[6,55] Καὶ γὰρ ἄνδρα ἕνα καὶ πόλιν ὅλην ἐπὶ ταῖς καλλίσταις τῶν ἰδίων πράξεων φιλοτιμεῖσθαι χρή, καὶ τὰς λοιπὰς ὅπως ὁμολογούμεναι ταύταις ἔσονται σκοπεῖν. ὑμεῖς τοίνυν ἤδη πολλοὺς πολεμίους, ὑφ´ ὧν τὰ μέγιστα ἠδικήθητε, ὑποχειρίους λαβόντες, οὔτ´ ἀνελεῖν οὔτ´ ἐκβαλεῖν ἐκ τῶν ἰδίων ἐβουλήθητε, ἀλλὰ καὶ οἴκους καὶ κλήρους αὐτοῖς ἀπέδοτε, καὶ πατρίδας οἰκεῖν, ἐξ ὧν ἔφυσαν, εἰάσατε, ἰσοψήφοις τ´ εἶναι καὶ πολίταις ὑμετέροις ἤδη τισὶν ἐξ αὐτῶν ἐχαρίσασθε. τούτου δ´ ἔτι θαυμασιώτερον ἔργον ὑμῶν ἔχω λέγειν, ὅτι καὶ τῶν ὑμετέρων πολιτῶν πολλοὺς μεγάλα εἰς ὑμᾶς ἐξαμαρτόντας ἀφήκατε τῶν τιμωριῶν, εἰς αὐτοὺς μόνους ἀποσκήψαντες τοὺς αἰτίους τὴν ὀργήν, ὧν ἦσαν οἵ τε Ἀντέμνας κληρουχήσαντες καὶ Κρουστομέρειαν καὶ Μεδύλλειαν καὶ Φιδήνην καὶ ἄλλοι συχνοί. τί γὰρ δεῖ πάντας ἐξαριθμεῖσθαι νυνί, οὓς ὑμεῖς ἐκ πολιορκίας κρατηθέντας μετρίως ἐνουθετήσατε καὶ πολιτικῶς; καὶ οὐκ ἔσθ´ ὅπως ἢ κινδυνός τις διὰ ταῦτα κατέλαβε τὴν πόλιν ἢ ψόγος, ἀλλ´ ἐπαινεῖταί τε ὑμῶν τὸ ἐπιεικὲς καὶ οὐδὲν ἠλάττωται τοῦ ἀσφαλοῦς. ἔπειτα οἱ τῶν πολεμίων φειδόμενοι τοῖς φίλοις πολεμήσετε, καὶ οἱ τὰ ὑποχείρια γενόμενα μεθιέντες ἀζήμια τοὺς συγκατακτησαμένους ὑμῖν τὴν ἀρχὴν ζημιώσετε, πόλιν τε τὴν αὐτῶν ὑμῶν παρέχοντες ἅπασι τοῖς δεομένοις ἀσφαλῆ καταφυγήν, ταύτης ἀπελαύνειν ὑπομενεῖτε τοὺς αὐθιγενεῖς, οἷς καὶ συνετράφητε καὶ συνεπαιδεύθητε καὶ πολλῶν ἐκοινωνήσατε κακῶν τε καὶ ἀγαθῶν ἐν εἰρήνῃ τε καὶ κατὰ πολέμους; οὐκ, ἐὰν τά γε δίκαια καὶ τὰ προσήκοντα τοῖς ὑμετέροις ἔθεσι βούλησθε πράττειν καὶ χωρὶς ὀργῆς κρίνητε τὸ συμφέρον.

[6,55] "For the individual man and the state as a whole ought to emulate the most illustrious of their own actions and to consider how all their any other actions may correspond with these. Thus you yourselves, when in times past you subdued many of your enemies at whose hands you had suffered the greatest injuries, desired neither to destroy them nor to dispossess them of what was theirs, but restored their houses and lands to them and permitted them to live in the countries that had given them birth, and actually granted to some of them the privilege both of being your fellow- citizens and of exercising equal rights of suffrage. But I have yet a more wonderful act of yours to relate, which is, that you have permitted many even of your own fellow-citizens who commit grievous offences against you to go unpunished, while you have visited your resentment solely upon those who were (p21) guilty. Of this number were the colonies sent out to Antemnae, Crustumerium, Medullia, Fidenae, and to many other places. But why should I now enumerate all those whom, after you had taken their towns by storm, you admonished mildly and as became fellow- citizens? And so far has the commonwealth been from incurring either danger or censure from this course, that your clemency is applauded and at the same time your security is not at all diminished. After that will you, who spare your enemies, make war upon your friends? Will you, who permit the conquered to go unpunished, punish those who aided you in acquiring your dominion? Will you, who offer your own city as a safe refuge for all who stand in need of it, bring yourselves to drive out of that city the natives with whom you have been reared and educated and with whom you have shared many experiences both evil and good in peace as well as in war? No, not if you desire to act with justice and in conformity with your traditions, and if without passion you judge what is to your interest.