by Demosthenes
[162] But when it was announced that the troops at Tamynae were blockaded, and when the Council carried a preliminary decree to dispatch the rest of the cavalry, to which he belonged, then, alarmed at the prospect of this campaign, he came forward with a voluntary gift at the next meeting of the Assembly, even before the Committee could take their seats. What makes it clear, beyond all possibility of doubt, that his motive was not public spirit but the desire to shirk the campaign? His subsequent proceedings.
[163] τὸ μὲν γὰρ πρῶτον, ὡς οὐκ ἐδόκει, προϊούσης τῆς ἐκκλησίας καὶ λόγων γιγνομένων, τῆς τῶν ἱππέων βοηθείας ἤδη δεῖν, ἀλλ᾽ ἀνεπεπτώκει τὰ τῆς ἐξόδου, οὐκ ἀνέβαιν᾽ ἐπὶ τὴν ναῦν ἣν ἐπέδωκεν, ἀλλὰ τὸν μέτοικον ἐξέπεμψε τὸν Αἰγύπτιον, Πάμφιλον, αὐτὸς δὲ μένων ἐνθάδε τοῖς Διονυσίοις διεπράττετο ταῦτ᾽ ἐφ᾽ οἷς νυνὶ κρίνεται:
[163] For in the first place, when it appeared, as the meeting proceeded and speeches were made, that the services of the cavalry were not now required, but that the proposed expedition had fallen through, he never set foot on the ship he had presented, but dispatched a resident alien, the Egyptian Pamphilus, while he himself stayed at home and behaved at the Dionysia in the way that is the matter of the present trial.
[164] ἐπειδὴ δ᾽ ὁ στρατηγὸς Φωκίων μετεπέμπετο τοὺς ἐξ Ἀργούρας ἱππέας ἐπὶ τὴν διαδοχὴν καὶ κατείληπτο σοφιζόμενος, τόθ᾽ ὁ δειλὸς καὶ κατάρατος οὑτοσὶ λιπὼν τὴν τάξιν ταύτην ἐπὶ τὴν ναῦν ᾤχετο, καὶ ὧν ἱππαρχεῖν ἠξίωσε παρ᾽ ὑμῖν ἱππέων, τούτοις οὐ συνεξῆλθεν. εἰ δ᾽ ἐν τῇ θαλάττῃ κίνδυνός τις ἦν, εἰς τὴν γῆν δῆλον ὅτι ᾤχετ᾽ ἄν.
[164] Next, when the general, Phocion, summoned the cavalry from Argura to take their turn of service, and the trickery of Meidias was exposed, then this damnable coward quitted that post and hurried to his ship and never went out with the cavalry whom he claimed to command here at home. But if there had been any risk at sea, he would certainly have hastened to land.
[165] οὐ μὴν Νικήρατός γ᾽ οὕτως ὁ τοῦ Νικίου, ὁ ἀγαπητός, ὁ ἄπαις, ὁ παντάπασιν ἀσθενὴς τῷ σώματι: οὐδ᾽ Εὐκτήμων ὁ τοῦ Αἰσίωνος, οὐχ οὕτως: οὐδ᾽ Εὐθύδημος ὁ τοῦ Στρατοκλέους: ἀλλ᾽ αὐτῶν ἕκαστος ἑκὼν ἐπιδοὺς τριήρη οὐκ ἀπέδρα ταύτῃ τὴν στρατείαν, ἀλλὰ τὴν μὲν ἐπίδοσιν ἐν χάριτος μέρει καὶ δωρειᾶς παρεῖχον πλέουσαν τῇ πόλει, οὗ δ᾽ ὁ νόμος προσέταττεν, ἐνταῦθα τοῖς σώμασιν αὐτοὶ λῃτουργεῖν ἠξίουν.
[165] Not so behaved Niceratus, the beloved son of Nicias, though he was himself physically an utter weakling. Not so behaved Euctemon, the son of Aesion, nor Euthydemus, the son of Stratocles. Each of these men had made the gift of a war-galley, yet did not run away from the campaign in this way. Each, as an act of grace and a free gift, supplied the State with a ship ready for sea, and where the law of the State assigned them their posts, there each insisted on giving his personal service.
