Historical voices

This work belongs to you: this privilege your ancestors bequeathed to you, the prize of many perilous exertions.

If you imagine that Chalcidians or Megarians will save Greece, while you run away from the contest, you imagine wrong.

I say not, however, that you should invite the rest without adopting measures to protect yourselves: it would be folly, while you sacrifice your own interest, to profess a regard for that of strangers, or to alarm others about the future…

First, let us prepare for our own defense; provide ourselves, I mean, with ships, money, and troops--for surely, though all other people consented to be slaves, we at least ought to struggle for freedom.

As long as the vessel is safe, whether it be great or small, the mariner, the pilot, every man in turn should exert himself, and prevent its being overturned either by accident or design: but when the sea hath rolled over it, their efforts…

Yea, and it is disgraceful to exclaim on any occurrence, when it is too late, "Who would have expected it?

It is folly and cowardice to cherish such hopes, and, while you take evil counsel and shirk every duty, and even listen to those who plead for your enemies, to think you inhabit a city of such magnitude, that you can not suffer any serious…

Better die a thousand deaths than render homage to Philip, or sacrifice any of your faithful counselors.

They who advise for the best can not always gratify their audience, though they would; for the safety of the state must be attended to: their opponents by the very counsel which is agreeable advance Philip's interest.

And this, bad as it is, is not the worst: you have allowed these persons more liberty for their political conduct than your faithful counselors: and see what evils are caused by listening to such men with indulgence.

Nor is it enough to adopt these resolutions and oppose him by warlike measures: you must on calculation and on principle abhor his advocates here, remembering that it is impossible to overcome your enemies abroad, until you have chastised…

But now you doubtless perceive, that the majority of disasters have been effected by treason; nothing is done in fair field or combat.

The natural result was, that Greece, was formidable to the Barbarian, not the Barbarian to Greece. 'Tis not so now: since neither in this nor in other respects are your sentiments the same.

By the gods! only consider and reflect among yourselves, what must have been the spirit, what the dignity of those Athenians who acted so!

Nothing subtle or clever: simply that whoever took money from the aspirants for power or the corruptors of Greece were universally detested: it was dreadful to be convicted of bribery; the severest punishment was inflicted on the guilty…

There was something, men of Athens, something in the hearts of the multitude then, which there is not now, which overcame the wealth of Persia and maintained the freedom of Greece, and quailed not under any battle by land or sea; the loss…

There must be some cause, some good reason, why the Greeks were so eager for liberty then, and now are eager for servitude.

And how think ye a man, who behaves so insolently to all, how will he act, when he gets each separately under his control?

Still under these indignities we are all slack and disheartened, and look toward our neighbors, distrusting one another, instead of the common enemy.

And not only are the outrages which he docs to Greece submitted to, but even the private wrongs of every people: nothing can go beyond this!

Yet the Greeks endure to see all this; methinks they view it as they would a hailstorm, each praying that it may not fall on himself, none trying to prevent it.

We ourselves and the Lacedaemonians, although at the outset we could not allege any natural injuries, thought proper to make war for the injustice that we saw done to our neighbors.

It became a maxim in their politics, that the end justified the means.

Their attempt to force an oligarchy upon every dependent state was an unwise policy, which made them generally odious.