Προσπάλτιοι (fr. 260)

341

]ν chorus (acc.)
5 ]ηι fear (nom./acc.)
] I/he/she/it would
].βον
].εθη
].αρη
col. ii
io (A.) But, where the good(?) are ...
] . . . . σδε of the good/useful (pl.) μ.[
unless I do ...
(B.) You (pl.) go as quickly as you can ε[
and describe what the situation here is like
15 urge (pl.) him/them either to undertake to send an army
to the Prospaltians or to convey
so that they can’t say I’m/we’re sitting idly about, wasting
since this fellow is apparently not going to be convinced.
(C.) Alright, we’re on our way. But—uh—it’s necessary
20 precisely what amount they should send you.175— (B.) εξεστι[
If it’s actually necessary to this fellow in a circle.
But, my good sir, now at any rate obey by all means.
You see that beside streams, whenever
if someone yields to arguments, he stays safe;
25 but he who resists, perishes root and branch.
Likewise in the case of a ship— (A.) You’ll be the death of me, sir.
(B.) This person ... sensible men (acc.)176
But they’re (neut.) impossible; for if I were persuaded
what would τ[.]χ.ην ε.[
30 would be quite upset cck[
(C.) But we ... sailors of ships
Meter lambic trimeter.
<x—— X—o— X——
<x—w— X—o— X—

175 Neither merely “what they are to send you” (Storey 2011. 207) nor “what sort of
things they should send” (Rusten 2011. 263, as if the text read ποΓ rather than πόσ’).
176 Storey 2011. 207, apparently taking the Greek to represent έχοντα σ[, translates
“things that make sense”. But the idiom seems to be consistently used only of
sensible persons, not of what they might believe.