Delphi Complete Works of Demosthenes

by Demosthenes

  [26] καὶ πρὸς τούτοις ἡ μήτηρ κατ᾽ ἐμοῦ καὶ τῆς ἀδελφῆς, οἳ μόνοι παῖδές ἐσμεν αὐτῇ, δι᾽ οὓς κατεχήρευσε τὸν βίον, πίστιν ἤθελεν ἐπιθεῖναι παραστησαμένη, τὸν ἄνθρωπον τοῦτον ἀφεῖναι τὸν πατέρ᾽ ἡνίκ᾽ ἐτελεύτα, καὶ νομίζεσθαι παρ᾽ ἡμῖν τοῦτον ἐλεύθερον: ἣν μηδεὶς ὑμῶν νομιζέτω καθ᾽ ἡμῶν ποτ᾽ ἂν ὀμνύναι ταῦτ᾽ ἂν ἐθέλειν, εἰ μὴ σαφῶς ᾔδει τὰ εὔορκ᾽ ὀμουμένη. ἀλλὰ μὴν ὡς ἀληθῆ λέγω καὶ ταῦτ᾽ ἦμεν ἕτοιμοι ποιεῖν, κάλει τούτων τοὺς μάρτυρας.”Μάρτυρες”

  [26] Besides this, my mother was ready to call to her side my sister and myself, and swear, with imprecations on our heads if she spoke falsely — we were her only children, and it was for our sakes that she gave herself up to a life of widowhood — that my father when he was about to die had set this man free, and that Milyas was regarded by us as free thereafter. Let no one of you assume that she would have been willing to make this oath with imprecations on our heads if she had not known well that what she was to swear to was true.

  Come now, to prove that I am speaking the truth and that we were ready to do these things, call the witnesses thereto.” Witnesses”

  [27] τοσαῦτα τοίνυν δίκαια λέγειν ἐχόντων ἡμῶν καὶ καταφεύγειν εἰς τοὺς μεγίστους ἐλέγχους ἐθελόντων περὶ τῶν μεμαρτυρημένων, πάντα ταῦτα φυγὼν οὗτος οἴεται, περὶ τῆς γεγενημένης δίκης διαβάλλων καὶ κατηγορῶν ἐμοῦ, τοῦ μάρτυρος ὑμᾶς πείσειν καταψηφίσασθαι, πάντων οἶμαι πρᾶγμα κατασκευάσας ἀδικώτατον καὶ πλεονεκτικώτατον.

  [27] So many were the just arguments we had to urge, and so ready were we to have recourse to the most infallible tests regarding the testimony given; and yet the plaintiff evades all these, and fancies that by slandering me regarding the trial which has already taken place, and bringing accusations against me, he can induce you to convict the witness, — a piece of trickery the most unfair and the most rapacious imaginable.

  [28] αὐτὸς μὲν γὰρ μάρτυρας ψευδεῖς παρεσκεύασται περὶ τούτων, συγχορηγὸν ἔχων Ὀνήτορα τὸν κηδεστὴν καὶ Τιμοκράτην: ἡμεῖς δ᾽ οὐχὶ προειδότες, ἀλλ᾽ ὑπὲρ αὐτῆς τῆς μαρτυρίας ἡγούμενοι τὸν ἀγῶν᾽ ἔσεσθαι, τοὺς περὶ τῶν ἐκ τῆς ἐπιτροπῆς χρημάτων μάρτυρας οὐ παρεσκευάσμεθα νῦν. ὅμως δέ, καίπερ οὕτως τούτου σεσοφισμένου, τὰ πράγματ᾽ αὐτὰ διεξιὼν οἶμαι ῥᾳδίως ὑμῖν ἐπιδείξειν δικαιότατ᾽ ἀνθρώπων τοῦτον ὠφληκότα τὴν δίκην,

  [28] For he has himself suborned men to bear false witness about these matters, having as co-workers his brother-in-law Onetor, and Timocrates; we had no forewarning of this, and supposed that the contest would be regarding the deposition alone, and therefore have not come prepared with witnesses regarding the guardianship accounts. Nevertheless, despite the fellow’s trickery, I think that, simply by reciting the facts, I shall easily convince you that no man was ever more justly convicted than he.

