Hear ye my statute, men of Attica-- <br />Ye who of bloodshed judge this primal cause; <br />Yea, and in future age shall Aegeus's host <br />Revere this court of jurors. This the hill <br />Of Ares, seat of Amazons, their tent, <br />What time 'gainst Theseus, breathing hate, they came, <br />Waging fierce battle, and their towers upreared, <br />A counter-fortress to Acropolis;-- <br />To Ares they did sacrifice, and hence <br />This rock is titled Areopagus. <br />Here then shall sacred Awe, to Fear allied, <br />By day and night my lieges hold from wrong, <br />Save if themselves do innovate my laws, <br />If thou with mud, or influx base, bedim <br />The sparkling water, nought thou'lt find to drink. <br />Nor Anarchy, nor Tyrant's lawless rule <br />Commend I to my people's reverence;-- <br />Nor let them banish from their city Fear; <br />For who 'mong men, uncurbed by fear, is just? <br />Thus holding Awe in seemly reverence, <br />A bulwark for your State shall ye possess, <br />A safeguard to protect your city walls, <br />Such as no mortals otherwhere can boast, <br />Neither in Scythia, nor in Pelops's realm. <br />Behold! This Court august, untouched by bribes, <br />Sharp to avenge, wakeful for those who sleep, <br />Establish I, a bulwark to this land. <br />This charge, extending to all future time, <br />I give my lieges. Meet it as ye rise, <br />Assume the pebbles, and decide the cause, <br />Your oath revering. All hath now been said.<br /><br />Aeschylus<br /><br />http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-decree-of-athena/
