[4,83] Τίσιν οὖν ἀφορμαῖς εἰς τὰ πράγματα χρησόμεθα καὶ ποίαις συμμαχίαις; τοῦτο γὰρ λοιπὸν εἰπεῖν. πρώταις μὲν ταῖς παρὰ τῶν θεῶν ἐλπίσιν, ὧν ἱερὰ καὶ τεμένη καὶ βωμοὺς μιαίνει Ταρκύνιος ταῖς αἱμοφύρτοις χερσὶ καὶ παντὸς ἐμφυλίου γεμούσαις ἄγους θυσιῶν καὶ σπονδῶν καταρχόμενος· ἔπειτα ταῖς ἐξ ἡμῶν αὐτῶν οὔτ´ ὀλίγων ὄντων οὔτ´ ἀπείρων πολέμου· πρὸς δὲ τούτοις ταῖς παρὰ τῶν συμμάχων ἐπικουρίαις, οἳ μὴ καλούντων μὲν ἡμῶν οὐδὲν ἀξιώσουσι πολυπραγμονεῖν, ἐὰν δ´ ἀρετῆς ὁρῶσι μεταποιουμένους ἄσμενοι συναροῦνται τοῦ πολέμου· τυραννὶς γὰρ ἅπασιν ἐχθρὰ τοῖς βουλομένοις ἐλευθέροις εἶναι. εἰ δέ τινες ὑμῶν τοὺς ἐπὶ στρατοπέδου συνόντας ἅμα Ταρκυνίῳ πολίτας δεδοίκασιν, ὡς ἐκείνῳ μὲν συναγωνιουμένους, ἡμῖν δὲ πολεμήσοντας, οὐκ ὀρθῶς δεδοίκασι. βαρεῖα γὰρ κἀκείνοις ἡ τυραννὶς καὶ ἔμφυτος ἅπασιν ἀνθρώποις ὁ τῆς ἐλευθερίας πόθος, καὶ πᾶσα μεταβολῆς πρόφασις τοῖς δι´ ἀνάγκην ταλαιπωροῦσιν ἱκανή· οὕς, εἰ ψηφιεῖσθε τῇ πατρίδι βοηθεῖν, οὐ φόβος ὁ καθέξων ἔσται παρὰ τοῖς τυράννοις, οὐ χάρις, οὐχ ἕτερόν τι τῶν βιαζομένων ἢ πειθόντων ἀνθρώπους τὰ μὴ δίκαια πράττειν. εἰ δέ τισιν αὐτῶν ἄρα διὰ κακὴν φύσιν ἢ πονηρὰς τροφὰς τὸ φιλοτύραννον ἐμπέφυκεν οὐ πολλοῖς οὖσι μὰ Δία, μεγάλαις καὶ τούτους ἀνάγκαις ἐνζεύξομεν, ὥστ´ ἐκ πονηρῶν γενέσθαι χρηστούς· ὅμηρα γὰρ αὐτῶν ἔχομεν ἐν τῇ πόλει τέκνα καὶ γυναῖκας καὶ γονεῖς, ἃ τιμιώτερα τῆς ἰδίας ἐστὶν ἑκάστῳ ψυχῆς. ταῦτά τ´ οὖν αὐτοῖς ἀποδώσειν, ἐὰν ἀποστῶσι τῶν τυράννων, ὑπισχνούμενοι καὶ ἄδειαν ὧν ἥμαρτον ψηφιζόμενοι ῥᾳδίως πείσομεν. ὥστε θαρροῦντες, ὦ δημόται, καὶ ἀγαθὰς ἔχοντες ὑπὲρ τῶν μελλόντων ἐλπίδας χωρεῖτε πρὸς τὸν ἀγῶνα, κάλλιστον ὧν πώποτε ἤρασθε πολέμων τόνδε ὑποστησόμενοι. ἡμεῖς μὲν οὖν, ὦ θεοὶ πατρῷοι, φύλακες ἀγαθοὶ τῆσδε τῆς γῆς, καὶ δαίμονες, οἳ τοὺς πατέρας ἡμῶν λελόγχατε, καὶ πόλις θεοφιλεστάτη πόλεων, ἐν ᾗ γενέσεώς τε καὶ τροφῆς ἐτύχομεν, ἀμυνοῦμεν ὑμῖν καὶ γνώμαις καὶ λόγοις καὶ χερσὶ καὶ ψυχαῖς, καὶ πάσχειν ἕτοιμοι πᾶν, ὅ τι ἂν ὁ δαίμων καὶ τὸ χρεὼν φέρῃ. μαντεύομαι δὲ καλοῖς ἐγχειρήμασιν εὐτυχὲς ἀκολουθήσειν τέλος. εἴη δὲ τούτοις ἅπασι ταὐτὸ λαβοῦσι θάρσος καὶ μιᾷ γνώμῃ χρησαμένοις, σώζειν θ´ ἡμᾶς καὶ σώζεσθαι ὑφ´ ἡμῶν.

[4,83] "What resources, therefore, what assistance shall we have for our undertaking? For this remains to be discussed. First there are the hopes we place in the gods, whose rites, temples and altars Tarquinius pollutes with hands stained with blood and defiled with every kind of crime against his own people every time he begins the sacrifices and libations. Next, there are the hopes that we place in ourselves, who are neither few in number nor unskilled in war. Besides these advantages there are the forces of our allies, who, so long as they are not called upon by us, will not presume to busy themselves with our affairs, but if they see us acting the part of brave men, will gladly assist us in the war; for tyranny is odious to all who desire to be free. (p521) But if any of you are afraid that the citizens who are in the camp with Tarquinius will assist him and make war upon us, their fears are groundless. For the tyranny is grievous to them also and the desire of liberty is implanted by Nature in the minds of all men, and every excuse for a change is sufficient for those who are compelled to bear hardships; and if you by your votes order them to come to the aid of their country, neither fear nor favour, nor any of the other motives that compel or persuade men to commit injustice, will keep them with the tyrants. But if by reason of an evil nature or a bad upbringing the love of tyranny is, after all, rooted in some of them — though surely there are not many such — we will bring strong compulsion to bear upon these men too, so that they will become good citizens instead of bad. For we have, as hostages for them in the city, their children, wives and parents, who are dearer to every man than his own life. By promising to restore these to them if they will desert the tyrants, and by passing a vote of amnesty for the mistakes they have made, we shall easily prevail upon them to join us. Advance to the struggle, therefore, plebeians, with confidence and with good hopes for the future; for this war which you are about to undertake is the most glorious of all the wars you have ever waged. Ye gods of our ancestors, kindly guardians of this land, and ye other divinities, to whom the care of our fathers was allotted, and thou City, dearest to the gods of all cities, the city in which we received our birth and nurture, we shall defend you with our counsels, our words, our hands and our lives, and we (p523) are ready to suffer everything that Heaven and Fate shall bring. And I predict that our glorious endeavours will be crowned with success. May all here present, emboldened by the same confidence and united in the same sentiments, both preserve us and be preserved by us!"