[166] ἀλλ᾽ οὐχ ὁ ἵππαρχος Μειδίας, ἀλλὰ τὴν ἐκ τῶν νόμων τάξιν λιπών, οὗ δίκην ὀφείλει τῇ πόλει δοῦναι, τοῦτ᾽ ἐν εὐεργεσίας ἀριθμήσει μέρει. καίτοι τὴν τοιαύτην τριηραρχίαν, ὢ πρὸς θεῶν, πότερον τελωνίαν καὶ πεντηκοστὴν καὶ λιποτάξιον καὶ στρατείας ἀπόδρασιν καὶ πάντα τὰ τοιαῦθ᾽ ἁρμόττει καλεῖν, ἢ φιλοτιμίαν; οὐδένα γὰρ τρόπον ἄλλον ἐν τοῖς ἱππεῦσιν αὑτὸν ἀτελῆ ποιῆσαι στρατείας δυνάμενος ταύτην εὕρηκε Μειδίας καινὴν ἱππικήν τινα πεντηκοστήν.
[166] But not so our cavalry-officer Meidias. He deserted the post assigned him by the laws, and this, which is a punishable offence against the State, he is prepared to count as a meritorious service. Yet, good heavens! what name best befits such a trierarchy as his? Shall we call it patriotism, or tax-jobbing, two-per-cent-collecting, desertion, malingering, and everything of that sort? Unable in any other way to get himself exempt from service with the cavalry, Meidias has invented this new-fangled cavalry-collectorship. Another point.
[167] καὶ γὰρ αὖ τοῦτο. τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων τῶν ἐπιδόντων τριηράρχων παραπεμπόντων ὑμᾶς ὅτε δεῦρ᾽ ἀπεπλεῖτ᾽ ἐκ Στύρων, μόνος οὗτος οὐ παρέπεμπεν, ἀλλ᾽ ἀμελήσας ὑμῶν χάρακας καὶ βοσκήματα καὶ θυρώμαθ᾽ ὡς αὑτὸν καὶ ξύλ᾽ εἰς τὰ ἔργα τὰ ἀργύρει᾽ ἐκόμιζεν, καὶ χρηματισμός, οὐ λῃτουργία γέγονεν ἡ τριηραρχία τῷ καταπτύστῳ τούτῳ. ἀλλὰ μὴν ὡς ἀληθῆ λέγω σύνιστε μὲν τὰ πολλὰ τούτων, ὅμως δὲ καὶ μάρτυρας ὑμῖν καλῶ.
[167] All the other donors of war-galleys convoyed you when you sailed back from Styra; Meidias alone took no part in the convoy, but, without a thought for you, he was bringing fences and cattle and door-posts for his own house and pit-props for his silver-mines, and so his command has proved, not a public service, but a lucrative job for this detestable creature. However, to prove to you the truth of my statements, though most of the facts are known to you, I will nevertheless call witnesses.
[168] “Μάρτυρες
Κλέων Σουνιεύς, Ἀριστοκλῆς Παιανιεύς, Πάμφιλος, Νικήρατος Ἀχερδούσιος, Εὐκτήμων Σφήττιος, καθ᾽ ὃν καιρὸν ἐκ Στύρων ἀπεπλέομεν δεῦρο τῷ στόλῳ παντί, ἐτύχομεν τριηραρχοῦντες καὶ αὐτοὶ καὶ Μειδίας ὁ νῦν κρινόμενος ὑπὸ Δημοσθένους, ᾧ μαρτυροῦμεν. παντὸς δὲ τοῦ στόλου πλεόντων ἐν τάξει, καὶ τῶν τριηράρχων ἐχόντων παράγγελμα μὴ χωρίζεσθαι ἕως ἂν δεῦρο καταπλεύσωμεν, Μειδίας ὑπολειφθεὶς τοῦ στόλου, καὶ γεμίσας τὴν ναῦν ξύλων καὶ χαράκων καὶ βοσκημάτων καὶ ἄλλων τινῶν, κατέπλευσεν εἰς Πειραιᾶ μόνος μεθ᾽ ἡμέρας δύο, καὶ οὐ συγκατέστησε τὸν στόλον μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων τριηράρχων.”