  [29] οὐχ ὅτι τὸν Μιλύαν ἐκώλυον βασανίζειν, οὐδ᾽ ὅτι τοῦτον ἐλεύθερον ὡμολόγησεν, οἱ δὲ μάρτυρες οἵδ᾽ ἐμαρτύρησαν, ἀλλ᾽ ὅτι πολλὰ τῶν ἐμῶν ἐξηλέγχθη λαβὼν καὶ τὸν οἶκον οὐκ ἐμίσθωσεν τῶν νόμων κελευόντων καὶ τοῦ πατρὸς ἐν τῇ διαθήκῃ γράψαντος, ὡς ἐγὼ σαφῶς ὑμῖν ἐπιδείξω: ταῦτα μὲν γὰρ ἦν πᾶσιν ἰδεῖν, οἱ νόμοι καὶ τὸ πλῆθος ὧν οὗτοι διηρπάκεσαν χρημάτων: τὸν Μιλύαν δ᾽ οὐδ᾽ ὅστις ἔστιν οὐδεὶς ᾔδει. γνώσεσθε δ᾽ ἐκ τῶν ἐγκεκλημένων ὅτι ταῦθ᾽ οὕτως ἔχοντ᾽ ἐστίν.

  [29] It was not because I refused to allow Milyas to be put to the torture, nor because he himself admitted the man to be a freeman, nor yet because these witnesses gave their testimony; but because he was proved to have taken possession of large sums belonging to me, and because he did not let the estate, though the laws so ordered and my father had so directed in his will, as I shall plainly show you. For these were things that anyone could see, the laws, namely, and the amount of my property which these men had taken as plunder; but as for Milyas, nobody knew even who he was. You will see from the charges brought against Aphobus that these things are so.

  [30] ἐγὼ γάρ, ὦ ἄνδρες δικασταί, τὴν δίκην ἔλαχον τούτῳ τῆς ἐπιτροπῆς οὐχ ἓν τίμημα συνθείς, ὥσπερ ἂν εἴ τις συκοφαντεῖν ἐπιχειρῶν, ἀλλ᾽ ἕκαστον ἐγγράψας καὶ πόθεν λαβὼν καὶ πόσον τὸ πλῆθος καὶ παρὰ τοῦ, καὶ οὐδαμοῦ τὸν Μιλύαν παρέγραψ᾽ ὡς εἰδότα τι τούτων.

  [30] For, men of the jury, when I instituted my suit against him concerning his guardianship, I did not fix the damages at a lump sum, as one bringing forward a baseless charge out of malice would have done, but specified each item, stating the source of each, the precise amount, and the person from whom it had been received. In no case did I add mention of Milyas as having knowledge of any of these matters.

  [31] ἔστιν οὖν τοῦ μὲν ἐγκλήματος ἀρχή ‘τάδ᾽ ἐγκαλεῖ Δημοσθένης Ἀφόβῳ: ἔχει μου χρήματ᾽ Ἄφοβος ἀπ᾽ ἐπιτροπῆς ἐχόμενα, ὀγδοήκοντα μὲν μνᾶς, ἣν ἔλαβεν προῖκα τῆς μητρὸς κατὰ τὴν διαθήκην τοῦ πατρός’. τοῦτο πρῶτόν ἐστιν τῶν χρημάτων ὧν ἀπεστερῆσθαί φημι. τοῖς δὲ μάρτυσιν τί μεμαρτύρηται; ‘μαρτυροῦσιν παραγενέσθαι πρὸς τῷ διαιτητῇ Νοθάρχῳ, ὅτε Ἄφοβος ὡμολόγει Μιλύαν ἐλεύθερον εἶναι, ἀφεθέντα ὑπὸ τοῦ Δημοσθένους πατρός.’

  [31] Hence this is the beginning of the complaint: “Demosthenes makes the following charges against Aphobus. Aphobus has in his possession moneys of mine, received by him in his capacity as guardian, as follows: eighty minae, which he received as the marriage-portion of my mother in accordance with the terms of my father’s will.” This is the first of the sums of which I claim to have been defrauded. Now what was the declaration of the witnesses? “That they were present before the arbitrator, Notharchus, when Aphobus admitted that Milyas was a freeman, having been emancipated by the father of Demosthenes.”

