For I have had many accusers, who accused me of old, and their false charges have continued during many years and I am more afraid of them than of Anytus and his associates, who are dangerous, too, in their own way. Īnd first, it’s only right that I reply to the older charges and to my first accusers, and then I will go to the later ones. Never mind the manner, which may or may not be good but think only of the justice of my cause, and give heed to that: let the jury decide with their virtue and the speaker speak truly.

For I am more than seventy years of age, and this is the first time that I have ever appeared in a court of law, and I am quite a stranger to the ways of the place and therefore I would have you regard me as if I were really a stranger, whom you would excuse if he spoke in his native tongue, and after the fashion of his country-that I think is not an unfair request.

And I must beg of you to grant me one favor, which is this-if you hear me using the same words in my defense which I have been in the habit of using, and which most of you may have heard in the agora, and at the tables of the money-changers, or anywhere else, I would ask you not to be surprised at this, and not to interrupt me. No indeed! but I shall use the words and arguments which occur to me at the moment for I am certain that this is right, and that at my time of life I ought not to be appearing before you, O men of Athens, in the character of a juvenile orator-let no one expect this of me. But in how different a way from theirs! Well, as I was saying, they have hardly uttered a word, or not more than a word, of truth but you shall hear from me the whole truth : not, however, delivered after their manner, in a set oration duly ornamented with words and phrases. They ought to have been ashamed of saying this, because they were sure to be detected as soon as I opened my lips and displayed my deficiency they certainly did appear to be most shameless in saying this, unless by the force of eloquence they mean the force of truth for then I do indeed admit that I am eloquent.

But many as their falsehoods were, there was one of them which quite amazed me-I mean when they told you to be upon your guard, and not to let yourselves be deceived by the force of my eloquence. How you have felt, O men of Athens, at hearing the speeches of my accusers, I cannot tell but I know that their persuasive words almost made me forget who I was-such was the effect of them and yet they have hardly spoken a word of truth.

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