[168] “Witnesses[We, Cleon of Sunium, Aristocles of Paeania, Pamphilus, Niceratus of Acherdus, and Euctemon of Sphetta, on the occasion when we sailed home from Styra with the entire force, were commanders of triremes along with Meidias, who is now being prosecuted by Demosthenes, for whom we appear as witnesses. When the whole fleet was sailing in formation and the commanders had instructions not to separate until we landed at Athens, Meidias lagged behind the fleet and loaded his ship with timber and fencing and cattle and other things, and sailed alone into Peiraeus two days later, and did not join with the other commanders in bringing the force to land.]”
[169] εἰ τοίνυν ὡς ἀληθῶς, ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, οἷάπερ φήσει καὶ καταλαζονεύσεται πρὸς ὑμᾶς αὐτίκα δὴ μάλα, τοιαῦτ᾽ ἦν αὐτῷ τὰ λελῃτουργημένα καὶ πεπραγμένα, καὶ μὴ τοιαῦθ᾽ οἷ᾽ ἐγὼ δεικνύ�
�, οὐδ᾽ οὕτω δήπου τό γε δοῦναι δίκην ὧν ὕβρικεν ἐκφυγεῖν ταῖς λῃτουργίαις δίκαιος ἂν ἦν. ἐγὼ γὰρ οἶδ᾽ ὅτι πολλοὶ πολλὰ κἀγάθ᾽ ὑμᾶς εἰσιν εἰργασμένοι, οὐ κατὰ τὰς Μειδίου λῃτουργίας, οἱ μὲν ναυμαχίας νενικηκότες, οἱ δὲ πόλεις εἰληφότες, οἱ δὲ πολλὰ καὶ καλὰ ὑπὲρ τῆς πόλεως στήσαντες τρόπαια:
[169] Now if, men of Athens, his public services and his conduct were really what he will presently in court allege and boast them to have been and not what I thus prove them to have been, even so surely he has no right, under cover of his services, to escape the punishment due to his insolent acts. For I know that there are many men who have done you great and useful service — though not after the style of Meidias! Some have won naval victories, others have captured cities, others have set up many glorious trophies to the credit of the State.
[170] ἀλλ᾽ ὅμως οὐδενὶ πώποτε τούτων δεδώκατε τὴν δωρειὰν ταύτην οὐδ᾽ ἂν δοίητε, ἐξεῖναι τοὺς ἰδίους ἐχθροὺς ὑβρίζειν αὐτῶν ἑκάστῳ, ὁπότ᾽ ἂν βούληται καὶ ὃν ἂν δύνηται τρόπον. οὐδὲ γὰρ Ἁρμοδίῳ καὶ Ἀριστογείτονι: τούτοις γὰρ δὴ μέγισται δέδονται δωρειαὶ παρ᾽ ὑμῶν καὶ ὑπὲρ μεγίστων. οὐδ᾽ ἂν ἠνέσχεσθε, εἰ προσέγραψέ τις ἐν τῇ στήλῃ ‘ἐξεῖναι δὲ καὶ ὑβρίζειν αὐτοῖς ὃν ἂν βούλωνται:’ ὑπὲρ γὰρ αὐτοῦ τούτου τὰς ἄλλας ἔλαβον δωρειάς, ὅτι τοὺς ὑβρίζοντας ἔπαυσαν.
[170] But yet to not one of these men have you ever yet granted, nor are you likely to grant, this reward — licence for each one of them to oppress his private enemies whenever he likes and in whatever way he can. For not even Harmodius and Aristogeiton were so privileged, though indeed they received from you the highest rewards for the noblest services. You would never have tolerated it if any one had added this to the inscription on their monument, “And they shall be licensed to oppress whomsoever they will.” No, they received their other rewards for this very service, that they had restrained those who acted insolently.
[171] ὅτι τοίνυν καὶ κεκόμισται χάριν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, παρ᾽ ὑμῶν, οὐ μόνον ὧν αὐτὸς λελῃτούργηκε λῃτουργιῶν ἀξίαν （μικρὰ γὰρ αὕτη γέ τις ἦν）, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν μεγίστων, καὶ τοῦτο βούλομαι δεῖξαι, ἵνα μηδ᾽ ὀφείλειν οἴησθέ τι τῷ καταπτύστῳ τούτῳ. ὑμεῖς γάρ, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, ἐχειροτονήσατε τοῦτον τῆς Παράλου ταμίαν, ὄντα τοιοῦτον οἷός ἐστι, καὶ πάλιν ἵππαρχον, ὀχεῖσθαι διὰ τῆς ἀγορᾶς ταῖς πομπαῖς οὐ δυνάμενον, καὶ μυστηρίων ἐπιμελητὴν καὶ ἱεροποιόν ποτε καὶ βοώνην, καὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα δή.