  [32] σκοπεῖτε τοίνυν παρ᾽ ὑμῖν αὐτοῖς, εἴ τις ἂν ὑμῖν ἢ ῥήτωρ ἢ σοφιστὴς ἢ γόης οὕτω θαυμάσιος δοκεῖ γενέσθαι καὶ λέγειν δεινός, ὥστ᾽ ἐκ ταύτης τῆς μαρτυρίας διδάξαι τιν᾽ ἀνθρώπων, ὡς ἔχει τὴν προῖκ᾽ Ἄφοβος τῆς μητρὸς τῆς ἑαυτοῦ. καὶ τί λέγων, ὦ πρὸς Διός; ‘ὡμολόγησεν εἶναι Μιλύαν ἐλεύθερον;’ καὶ τί μᾶλλον ἔχων τὴν προῖκα; οὐδὲν ἂν δήπου διὰ τοῦτό γε δόξειεν.

  [32] Consider now for yourselves whether in your judgement there could be an orator, or sophist or magician so wondrously clever in speaki
ng as by means of this testimony to convince any man on earth that Aphobus is in possession of the marriage-portion of the speaker’s mother. What in heaven’s name would he say? “Aphobus has admitted that Milyas is a freeman.” And why on that account is he any the more in possession of the marriage-portion? The statement would surely not seem to prove it.

  [33] ἀλλὰ πόθεν τοῦτ᾽ ἐπεδείχθη; πρῶτον μὲν Θηριππίδης ὢν αὐτῷ συνεπίτροπος κατεμαρτύρησε δοῦναι: δεύτερον δὲ Δήμων θεῖος ὢν καὶ τῶν ἄλλων οἱ παρόντες ἐμαρτύρησαν σῖτον τῇ μητρὶ δώσειν ὁμολογεῖν τοῦτον ὡς ἔχοντα τὴν προῖκα. καὶ τούτοις οὐκ ἐπεσκήψατο, δῆλον ὅτι τἀληθῆ μεμαρτυρηκότας εἰδώς. ἔτι τοίνυν ἡ μήτηρ πίστιν ἠθέλησεν ἐπιθεῖναι κατ᾽ ἐμοῦ καὶ τῆς ἀδελφῆς παραστησαμένη, λαβεῖν τὴν προῖκα τοῦτον τὴν ἑαυτῆς κατὰ τὴν τοῦ πατρὸς διαθήκην.

  [33] But how was it proved? In the first place, Therippides, his co-trustee, testified that he had given him the money. Secondly, Demo, his uncle, and the rest of the witnesses who were present, testified that he agreed to supply my mother with maintenance, as being in possession of her portion. Against these men he has lodged no charges, plainly because he knew that their testimony was true. Besides this, my mother was ready to call to her side my sister and myself, and swear with imprecations on our heads, if she spoke falsely, that Aphobus had received her marriage-portion according to the terms of my father’s will.

  [34] ταύτας τὰς ὀγδοήκοντα μνᾶς πότερ᾽ αὐτὸν ἔχειν φῶμεν ἢ μή; καὶ πότερον διὰ τούσδ᾽ ὀφλεῖν τοὺς μάρτυρας ἢ διὰ τούσδε; ἐγὼ μὲν γὰρ οἶμαι διὰ τὴν ἀλήθειαν. ταύτας τοίνυν δέκ᾽ ἔτη κεκαρπωμένος, καὶ οὐδὲ δίκην ὀφλὼν ἀποδοῦναι τετολμηκώς, δεινὰ πεπονθέναι φησὶν καὶ διὰ τούσδε τοὺς μάρτυρας ὠφληκέναι. καίτοι τούτων γ᾽ οὐδεὶς αὐτὸν ἔχειν ταύτην ἐμαρτύρησεν.

  [34] Shall we, then, say, or shall we not, that he has possession of these eighty minae? And was it on the evidence of these witnesses here or of those that he was convicted? I think it was on the evidence of truth. He has enjoyed the interest on this sum for ten years, and even though judgement has been given against him, cannot bring himself to pay it back. Despite this, he declares that he has been outrageously treated and that he lost the suit by reason of these witnesses. Yet not one of them testified that he had received the marriage-portion.

