[12,15] ὅμως δὲ προλέγω ὑμῖν ὅτι ἐσπουδάκατε ἀνδρὸς ἀκοῦσαι τοσοῦτον πλῆθος ὄντες οὔτε καλοῦ τὸ εἶδος οὔτε ἰσχυροῦ, τῇ τε ἡλικίᾳ παρηκμακότος ἤδη, μαθητὴν δὲ οὐδένα ἔχοντος, τέχνην δὲ ἢ ἐπιστήμην οὐδεμίαν ὑπισχνουμένου σχεδὸν οὔτε τῶν σεμνῶν οὔτε τῶν ἐλαττόνων, οὔτε μαντικὴν οὔτε σοφιστικὴν ἀλλ´ οὐδὲ ῥητορικήν τινα ἢ κολακευτικὴν δύναμιν, οὐδὲ δεινοῦ ξυγγράφειν οὐδὲ ἔργον τι ἔχοντος ἄξιον ἐπαίνου καὶ σπουδῆς, ἀλλ´ ἢ μόνον κομῶντος· εἰ δ´ ὑμῖν δοκέει τόδε λωίτερον καὶ ἄμεινον,

[12,15] But notwithstanding, I declare to you that, great as is your number, you have been eager to hear a man who is neither handsome in appearance nor strong, and in age is already past his prime, one who has no disciple, who professes, I may almost say, no art or special knowledge either of the nobler or of the meaner sort, no ability either as a prophet or a sophist, nay, not even as an orator or as a flatterer, one who is not even a clever writer, who does not even have a craft deserving of praise or of interest, but who simply—wears his hair long ! But if you think it a better and wiser course,

[12,16] δραστέον τοῦτο καὶ πειρατέον ὅπως ἂν ᾖ δυνατὸν ἡμῖν. οὐ μέντοι λόγων ἀκούσεσθε ὁποίων ἄλλου τινὸς τῶν νῦν, ἀλλὰ πολὺ φαυλοτέρων καὶ ἀτοπωτέρων, ὁποίους δὴ καὶ ὁρᾶτε. χρὴ δὲ ἐᾶν ὑμᾶς ἔμβραχυ, ὅ,τι ἂν ἐπίῃ μοι, τούτῳ ἕπεσθαι, καὶ μὴ ἀγανακτεῖν, ἐὰν φαίνωμαι πλανώμενος ἐν τοῖς λόγοις, ὥσπερ ἀμέλει καὶ τὸν ἄλλον χρόνον ἔζηκα ἀλώμενος, ἀλλὰ συγγνώμην ἔχειν, ἅτε ἀκούοντας ἀνδρὸς ἰδιώτου καὶ ἀδολέσχου. καὶ γὰρ δὴ τυγχάνω μακράν τινα ὁδὸν τὰ νῦν πεπορευμένος, εὐθὺ τοῦ Ἴστρου καὶ τῆς Γετῶν χώρας ἢ Μυσῶν, ὥς φησιν Ὅμηρος κατὰ τὴν νῦν ἐπίκλησιν τοῦ ἔθνους.

[12,16] I must do this and try to the best of my ability. However, you will not hear words such as you would hear from any other man of the present day, but words much less pretentious and wearisome, in fact just such as you now observe. And in brief, you must allow me to pursue any thought that occurs to me and not become annoyed if you find me wandering in my remarks exactly as in the past I have lived a life of roving, but you must grant me your indulgence, bearing in mind that you are listening to a man who is a layman and who is fond of talking. For in fact, as it happens, I have just finished a long, long journey, all the way from the Ister and the land of the Getae, or Mysians as Homer, using the modern designation of the race, calls them.