Demosthenes, Speeches (English) (XML Header) [genre: prose; rhetoric] [word count] [lemma count] [Dem.].
<<Dem. 59.23 Dem. 59.32 (Greek) >>Dem. 59.40

59.29After this, then, she had two lovers, Timanoridas the Corinthian and Eucrates the Leucadian. note These men seeing that Nicaretê was extravagant in the sums she exacted from them, for she demanded that they should supply the entire daily expenses of the household, paid down to Nicaretê thirty minae as the price of Neaera's person, and purchased the girl outright from her in accordance with the law of the city, to be their slave. 59.30And they kept her and made use of her as long a time as they pleased. When, however, they were about to marry, they gave her notice that they did not want to see her, who had been their own mistress, plying her trade in Corinth or living under the control of a brothel-keeper; but that they would be glad to recover from her less than they had paid down, and to see her reaping some advantage for herself. They offered, therefore, to remit one thousand drachmae toward the price of her freedom, five hundred drachmae apiece; and they bade her, when she found the means, to pay them the twenty minae. When she heard this proposal from Eucrates and Timanoridas, she summoned to Corinth among others who had been her lovers Phrynion of Paeania, note the son of Demon and the brother of Demochares, a man who was living a licentious and extravagant life, as the older ones among you remember. 59.31When Phrynion came to her, she told him the proposal which Eucrates and Timanoridas had made to her, and gave him the money which she had collected from her other lovers as a contribution toward the price of her freedom, and added whatever she had gained for herself, and she begged him to advance the balance needed to make up the twenty minae, and to pay it to Eucrates and Timanoridas to secure her freedom. 59.32He listened gladly to these words of hers,and taking the money which had been paid in to her by her other lovers added the balance himself and paid the twenty minae as the price of her freedom to Eucrates and Timanoridas on the condition that she should not ply her trade in Corinth.

To prove that these statements of mine are true, I will call as witness to them the man who was present.

Please call Philagrus of Melitê. noteDepostition

Philagrus of Melitê deposes that he was present in Corinth when Phrynion, the brother of Demochares, paid down twenty minae as the price of Neaera, the present defendant, to Timanoridas, the Corinthian, and Eucrates, the Leucadian; and that after paying down the money Phrynion went off to Athens, taking Neaera with him.

59.33When he came back here, bringing her with him, he treated her without decency or restraint, taking her everywhere with him to dinners where there was drinking and making her a partner in his revels; and he had intercourse with her openly whenever and wherever he wished, making his privilege a display to the onlookers. He took her to many houses to gay parties and among them to that of Chabrias of Aexonê, when, in the archonship of Socratidas, note he was victor at the Pythian games note with the four-horse chariot which he had bought from the sons of Mitys, the Argive, and returning from Delphi he gave a feast at Colias, note to celebrate his victory, and in that place many had intercourse with her when she was drunk, while Phrynion was asleep, among them even the serving-men of Chabrias.

59.34To prove that these statements of mine are true, I will bring before you as witnesses those who were present and saw for themselves.

Please call Chionides of Xypetê note and Euthetion of Cydathenaeum. noteDepostitions

Chionides of Xypetê and Euthetion of Cydathenaeum depose that they were invited to dinner by Chabrias, when he celebrated with a banquet his victory in the chariot race, and that the banquet was held at Colias; and that they know that Phrynion was present at the banquet, having with him Neaera, the present defendant; that they themselves lay down to sleep, as did Phrynion and Neaera, and that they observed that men got up in the night to go in to Neaera, among them some of the serving-men who were household slaves of Chabrias.

59.35Since, then, she was treated with wanton outrage by Phrynion, and was not loved as she expected to be, and since her wishes were not granted by him, she packed up his household goods and all the clothing and jewelry with which he had adorned her person, and, taking with her two maid-servants, Thratta and Coccalinêe, ran off to Megara. This was the period when Asteius was archon at Athens, note at the time you were waging your second war against the Lacedaemonians. 59.36She remained at Megara two years, that of the archonship of Asteius and that of Alcisthenes; but the trade of prostitution did not bring in enough money to maintain her establishment—she was lavish in her tastes, and the Megarians were niggardly and illiberal, and there were but few foreigners there on account of the war and because the Megarians favored the Lacedaemonian side, while you were in control of the sea; it was, however, not open to her to return to Corinth, because she had got her freedom from Eucrates and Timanoridas on the condition that she would not ply her trade in Corinth;—



Demosthenes, Speeches (English) (XML Header) [genre: prose; rhetoric] [word count] [lemma count] [Dem.].
<<Dem. 59.23 Dem. 59.32 (Greek) >>Dem. 59.40

Powered by PhiloLogic