  [35] περὶ τοίνυν τῆς ἐκδόσεως καὶ τῶν κλινοποιῶν καὶ τοῦ σιδήρου καὶ τοῦ καταλειφθέντος ἡμῖν ἐλέφαντος καὶ τῆς προικὸς τῆς ἀδελφῆς, ἣν οὗτος καθυφεῖκεν ὑπὲρ τοῦ καὶ αὐτὸς ἔχειν ὅσα βούλοιτο τῶν ἐμῶν, ἀκούσατε, καὶ σκοπεῖθ᾽ ὡς δικαίως τ᾽ ὤφληκεν καὶ οὐδὲν ἦν Μιλύαν περὶ τούτων βασανιστέον.

  [35] With regard to the maritime loan, the sofa-makers, and the iron and the ivory that were left me, and my sister’s marriage-portion, at the purloining of which Aphobus connived in order to secure for himself the right to take whatever he pleased of my goods, listen, and see how just was the verdict given against him, and how absurd it would have been to examine Milyas by torture regarding any of these matters.

  [36] περὶ μὲν γὰρ ὧν καθυφεῖκας, νόμος ἔστιν, διαρρήδην ὃς κελεύει σ᾽ ὁμοίως ὀφλισκάνειν ὥσπερ ἂν αὐτὸς ἔχῃς: ὥστε τί τῷ νόμῳ καὶ τῇ βασάνῳ; περὶ δ᾽ αὖ τῆς ἐκδόσεως, ἐπικοινωνήσαντες τῷ Ξούθῳ καὶ διανειμάμενοι τὰ χρήματα καὶ τὰς συγγραφὰς ἀνελόντες, καὶ πάνθ᾽ ὃν τρόπον ἐβούλεσθε κατασκευάσαντες, καὶ διαφθείραντες τὰ γράμματα, ὡς ὑμῶν ὁ Δήμων κατεμαρτύρει, φενακίζετε καὶ τουτουσὶ παρακρούσασθαι ζητεῖτε.

  [36] For as regards the purloining of funds at which you connived there is a law which expressly declares that you are responsible for them exactly as if you had them in your own possession. So what has the law to do with the testing of a slave by torture? But in the matter of the maritime loan you made common cause with Xuthus, divided the money with him, and destroyed the contract, and now that you have arranged everything to suit your wish, and have done away with the documentary evidence （as Demo testified against you）, you have recourse to trickery, and endeavor to mislead these gentlemen.

  [37] περὶ τοίνυν τῶν κλινοποιῶν, εἰ σὺ λαβὼν ἀργύριον καὶ πόλλ᾽ ἰδίᾳ κερδάνας ἐπὶ τοῖς ἐμοῖς δανείζων, ὃν καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους προσῆκε κωλύειν, εἶτ᾽ ἀφανεῖς πεποίηκας, τί σοι ποιήσωσιν οἱ μάρτυρες; οὐ γὰρ οὗτοί γε μεμαρτυρήκασιν, ὡς ὡμολόγεις ἐπὶ τοῖς ἐμοῖς δανείζειν καὶ λαβεῖν τἀνδράποδ᾽ ὡς σαυτόν, ἀλλ᾽ ἐν τῷ λόγῳ τοῦτ᾽ ἔγραψας σύ, κατεμαρτύρησαν δ᾽ οἱ μάρτυρες.

  [37] Regarding the sofa-makers, if you took money, and made large profits for yourself by making loans on security that was mine — you, who should rather have prevented others from doing so — and finally made away with the slaves altogether, what, pray, can the witnesses do in your behalf? These men at any rate have not testified that you admitted lending money on the security of my slaves, and that you appropriated the slaves to yourself. On the contrary, it was you who acknowledged this in your account, and the witnesses testified to the fact against you.

