Source edition
Demosthenes. Orationes, Vol. III. Rennie, W., editor. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1931.
Source data
Perseus Digital Library · CC BY-SA (per Perseus's terms)
Cloned and adapted by Humanitext, with ongoing edits.
Summary
This oration, delivered in an Athenian court, presents the speaker Apollodorus accusing his former neighbor Nicostratus and his brother Arethusius of betrayal and unlawful acts. The dispute began when Apollodorus generously provided a large ransom to rescue Nicostratus, who had been captured and sold into slavery. Instead of repaying this kindness, Nicostratus conspired with his brother to defraud Apollodorus, going so far as to falsely register him as a public debtor and launch physical assaults. In retaliation, Apollodorus initiated a legal process to register certain slaves owned by Arethusius for confiscation by the state. Throughout the latter part of the speech, the speaker presents testimonies and evidence to prove that the slaves indeed belong to Arethusius, while exposing his opponents' dishonesty and asserting the justice of the confiscation.