Texte grec :
| [213] ὥστε τοσούτῳ περὶ αὑτοὺς ἦσαν φαυλότεροι τῶν ἀπίστων
(213) συμμάχων, ὅσῳ οἱ μὲν καθ´ ἑαυτοὺς ἕκαστοι ἀπεχώρουν,
οἱ δὲ κοινὴν ἀπόστασιν ἐξ ὧν ἔπραττον εἰσηγοῦντο. οὕτω
τότε ἀρχῆς οὔπω τάξις ἦν, οὐδ´ εἰδότες αὐτὴν ἐδίωκον,
ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ μικρὰ καὶ οἷον ἐσχατιὰς καὶ κλήρους ἔχοντες
οὐκ ἠδυνήθησαν οὐδ´ αὐτὰ ταῦτα διασώσασθαι διὰ
τὴν τοῦ ἄρχειν ἀπειρίαν τε καὶ ἀδυναμίαν, οὔτε φιλανθρώπως ἄγοντες τὰς
πόλεις οὔτ´ ἐγκρατῶς ἔχειν δυνάμενοι, βαρεῖς ἅμα καὶ ἀσθενεῖς ὄντες.
τελευταῖον δ´ οὖν γυμνωθέντες κατὰ τὸν Αἰσώπου κολοιὸν μόνοι πρὸς ἅπαντας
ἐμάχοντο. Τοῦτο μέντοι τὸ τοὺς πρόσθεν ἅπαντας ὡς εἰπεῖν
ἀνθρώπους διαφυγὸν ὑμῖν ἐτηρήθη μόνοις εὑρεῖν τε καὶ
τελεώσασθαι· καὶ θαυμαστὸν οὐδέν. ὥσπερ γὰρ τῶν ἄλλων πραγμάτων ἐπὶ ταῖς
ὕλαις ἀπαντῶσιν αἱ τέχναι, οὕτως ὅτε ἀρχὴ μεγίστη καὶ δύναμις διαφέρουσα
συνέστη, τότ´ ἐπ´ αὐτῇ καὶ ἡ τέχνη συνετέθη τε καὶ συνεισῆλθε,
καὶ ἄμφω δὴ δι´ ἀλλήλων ἐκρατύνθη. διὰ μὲν τὸ τῆς ἀρχῆς μέγεθος καὶ ἡ
ἐμπειρία ἀναγκαίως περιεγένετο, διὰ δ´
αὖ τὸ ἄρχειν εἰδέναι δικαίως ἅμα καὶ εἰκότως ηὔξησεν ἡ
ἀρχή. τοῦτο δὴ καὶ πολὺ μάλιστα πάντων ἄξιον ἰδεῖν καὶ
θαυμάσαι, τὴν περὶ τὴν πόλιν αἰτίαν καὶ τὴν τῆς διανοίας
μεγαλοπρέπειαν, ὡς οὐδὲν ἐοικὸς αὐτῇ τῶν πάντων.
διελόντες γὰρ δύο μέρη πάντας τοὺς ἐπὶ τῆς ἀρχῆς, τοῦτο δ´
εἰπὼν ἅπασαν εἴρηκα τὴν οἰκουμένην, τὸ μὲν χαριέστερόν
τε καὶ γενναιότερον καὶ δυνατώτερον πανταχοῦ πολιτικὸν
ἢ καὶ ὁμόφυλον πᾶν ἀπεδώκατε, τὸ δὲ λοιπὸν ὑπήκοόν
τε καὶ ἀρχόμενον. καὶ οὔτε θάλαττα διείργει τὸ μὴ εἶναι
πολίτην οὔτε πλῆθος τὰς ἐν μέσῳ χώρας, οὐδ´ Ἀσία καὶ
Εὐρώπη διῄρηται ἐνταῦθα· πρόκειται δ´ ἐν μέσῳ πᾶσι
πάντα· ξένος δ´ οὐδεὶς ὅστις ἀρχῆς ἢ πίστεως ἄξιος, ἀλλὰ
καθέστηκε κοινὴ τῆς γῆς δημοκρατία ὑφ´ ἑνὶ τῷ ἀρίστῳ
ἄρχοντι καὶ κοσμητῇ,
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Traduction française :
| [213] They did themselves more harm than their disloyal allies did them,
for each allied city seceded by itself, while the ruling city by its actions initiated
a general revolt. Thus they did not yet have a system of empire, and did not go
after it intelligently. Little as they had mere borderlands and homesteads
through their inexperience and incapacity to ride they could
not even keep that. They could neither treat vassal states kindly nor hold
them by force. They were at once oppressive and weak. Finally they
were left naked, like Aesop's jackdaw, to fight the whole world along.
That which eluded all men (so to speak) in the past, was reserved
for you alone to discover and perfect and no wonder. Just as the arts
in other spheres come to the fore when there is material for them, likewise
when a most enormous empire with supreme power was built, with
it the art of government was formulated and came into the world. Each
was bolstered by the other. Because of the size of the empire, experience
inevitably went along with it; and because you knew how to rule, the
empire rightfully and naturally expanded. Most noteworthy by far
and most praiseworthy of all is {the grandeur of your conception of
citizenship}. There is nothing on earth like it. You have divided all the
people of the empire when I say that, I mean the whole world in
two classes; and all the more cultured, virtuous, and able ones everywhere
you have made into citizens and even nationals of Rome; the rest
into vassals and subjects. Neither the sea nor any distance on land shuts
a man out from citizenship. Asia and Europe are in this respect not
separate. Everything lies open to everybody; and no one fit for office or
responsibility is an alien. The constitution is a universal democracy under
the one man that can ride and govern best.
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