[171] I now propose to show you, Athenians, that he has received from you a recompense adequate not only to the public services he has actually performed — for in that case it would be small indeed! — but even to the most distinguished services; so that you may not imagine that you are still in debt to this contemptible fellow. For it was you, men of Athens, who elected him — he being what he is — steward of the Paralus, and also commander of the cavalry, though he could not sit a horse in the processions through the market-place, and superintendent of the Mysteries, and sacrificer on one occasion, and buyer of the victims and all the rest of it.
[172] εἶτα πρὸς τῶν θεῶν τὸ τὴν τῆς φύσεως κακίαν καὶ ἀνανδρίαν καὶ πονηρίαν ταῖς παρ᾽ ὑμῶν ἀρχαῖς καὶ τιμαῖς καὶ χειροτονίαις ἐπανορθοῦσθαι μικρὰν ὑπολαμβάνετ᾽ εἶναι δωρειὰν καὶ χάριν; καὶ μὴν εἴ τις αὐτοῦ ταῦτ᾽ ἀφέλοιτο ‘ἱππάρχηκα, τῆς Παράλου ταμίας γέγονα,’ τίνος ἔστ᾽ ἄξιος οὗτος;
[172] And then, that a man’s innate baseness and cowardice and wickedness should be redeemed by offices and honors and appointments from you — do you, in heaven’s name, regard that as a trivial gift and favour? Take away, indeed, his right to say, “I have been commander of the cavalry; I have been made steward of the Paralus,” and what else is he good for?
[173] ἀλλὰ μὴν κἀκεῖνό γ᾽ ἐπίστασθε, ὅτι τῆς μὲν Παράλου ταμιεύσας Κυζικηνῶν ἥρπασε πλεῖν ἢ πέντε τάλαντα, ὑπὲρ ὧν ἵνα μὴ δῷ δίκην, πάντα τρόπον περιωθῶν καὶ ἐλαύνων τοὺς ἀνθρώπους καὶ τὰ σύμβολα συγχέων τὴν μὲν πόλιν ἐχθρὰν τῇ πόλει πεποίηκεν, τὰ χρήματα δ᾽ αὐτὸς ἔχει: ἵππαρχος δὲ χειροτονηθεὶς λελύμανται τὸ ἱππικὸν ὑμῶν, τοιούτους θεὶς νόμους οὓς πάλιν αὐτὸς ἔξαρνος ἦν μὴ τεθεικέναι.
[173] But at any rate you know this, that when he had been made steward of the Paralus, he plundered the people of Cyzicus of more than five talents, and to avoid punishment he worried and harassed the wretches in every possible way, and by making chaos of the treaties he has alienated their state from ours, while he keeps the money himself. Since he was appointed its commander, he has ruined your cavalry force, getting laws passed which he afterwards disowned.
