. And yet,
individually, I gain in honour by such a course, and fear as little as
other men for my person--not that I think a man need be any the worse
citizen for taking some thought for his person and estate; on the
contrary, such a man would for his own sake desire the prosperity of his
country more than others--nevertheless, as I have never spoken against
my convictions to gain honour, I shall not begin to do so now, but shall
say what I think best. Against your character any words of mine would be
weak enough, if I were to advise your keeping what you have got and
not risking what is actually yours for advantages which are dubious
in themselves, and which you may or may not attain. I will, therefore,
content myself with showing that your ardour is out of season, and your
ambition not easy of accomplishment.

"I affirm, then, that you leave many enemies behind you here to go
yonder and bring more back with you. You imagine, perhaps, that the
treaty which you have made can be trusted; a treaty that will continue
to exist nominally, as long as you keep quiet--for nominal it has
become, owing to the practices of certain men here and at Sparta--but
which in the event of a serious reverse in any quarter would not delay
our enemies a moment in attacking us; first, because the convention was
forced upon them by disaster and was less honourable to them than to us;
and secondly, because in this very convention there are many points that
are still disputed. Again, some of the most powerful states have never
yet accepted the arrangement at all. Some of these are at open war with
us; others (as the Lacedaemonians do not yet move) are restrained by
truces renewed every ten days, and it is only too probable that if they
found our power divided, as we are hurrying to divide it, they would
attack us vigorously with the Siceliots, whose alliance they would
have in the past valued as they would that of few others. A man ought,
therefore, to consider these points, and not to think of running risks
with a country placed so critically, or of grasping at another empire
before we have secured the one we have already; for in fact the Thracian
Chalcidians have been all these years in revolt from us without being
yet subdued, and others on the continents yield us but a doubtful
obedience. Meanwhile the Egestaeans, our allies, have been wronged, and
we run to help them, while the rebels who have so long wronged us still
wait for punishment.