Speech of Athenagoras (36-40)
Speech of Athenagoras (36-40)
However much we might wish the Athenians to attack us, the reports of their approach are only senseless fabrications of people who are always exciting disquiet. The insight and experience of the Athenians make such folly on their part incredible.
τοὺς μὲν Ἀθηναίους...οὕτω : accidental hexameter, as 2. 49. 18. For accidental trimeters, cf. 1. 80. 6; 3. 40. 39; 4. 17. 6. The ancients disliked such occurrences in prose; cf. Cic. De Orat. 3. 47. 182; Quint. 9. 4. 72.
τοὺς μὲν Ἀθηναίους, as antithesis to
τοὺς δ᾽ ἀγγέλλοντας, placed before the rel. Cf. 1. 5. 11; 3. 39. 5.—
οὕτω κακῶς φρονῆσαι: i.e. as is alleged, with the result expressed in
καὶ ὑποχειρίους ἡμῖν γενέσθαι ἐνθάδε ἐλθόντας, where chief stress is on
ἐλθόντας. The sent. is colloquial, as indeed the tone of the whole speech.
οὐκ εὔνους: =
κακόνους 24. 15.
τῆς μὲν τόλμης οὐ θαυμάζω, τῆς δὲ ἀξυνεσίας :
I am astonished not at their audacity but at their simplicity (cf.
τολμήσαντες 34. 52).
τῆς μὲν τόλμης said mockingly, as Cl. explains; for Athenagoras ascribes the whole alarm to the seare of his opponents. But Steup thinks it clear from 38. § 2 that Athenagoras considers that those who are spreading these reports are not acting sincerely and hence does not ascribe fear to them. For the gens. of cause with
θαυμάζειν, cf.
ἀλγεῖν 2. 65. 14;
ὀνειδίζειν 3. 62. 15; χαλεπῶς φέρειν 2. 62. 18. See on 4. 11. 17.
εἰ μὴ οἴονται ἔνδηλοι εἶναι:
if they fancy their object is not transparent. Steup thinks the orator means that those who spread the reports would use the general panic to get control of the state (
τῆς πόλεως ἄρχειν 38. 6).
οἱ γὰρ δεδιότες ἰδίᾳ τι:
for those who have any private grounds of alarm.—
ἐς ἔκπληξιν καθιστάναι: see on 34. 23.— 7.
ὅπως...ἐπηλυγάζωνται :
that with the general fear they may hide their own. So Cl. and most recent editors, reading, for
τὸ σφέτερον of the Mss.,
τὸν σφέτερον. Cf. Schol.
ὅπως κοινῇ φοβήσαντες ἅπαντας τὸν ἴδιον φόβον ἀποκρύψωνται, and Valla, ut publico metu suum occultent. Cf. also Dexippus (Hist. Gr. Min., Dind. I, p. 196) imitating this passage,
ὅπως ἂν τὸ σφέτερον δέος ἐπηλυγάζησθε. See App.—
ἐπηλυγάζωνται: rare word, derived from
ἠλύγη (=
σκία, σκότος). See Hesych. s.v.
ἠλυγισμένος.
καὶ νῦν...τοῦτο δύνανται :
so now these rumors (
mean this)
have this object. For
δύνασθαι = valere, cf. 1. 141. 5; 3. 46. 10.—<
αἵ>: which, first added by Cl., is now generally adopted, was prob. lost owing to the final letters of
δύνανται. The rel. seems necessary to show that the following clause is explanatory of
ἀγγελίαι and not epexegetical of
τοῦτο. If <
αἵ> be not inserted, we must put a semicolon (;) after
δύνανται and regard the following sent. as an asyndetical explanation of
ἀγγελίαι.
ἀπὸ ταὐτομάτου :
of themselves, sua sponte, as 2. 77. 17. With this,
ξύγκεινται, which as pf. pass. of
συντίθημι means
have been invented, has the special force of
ἀρχὴν εἰλήφασι.
ἐκ δὲ ἀνδρῶν : stronger than
ὑπὸ ἀνδρῶν. See on 2. 49. 1; 3. 69. 3; and C. F. Smith, Trans. Amer. Phil. Assoc. XXV, 66 f. —
οἵπερ αἰεὶ τάδε κινοῦσι:
who are always stirring up things here, i.e. disturbing the public mind, as explained by the orator himself 38. § 2. Cf. the pass.
κινεῖσθαι 3. 82. 3; 4. 76. 21; and
κίνησις 1. 1. 8.
οὐκ ἐξ ὧν...σκοποῦντες :
not forming your judgment from what these men report. Cf. 5. 68. 7
ἐκ τοιοῦδε λογισμοῦ ἔξεστί τῳ σκοπεῖν.
δεινοί : Schol.
συνετοί, φρόνιμοι. Cf. Isocr. 12. 229
ἄνδρα δεινὸν καὶ πολλῶν ἔμπειρον.
ὥσπερ ἐγὼ Ἀθηναίους ἀξιῶ :
just as I hold the Athenians, sc.
δεινοὺς καὶ πολλῶν ἐμπείρους εἶναι. Kr., who so explains with Cl., suggests
οἵουσπερ ἐγὼ Ἀθηναίους ἀξιῶ, comparing 3. 14. 7
γίγνεσθε δὲ ἄνδρες οἵουσπερ ὑμᾶς οἵ τε Ἕλληνες ἀξιοῦσι καὶ τὸ ὑμέτερον δέος βούλεται. St. supplies
ἂν δρᾶσαι.
δράσειαν : potential, as
ἄν in
ἐξ ὧν ἄν belongs to the verb. Cf. 7. 48. 22.
Πελοποννησίους ὑπολιπόντας: comparison with 10. 1 (
πολεμίους πολλοὺς ἐνθάδε ὑπολιπόντας) and 17. 26 (
οὕσπερ νῦν φασι πολεμίους ὑπολιπόντας) suggests the loss here of
πολεμίους. But the modifier here needed is sufficiently implied in the following closely correlated ptc. clause,
καὶ τὸν ἐκεῖ πόλεμον μήπω βεβαίως καταλελυμένους,
before they have completely ended the war there.— 14.
τὸν ἐκεῖ πόλεμον: see on 34. 15.—
μήπω: not
οὔπω since
καταλελυμένους is part of the inf. clause dependent on
εἰκός.
καταλελυμένους : of settling hostilities, as 1. 24. 19 and freq. Cf. Hdt. 7. 146. 2
καταλυσάμενοι τὰς ἔχθρας. See on 1. 81. 9.
αὐτοὺς...ἐκείνους : both referring to the Athenians. Cf. 61. 18, 20, and see on 1. 132. 31.
