκ οἶδʼ ὅπως αὐτὴ διʼ αὑτῆς εἰς τὰς ψυχὰς εἰσδύεται τῶν ἀνθρώπων, §13.5.6καὶ ποτὲ μὲν παραχρῆμα δείκνυσι τὴν αὑτῆς δύναμιν, ποτὲ δὲ καὶ πολὺν χρόνον ἐπισκοτισθεῖσα, τέλος αὐτὴ διʼ ἑαυτῆς ἐπικρατεῖ καὶ καταγωνίζεται τὸ ψεῦδος, ὡς συνέβη γενέσθαι περὶ τὸν Ἡρακλείδην τὸν παρὰ τοῦ Φιλίππου τοῦ βασιλέως εἰς Ῥόδον ἀφικόμενον. —
At any rate, when all things are fighting against her, and sometimes even all plausibilities are arrayed on the side of falsehood, I know not how she, of her own accord, insinuates herself into the souls of men, and sometimes she displays her power immediately, while at other times, even after being overshadowed for a long period, she triumphs in the end by her own strength and conquers falsehood, as happened in the case of Heracleides, who came to Rhodes from King Philip.
§13.5.7ὅτι Δαμοκλῆς ὁ μετὰ Πυθίωνος πεμφθεὶς κατάσκοπος πρὸς Ῥωμαίους ὑπηρετικὸν ἦν σκεῦος εὐφυὲς καὶ πολλὰς ἔχον ἀφορμὰς εἰς πραγμάτων οἰκονομίαν. —
Damocles, who had been sent with Pythion as a spy to the Romans, was a gifted tool for service and possessed many resources for the management of affairs.

Notes

  1. §13.5.3βουληθῆναι — The infinitive βουληθῆναι is part of the indirect speech depending on the preceding ἀπελογίζετο, representing the claim made by Heracleides.
  2. §13.5.3ἀναδέξασθαι ἢ καταφανῆ γενέσθαι — The adverb μᾶλλον (rather) is omitted before the conjunction ἤ (than), creating a comparative meaning: 'to take everything upon himself rather than to let it become manifest'.
  3. §13.5.3ἀπέλυσε — A third-person singular verb. The subject can be understood contextually as the representative of the prytaneis (plural), the Rhodian state as a collective singular, or the explanation itself represented by the relative pronoun ᾗ.
  4. §13.5.5οὐκ οἶδʼ ὅπως — Literally 'I do not know how', but used idiomatically as an adverbial phrase meaning 'somehow' or 'in some mysterious way', modifying the main verb εἰσδύεται.
  5. §13.5.7ὅτι — The introductory ὅτι ('that') is typical of texts preserved in Byzantine excerpts (Excerpta) to indicate a quoted fragment. It does not introduce a subordinate clause in this context and is left untranslated.

Cite this passage

Polybius, The Histories §13.5.1-13.5.7. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:13.5.1-13.5.7

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