Texte grec :
| [7,5] Εἰκοστῷ δ´ ὕστερον ἔτει τῆς πρὸς τοὺς βαρβάρους
μάχης ἦλθον ὡς τοὺς Κυμαίους Ἀρικηνῶν πρέσβεις
σὺν ἱκετηρίαις ἀξιοῦντες αὐτοὺς βοηθῆσαι σφίσιν
ὑπὸ Τυρρηνῶν πολεμουμένοις. μετὰ γὰρ τὰς διαλλαγάς,
ἃς ἐποιήσατο πρὸς τὴν Ῥωμαίων πόλιν ὁ βασιλεὺς τῶν
Τυρρηνῶν Πορσίνας, τὸν υἱὸν Ἄρροντα δοὺς τὴν ἡμίσειαν τῆς
στρατιᾶς ἔπεμψεν ἰδίαν ἀρχὴν κτήσασθαι
βουλόμενον, ὡς ἐν τοῖς πρὸ τούτου δεδήλωκα λόγοις·
ὃς ἐπολιόρκει τότε τοὺς Ἀρικηνοὺς καταπεφευγότας εἰς
τὸ τεῖχος καὶ οὐ διὰ μακροῦ λιμῷ τὴν πόλιν αἱρήσειν
ᾤετο. ταύτης τῆς πρεσβείας ἀφικομένης οἱ προεστηκότες τῆς
ἀριστοκρατίας μισοῦντες τὸν Ἀριστόδημον
καὶ δεδιότες, μή τι κακὸν ἐξεργάσηται περὶ τὴν πολιτείαν,
κάλλιστον ὑπέλαβον εἰληφέναι καιρὸν ἐκποδὼν
αὐτὸν ποιήσασθαι σὺν εὐσχήμονι προφάσει. πείσαντες
δὴ τὸν δῆμον ἀποστεῖλαι Ἀρικηνοῖς δισχιλίους ἄνδρας
ἐπὶ συμμαχίαν, καὶ στρατηγὸν ἀποδείξαντες τὸν Ἀριστόδημον ὡς
δὴ τὰ πολέμια λαμπρόν, τὰ μετὰ ταῦτ´
ἔπραττον, ἐξ ὧν ἢ κατακοπήσεσθαι μαχόμενον ὑπὸ τῶν
Τυρρηνῶν αὐτὸν ὑπελάμβανον ἢ κατὰ πέλαγος διαφθαρήσεσθαι.
γενόμενοι γὰρ ὑπὸ τῆς βουλῆς κύριοι καταλέξαι τοὺς ἐπὶ τὴν
συμμαχίαν ἐξελευσομένους τῶν μὲν
ἐπισήμων καὶ λόγου ἀξίων οὐδένα κατέγραψαν, ἐπιλέξαντες δὲ
τοὺς ἀπορωτάτους τε καὶ πονηροτάτους
τῶν δημοτικῶν, ἐξ ὧν ἀεί τινας ὑπώπτευον νεωτερισμούς, ἐκ
τούτων συνεπλήρωσαν τὸν ἀπόστολον· καὶ
ναῦς δέκα παλαιὰς κάκιστα πλεούσας καθελκύσαντες,
ὧν ἐτριηράρχουν οἱ πενέστατοι Κυμαίων, εἰς ταύτας
αὐτοὺς ἐνεβίβασαν θάνατον ἀπειλήσαντες, ἐάν τις ἀπολειφθῇ
τῆς στρατείας.
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Traduction française :
| [7,5] In the twentieth year after the engagement (p159) with the barbarians ambassadors
from the Aricians came to the Cumaeans with the tokens of suppliants to beg their
assistance against the Tyrrhenians who were making war upon them. For, as I related
in an earlier book, Porsena, king of the Tyrrhenians, after making peace with Rome,
had sent out his son Arruns with one half of the army when the youth desired to
acquire a dominion for himself. Arruns, then, at the time in question was besieging
the Aricians, whom he had forced to take refuge inside their walls, and he expected to
capture the city soon by famine. When this embassy arrived, the leading men of the
aristocracy, who hated Aristodemus and feared he might do some harm to the
established government, thought they had got a very fine opportunity to get rid of
him under a specious pretence. They accordingly persuaded the people to send two
thousand men to the aid of the Aricians and appointed Aristodemus as general,
ostensibly because of his brilliant military achievements; after which they took such
measures as they supposed would result in his either being destroyed in battle by the
Tyrrhenians or perishing at sea. For being empowered by the senate to raise the
forces that were to be sent as auxiliaries, they enrolled no men of distinction or
reputation; but choosing out the poorest and the most unprincipled of the common
people from whom they were under continual apprehension of some uprisings, they
made up out of these the complement of men who were to be sent upon the
exception. And launching ten old ships that were most unseaworthy and were (p161)
commanded by the poorest of the Cumaeans, they embarked the forces on board
these ships, threatening with death anyone who should fail to enlist.
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