Texte grec :
| [32,70] τεκμήριον δὲ τὰ τελευταῖα συμβάντα περὶ ὑμᾶς, ὅτε {γὰρ}
καθ´ αὑτοὺς ἦτε. οὐχ ὁ μὲν βασιλεὺς ὑμῶν περὶ αὔλησιν ἠσχολεῖτο καὶ
μόνῳ τούτῳ προσεῖχεν, ὑμεῖς δὲ πρὸς ἐκεῖνον μὲν ἀπεχθῶς, πρὸς ἀλλήλους
δὲ στασιαστικῶς διέκεισθε, χωρὶς ἕκαστοι καὶ καθ´ αὑτοὺς διαφθείροντες
τὰ πράγματα, Σιμάριστοι καὶ τοιαῦθ´ ἕτερα ἑταιρειῶν ὀνόματα·
ὥστε φυγεῖν αὐτὸν ἠναγκάσατε καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα κατιέναι πολέμῳ
καὶ διὰ Ῥωμαίων; καὶ τέλος ἐκεῖνος μὲν αὐλῶν, ὑμεῖς δὲ ὀρχούμενοι
τὴν πόλιν ἀπωλέσατε. καὶ νῦν οὕτως ἐπιεικεῖς ἔχοντες
ἡγεμόνας εἰς ὑποψίαν αὐτοὺς καθ´ ὑμῶν αὐτῶν ἠγάγετε, ὥστε
ἐπιμελεστέρας χρῆναι φυλακῆς ᾠήθησαν ἢ πρότερον· καὶ τοῦτο
εἴργασθε δι´ ἀγερωχίαν, οὐκ ἐπιβουλεύοντες. ὑμεῖς γὰρ ἂν ἀποσταίητέ
τινος; πολεμήσαιτε δ´ ἂν ὑμεῖς μίαν ἡμέραν; οὐκ ἐν τῇ
γενομένῃ ταραχῇ μέχρι σκωμμάτων ἐθρασύνοντο οἱ πολλοί, τινὲς
δὲ ὀλίγοι βάλλοντες ὅ,τι ἔτυχον ἅπαξ ἢ δίς, ὥσπερ οἱ καταχέοντες
τῶν παριόντων, κατέκειντο εὐθὺς ᾄδοντες, οἱ δ´ ἐπὶ τοὺς ὅρμους
ᾔεσαν ὥσπερ ἐν ἑορτῇ πιούμενοι. καὶ μὴν ἐκεῖνο μέμνησθε τὸ γελοῖον
ὡς ὁ βέλτιστος ὑμῖν Κόνων ἐχρήσατο προελθών, οὗ μάλιστα
τὸ πλῆθος ὑμῶν συνειστήκει, καὶ δείξας τινὰ τόπον βραχὺν προηγόρευεν
ὡς εἰ μὲν αὐτὸς ἐκεῖ προέλθοι, νενικηκὼς εἴη καὶ δέοι
ὑμᾶς ἀπαλλάττεσθαι καθ´ αὑτοὺς καὶ παραχωρεῖν· εἰ δ´ ὑμεῖς,
ἔφη, τέτταρα ἢ πέντε βήματα νικᾶτε, κἀγὼ βαδιοῦμαι· ταῦτα δὲ
ἔλεγε, φειδόμενος ὑμῶν καὶ καταγελῶν καὶ καθάπερ παισὶ προσπαίζων.
ἐπεὶ τὸ στράτευμα ἐφειστήκει κἀκεῖνος οὐδένα εἴα ἅπτεσθαι, γυμνοὺς
ἅπαντας ὁρῶν καὶ ἑτοίμους ἀπόλλυσθαι. τί οὖν;
ἐβιάσαντο μετὰ ταῦτα οἱ προπετεῖς καὶ ἀκόλαστοι καὶ ἐπίτηδες
ἀνατρέψαι καὶ συγχέαι πάντα ἐπιβουλεύσαντες, καὶ οὐ πρότερον
ὑμᾶς ἀνῆκαν ἕως ἐγεύσασθε πολέμου καὶ τὸ δεινὸν ἄχρι πείρας
προῆλθεν. τί δὴ καὶ τούτων ἐπεμνήσθην; ὅπως εἰδῆτε τὰ
φυόμενα ἐκ τῆς περὶ τὸν βίον ταύτης ἀταξίας. οὐ γὰρ ἔστι τοὺς
οὕτως ἐπτοημένους περὶ τὰ μικρὰ καὶ μηδενὸς ἄξια, φαύλως καὶ
ἀκρατῶς ἔχοντας ἐν τούτοις ἃ πράττουσι καθ´ ἡμέραν, τἄλλα
σωφρονεῖν καὶ περὶ τῶν μειζόνων ὀρθῶς βουλεύεσθαι. ἡ γὰρ τῶν
τρόπων κουφότης καὶ τὸ ἀλόγιστον οὐκ ἐᾷ μένειν ἐπὶ τοῖς ἐλάττοσιν
οὐδ´ ἔχει μέτρον οὐδὲν ἡ ἄνοια τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων, ἀλλ´ ἐπὶ
πᾶν ὁμοίως πρόεισι καὶ παντὸς ἅπτεται μετὰ τῆς ἴσης εὐχερείας.