[174] καὶ τῆς μὲν Παράλου ταμιεύων τότε, ὅτε τὴν ἐπὶ Θηβαίους ἔξοδον εἰς Εὔβοιαν ἐποιεῖσθ᾽ ὑμεῖς, δώδεκα τῆς πόλεως τάλαντ᾽ ἀναλίσκειν ταχθείς, ἀξιούντων ὑμῶν πλεῖν καὶ παραπέμπειν τοὺς στρατιώτας οὐκ ἐβοήθησεν, ἀλλ᾽ ἤδη τῶν σπονδῶν γεγονυιῶν, ἃς Διοκλῆς ἐσπείσατο Θηβαίοις, ἧκεν. καὶ τόθ᾽ ἡττᾶτο πλέων τῶν ἰδιωτικῶν τριήρων μιᾶς: οὕτως εὖ τὴν ἱερὰν τριήρη παρεσκευάκει. ἱππαρχῶν τοίνυν, τί οἴεσθε τἄλλα; ἀλλ᾽ ἵππον, ἵππον οὐκ ἐτόλμησεν ὁ λαμπρὸς καὶ πλούσιος οὗτος πρίασθαι, ἀλλ᾽ ἐπ᾽ ἀλλοτρίου τὰς πομπὰς ἡγεῖτο, τοῦ Φιλομήλου τοῦ Παιανιέως ἵππου: καὶ ταῦτα πάντες ἴσασιν οἱ ἱππεῖς. καὶ ὅτι ταῦτ᾽ ἀληθῆ λέγω, κάλει μοι καὶ τούτων τοὺς μάρτυρας.”Μάρτυρες”
[174] When he was steward of the Paralus at the time of your expedition to Euboea against the Thebans, though he was authorized to expend twelve talents of public money and was instructed by you to sail and convoy the troops, he rendered them no assistance and did not arrive until Diocles had already concluded his truce with the Thebans; moreover he was outstripped by one of the privately owned galleys. That shows you how well he had equipped your sacred galley. Then as cavalry-commander-I do not know what you think of his other performances, but this wealthy fine gentleman did not venture to buy a horse — not even a horse! He led the processions on one borrowed from Philomelus of Paeania, and every cavalryman knows it. Please call the witnesses to prove the truth of these statements also.” Witnesses”
[175] βούλομαι τοίνυν ὑμῖν, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, καὶ ὅσων ἤδη καταχειροτονήσαντος τοῦ δήμου περὶ τὴν ἑορτὴν ἀδικεῖν ὑμεῖς κατεγνώ
κατε, εἰπεῖν, καὶ δεῖξαι τί πεποιηκότες αὐτῶν ἔνιοι τίνος ὀργῆς τετυχήκασι παρ᾽ ὑμῶν, ἵνα ταῦτα πρὸς τὰ τούτῳ πεπραγμέν᾽ ἀντιθῆτε. πρῶτον μὲν τοίνυν, ἵνα πρώτης τῆς τελευταίας γεγονυίας μνησθῶ καταγνώσεως, περὶ τὰ μυστήρι᾽ ἀδικεῖν Εὐάνδρου κατεχειροτόνησεν ὁ δῆμος τοῦ Θεσπιῶς, προβαλλομένου αὐτὸν Μενίππου, Καρός τινος ἀνθρώπου. ἔστι δ᾽ ὁ αὐτὸς νόμος τῷδε τῷ περὶ τῶν Διονυσίων ὁ περὶ τῶν μυστηρίων, κἀκεῖνος ὕστερος τοῦδ᾽ ἐτέθη.
[175] Now I propose, men of Athens, to name those who have been condemned by you, after an adverse vote of the Assembly, for violating the festival, and to explain what some of them had done to incur your anger, so that you may compare their guilt with that of Meidias. First of all then, to begin with the most recent condemnation, the Assembly gave its verdict against Euandrus of Thespiae for profanation of the Mysteries on the charge of Menippus, a fellow from Caria. The law concerning the Mysteries is identical with that concerning the Dionysia, and it was enacted later.
[176] τί οὖν ποιήσαντος, ὦ ἄνδρες Ἀθηναῖοι, κατεχειροτονήσατε τοῦ Εὐάνδρου; τοῦτ᾽ ἀκούσατε. ὅτι δίκην ἐμπορικὴν καταδικασάμενος τοῦ Μενίππου, οὐκ ἔχων πρότερον λαβεῖν αὐτόν, ὡς ἔφη, τοῖς μυστηρίοις ἐπιδημοῦντος ἐπελάβετο. κατεχειροτονήσατε μὲν διὰ ταῦτα, καὶ οὐδ᾽ ὁτιοῦν ἄλλο προσῆν, εἰσελθόντα δ᾽ εἰς τὸ δικαστήριον ἐβούλεσθε μὲν θανάτῳ κολάσαι, τοῦ δὲ προβαλλομένου πεισθέντος τὴν δίκην τε πᾶσαν ἀφεῖναι ἠναγκάσατ᾽ αὐτόν, ἣν ᾑρήκει πρότερον （ἦν δὲ δυοῖν αὕτη ταλάντοιν）, καὶ προσετιμήσατε τὰς βλάβας, ἃς ἐπὶ τῇ χειροτονίᾳ μένων ἐλογίζεθ᾽ αὑτῷ γεγενῆσθαι πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἅνθρωπος.