[7,56] Ἐὰν οὖν κοινωνήσητε καὶ τῷ δήμῳ τῶν πολιτευμάτων, οὐθὲν ὑμῖν ἐνθάδε φύσεται κακόν, ἀλλ´ ὁ πλέον ἔχειν τῶν ἄλλων ἀξιῶν καὶ τῆς βουλῆς προσεταιρισάμενος τὸν βουλόμενον συννοσεῖν καὶ συναδικεῖν· πάντα γὰρ τὰ εἰκότα χρὴ περὶ πόλεως βουλευομένους προνοεῖν· κληθεὶς ὑπὸ τῶν δημάρχων εἰς τὸ πλῆθος ὁ μέγας ἐκεῖνος καὶ σεμνὸς ἀποδώσει τῷ δήμῳ τῷ φαύλῳ καὶ ταπεινῷ λόγον ὧν πράττει τε καὶ διανοεῖται, κἂν ἀδικῶν φαίνηται δίκης, ἧς ἂν ἄξιος ᾖ, τεύξεται. αὐτὸν δὲ τὸν δῆμον, ἵνα μὴ τρυφᾷ τηλικαύτης ἐξουσίας γενόμενος κύριος, μηδ´ ὑπὸ τῶν κακίστων ἐκδημαγωγούμενος τοῖς κρατίστοις πολεμῇ· καὶ γὰρ ἐν ὄχλῳ φιλεῖ γίνεσθαι τυραννίς· φυλάξει τε καὶ οὐδὲν ἐάσει παρανομεῖν ὁ διαφέρων φρονήσει ἀνὴρ δικτάτωρ ὑφ´ ὑμῶν αἱρεθείς, ὃς αὐτοκράτορι καὶ ἀνυπευθύνῳ χρώμενος ἐξουσίᾳ τό τε νοσοῦν ἐξελεῖ τῆς πόλεως μέρος, καὶ τὸ μήπω διεφθαρμένον οὐκ ἐάσει κακωθῆναι, ἔθη τε καὶ νόμιμα καὶ ζηλώματα βίων τὰ κράτιστα μεθαρμοσάμενος ἀρχάς τ´ ἀποδείξας ἃς ἂν ἡγῆται σωφρονέστατα τῶν κοινῶν ἐπιτροπεύσειν· καὶ ταῦτ´ ἐντὸς ἓξ μηνῶν διοικησάμενος ἰδιώτης αὖθις ἔσται τὸ τιμᾶσθαι μόνον ἐκ τούτων λαβών, ἄλλο δ´ οὐθέν. ταῦτ´ οὖν ἐνθυμηθέντες καὶ τὸ σχῆμα τῆς πολιτείας τοῦθ´ ἡγησάμενοι κράτιστον εἶναι μηθενὸς ἀπελαύνετε τὸν δῆμον, ἀλλ´ ὥσπερ ἀρχὰς ἀποδεικνύναι τὰς καθ´ ἕκαστον ἐνιαυτὸν ἡγησομένας τῆς πόλεως, καὶ νόμους τοὺς μὲν ἐπικυροῦν, τοὺς δ´ ἀναιρεῖν, καὶ περὶ πολέμου καὶ εἰρήνης διαγιγνώσκειν, ἃ μέγιστα καὶ κυριώτατά ἐστι τῶν ἐν τῇ πόλει διαπραττομένων, μεταδεδώκατε αὐτῷ καὶ οὐθενὸς τούτων αὐτοκράτορα πεποιήκατε τὴν βουλήν· οὕτως καὶ τῶν δικαστηρίων μεταδίδοτε, καὶ μάλισθ´ ὑπὲρ ὧν ἄν τις αἰτίαν ἔχῃ τὴν πόλιν ἀδικεῖν στάσιν εἰσάγων ἢ τυραννίδα κατασκευαζόμενος ἢ περὶ προδοσίας τοῖς πολεμίοις διαλεγόμενος ἢ τοιοῦτό τι ἄλλο κακὸν ἐπιχειρῶν πράττειν. ὅσῳ γὰρ ἂν φοβερώτερον κατασκευάσητε τὸ παραβαίνειν τοὺς νόμους καὶ τὰ ἔθη κινεῖν τοῖς ὑβρισταῖς καὶ πλεονέκταις, πολλοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς καὶ φύλακας αὐτῶν ἀποδείξαντες, τοσούτῳ κρεῖττον ὑμῖν ἕξει τὰ κοινά.

[7,56] "If, then, you admit the populace also to a share in the government, no evil will arise for you here. But the man who aims at greater power than the rest of his fellow- citizens and has formed a faction in the senate of all who are willing to share his disaffection and his crimes (for when we are deliberating concerning the commonwealth we ought to foresee every likely contingency), this great and august person, I say, when called upon by the tribunes to appear before the popular assembly, before the lowly and humble people, will have to give an accounting of both his actions and his purpose, and if found guilty, suffer the punishment he deserves. And lest the people themselves, when vested with so great a power, should grow wanton and, seduced by the demagoguery of the worst men, make war upon the best citizens (for it is in the masses as a rule that tyranny springs up), some person of exceptional sagacity, created dictator by you, will guard against this evil and will not allow them to do anything lawless; for, being invested with absolute and irresponsible power, he will cut off the diseased part of the commonwealth and will not permit that which is as yet uninfected to be contaminated; he will reform in the best manner possible the habits, usages and aims of the citizens, and appoint such magistrates as he thinks will govern the south with the greatest prudence; and having effected these things within the space of six months, (p313) he will again become a private citizen, receiving no other reward for these actions than the honour. Do you, then, bearing these things in mind, and believing that this is the most perfect form of government, debar the populace from nothing, but, even as you have granted them the right of choosing the magistrates who are to preside each year over the commonwealth, as well as confirming or invalidating laws, of declaring war and making peace — which are the greatest and the most important matters that come up for action in the commonwealth — and have not invested the senate with authority over any one of these matters, in like manner give them also a share in the courts, and particularly in the trials of those who are accused of crimes against the state by raising a sedition or aiming at tyranny or discussing a betrayal of the state with the enemy or attempt us some other mischief of like nature. For the more formidable you make it for the overbearing and self-seeking to transgress the laws and to alter your customs, by appointing many eyes to watch and many men to keep guard over them, the better will be the condition of your commonwealth."