μὴ οὖν οἴεσθε περὶ μικρῶν εἶναι τὸν λόγον, ὅταν τις ὑμῖν διαλέγηται
περὶ τῶν ἐν τοῖς θεάτροις θορύβων. οὐ γὰρ οὕτως ἡ πενία
ταχὺ πέφυκε συμβαίνειν διὰ τὰς κατ´ ὀλίγον ζημίας, ὡς ἡ κακία
πρόεισιν ἐκ τῶν κατὰ μέρος τούτων ἁμαρτημάτων καὶ τελευταῖον
ἐπ´ αὐτὸ τὸ πέρας καὶ τὸν ὄλεθρον αὐξηθεῖσα ἤγαγεν.
καὶ ταῦτα μὲν δὴ τὰ περὶ τὸ θέατρον. ἀλλ´ ὅταν εἰς τὸ στάδιον ἔλθητε,
τίς ἂν εἰπεῖν δύναιτο τὰς ἐκεῖ κραυγὰς καὶ θόρυβον
καὶ ἀγωνίαν καὶ σχημάτων μεταβολὰς καὶ χρωμάτων καὶ βλασφημίας
οἵας καὶ ὅσας ἀφίετε; εἰ γὰρ μὴ τοὺς ἵππους ἑωρᾶτε ἁμιλλωμένους καὶ
τούτους συνήθεις, αὐτοὶ δ´ ὑπὸ μαστίγων ἠλαύνεσθε
τῶν ἐν ταῖς τραγῳδίαις, οὐκ ἂν οὕτως χαλεπῶς διέκεισθε.
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Traduction française :
| [32,70] As evidence I cite the most recent chapters in your history.
For instance, when you were still independent, did
not your king busy himself with piping and concentrate
on that alone ; and were you not on hostile terms
with him and torn with faction among yourselves, each
faction separately and independently working the
ruin of the state—Simaristoi and other parties of like
names—in consequence of which you forced your king
to flee, and later on to obtain his return by means
of war, and with the aid of Romans, too ? And
finally he with his piping and you with your dancing
destroyed the state. And though you now have
such reasonable men as governors, you have brought
them to a feeling of suspicion toward yourselves, and
so they have come to believe that there is need of
more careful watchfulness than formerly ; and this
you have brought about through arrogance and not
through plotting. For would you revolt from anybody ?
Would you wage war a single day ? Is it not
true that in the disturbance which took place the
majority went only as far as jeering in their show of
courage, while only a few, after one or two shots with
anything at hand, like people drenching passers
by with slops, quickly lay down and began to sing,
and some went to fetch garlands, as if on their way
to a drinking party at some festival ?
And surely you recall that comical incident—how
the excellent Conon treated you when, advancing
to the place where your forces were most concentrated
and pointing out a little stretch of ground, he
declared : " If I can get there by myself, I am the
victor, and you must depart by yourselves and leave
the field; but if you," said he, " can win your way as
much as four or five steps, I will take a walk myself."
This he said out of a desire to spare you, laughing at
you and playing with you as if you were children;
since the army had halted and he would not permit a
single soldier to lay hands on you, seeing, as he did,
that you all were unarmed and faced with destruction.
What then? Force was next employed by
the headstrong and unruly spirits, who purposely
aimed at a complete overthrow and utter chaos, and
they did not let you go until you had had a taste of
warfare, and what you formerly had dreaded had
become a matter of bitter experience.
Why, then, have I mentioned these events also?
Because I wanted you to understand the natural
outcome of this disorderliness that rules your lives.
For it is not possible that those who get so excited
over trifles and things of no importance, those who
behave so thoughtlessly and with such lack of self-control
in these matters of daily life, should be
temperate in other matters and competent to plan
wisely regarding things of greater moment. For the
frivolity of your conduct and your lack of reason do
not permit you to call a halt at things of minor
importance, and the folly of your misconduct knows
no bounds, but instead goes right on to any length
without discrimination, and touches everything with
equal recklessness. So do not think that a man is
dealing with trifles when he speaks to you about your
disorders in the theatre. For poverty follows quickly
enough from gradual losses, but not as quickly as
wickedness progresses from these successive errors,
until finally, having attained its growth, it brings
men to the very end—destruction.
So much, then, on the subject of the theatre.
However, when you enter the stadium, who could
describe the shouts you utter there, and your hubbub
and anguish and bodily contortions and change of
colour, and the many awful curses that you emit ? For
if you were not merely watching the horses race
—and horses, too, that are used to racing—but
were yourselves being driven by the whips of
tragedy, you would not exhibit the agony you do.
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