  [38] ἀλλὰ μὴν περί γε τοῦ ἐλέφαντος καὶ τοῦ σιδήρου, πάντας ἐγώ φημι τοὺς οἰκέτας εἰδέναι τοῦτον πωλοῦντα, καὶ παραδοῦναι καὶ τότε καὶ νῦν ἤθελον αὐτῷ τούτων ὅντινα βούλοιτο λαβὼν βασανίζειν. εἰ τοίνυν φήσει με, τὸν εἰδότ᾽ οὐκ ἐθέλοντα δοῦναι, τοὺς οὐκ εἰδότας ἐκδιδόναι, πολὺ δὴ μᾶλλον αὐτῷ παραλαβεῖν φανήσεται προσῆκον: εἰ γάρ, οὓς ὡς εἰδότας ἐξεδίδουν ἐγώ, μηδὲν ἔχειν ἔφασαν τούτων αὐτόν, ἀπήλλακτο δήπουθεν ἂν τῆς αἰτίας.

  [38] Now look you, as to the ivory and iron, I have this to say: all the slaves of the household know that the plaintiff used to sell these articles. I am ready now, as I was then, to give over to him any one of these slaves whom he may choose to be examined by torture. If then, he alleges that I refuse to surrender the man who has knowledge of the facts, and offer him others who have no such knowledge, he will but show that he ought all the more to have accepted my offer. For if those whom I offered to him as having knowledge of the facts, declared that he had none of these articles in his possession, he would of course have been acquitted of the charge.

  [39] ἀλλ᾽ οὐχὶ τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν, ἀλλὰ σαφῶς ἂν ἐξηλέγχθη πωλῶν καὶ τὴν τιμὴν κεκομισμένος. διόπερ τοὺς ὁμολογουμένως δούλους παραβὰς τὸν ἐλεύθερον ἠξίου βασανίζειν, ὃν οὐδ᾽ ὅσιον παραδοῦναι, τὸ πρᾶγμ᾽ οὐκ ἄγειν εἰς ἔλεγχον ζητῶν, ἀλλὰ μὴ παραλαμβάνων βουλόμ
ενός τι δοκεῖν λέγειν. περὶ τοίνυν πάντων τούτων, πρῶτον μὲν περὶ τῆς προικός, εἶθ᾽ ὑπὲρ ὧν καθυφεῖκεν, εἶθ᾽ ὑπὲρ τῶν ἄλλων, ἀναγνώσεται τούς τε νόμους καὶ τὰς μαρτυρίας, ἵν᾽ εἰδῆτε.”Νόμοι”“Μαρτυρίαι”

  [39] But nothing of the sort is the truth. It would have been proved past all question that he had sold the goods, and appropriated the profits. Therefore, he passed over those who were admittedly slaves, and demanded that a freeman be examined by torture, whom it would have been a crime for me to surrender; for it was not his purpose that he should sift out the matter, but that he might make a specious argument out of the fact that his demand was refused.

  Regarding, therefore, all these facts, first the marriage-portion, then his connivance with fraud, then all the rest, there shall be read to you the laws and the depositions, that you may have full knowledge.” Laws ““ Depositions”

  [40] οὐ τοίνυν μόνον ἐκ τούτων ἂν γνοίητε, ὅτι δεινὸν οὐδ᾽ ὁτιοῦν πέπονθεν τὸν ἄνθρωπον οὐκ ἐκδόντος ἐμοῦ βασανίζειν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ πρᾶγμ᾽ αὔτ᾽ εἰ σκέψαισθε. θῶμεν γὰρ δὴ τὸν Μιλύαν ἐπὶ τοῦ τροχοῦ στρεβλοῦσθαι, καὶ τί μάλιστ᾽ ἂν αὐτὸν εὔξαιτο λέγειν σκοπῶμεν. οὐχ ὅτι τῶν χρημάτων οὐδ᾽ ὁτιοῦν οἶδεν τοῦτον ἔχοντα; καὶ δὴ λέγει. διὰ τοῦτ᾽ ἄρ᾽ οὐκ ἔχει; πολλοῦ γε δεῖ: τοὺς γὰρ εἰδότας καὶ παρόντας μάρτυρας παρεσχόμην ἐγώ. τεκμήριον δὲ καὶ πίστις ἐστίν, οὐκ εἴ τίς τι μὴ οἶδε τοῦτον ἔχοντα （πολλοὶ γὰρ ἂν εἶεν）, ἀλλ᾽ εἴ τις οἶδεν.