§3.1Ἀφίκετο Ἀθήναζε πρὸς ἡμᾶς ὁ Πελλαῖος γέρων ἅμα τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ νεανίσκοις, καὶ ἐγένετο ἡ ὄψις, ὦ βέλτιστε βασιλεῦ, ἡδεῖα μὲν ἐμοὶ τῷ θεωμένῳ τε καὶ δι’ ὃν ταῦτα ἐγένετο, καλὴ δὲ καὶ σοὶ ἀπόντι καὶ φέρουσα δόξαν πολλὴν καὶ ζῆλον παρὰ πᾶσι τοῖς τε ἐπιτηδείοις τοῖς ἐμοῖς καὶ Ἀθηναίων ὁπόσοι εἶδον· εἷδον δὲ πολλοί, καὶ οὐδεὶς ὅστις οὐκ ἠγάσθη τέ σου τῆς φιλανθρωπίας καὶ συνηύξατό σοι τὰ ἀγαθά.
The old man from Pella arrived in Athens to us together with his young sons, and the sight, O best king, was indeed pleasant to me who beheld it and through whom these things came about, but also noble to you although absent, bringing much glory and admiration among all my close associates and as many of the Athenians as saw it; and many saw it, and there was no one who did not admire your benevolence and join in praying for good things for you.
περιῄει γὰρ ὁ γέρων οὐ πολλαῖς πάνυ ἡμέραις πρότερον ἐνθάδε ῥυπῶν τε καὶ κόμην ἔχων ἐν οὕτῳ πάνυ λιτῇ τινὶ ἐλπίδι τεθειμένος τὴν σωτηρίαν τῶν παίδων, λαμπρός τε ἐξαίφνης καὶ μετὰ δυοῖν παίδοιν νεανίαιν, θύων τε τοῖς θεοῖς, ἐμέ τε ὑμνῶν καὶ περιέπων, ὅτι σώσαιμι αὐτῷ τοὺς υἱέας, καὶ τὴν πόλιν τῶν Ἀθηναίων, ὅτι τοιούτους πολίτας τρέφει. §3.2(2) ἐγὼ δὲ πολλὰ μὲν καὶ ἕτερα εἰπεῖν ἔχω, οὐ βούλομαι δέ, ἐπιδεικνὺς ὅσῳ πλείονα ἐκ τούτου σεαυτὸν ὤνησας ἢ ἄλλον τινὰ ἀνθρώπων, δοκεῖν διὰ τοῦτο ἐλάττω σοι χάριν ἔχειν.
For not very many days before, the old man was going around here, filthy and with long hair, having placed the safety of his children in such a very meager hope, but suddenly he is radiant and with his two young sons, sacrificing to the gods, praising and tending to me because I saved his sons for him, and praising the city of Athens because it nurtures such citizens.\n (2) I have many other things to say, but I do not wish, by demonstrating how much more you benefited yourself by this than any other of mankind, to seem because of this to feel less gratitude to you.
ὁμολογῶ δὲ αὐτός τε εὖ τὰ μέγιστα πεπονθέναι καὶ πειράσεσθαι τοῦ καλοῦ τούτου ἔργου πολλὰ πάνυ καὶ μεγάλα παρασχεῖν σοι χαριστήρια, ὅτι οὔτε τὸν δείλαιον γέροντα ἐκεῖνον, ὅτε ἠτύχει, τῆς ἐφ’ ἡμῖν οὔτε ἡμᾶς τῆς ἐπὶ σοὶ γενομένης ἐψεύσω ἐλπίδος.
And I confess both that I myself have received the greatest benefits and that I will try to offer you very many and great tokens of gratitude for this noble deed, because you did not disappoint either that wretched old man, when he was in misfortune, of his hope in us, nor us of our hope in you.