So do not present me with a difficulty which you yourselves would not find easy of solution. Furthermore, do not make my acquittal depend on my making plausible conjectures. Let it be enough for me to prove my innocence of the crime; and that depends not upon my discovering how Herodes disappeared or met his end, but upon my possessing no motive whatever for murdering him.

As I know from report, there have been similar cases in the past, when sometimes the victim, sometimes the murderer, has not been traced; it would be unfair, were those who had been in their company held responsible. Many, again, have been accused before now of the crimes of others, and have lost their lives before the truth became known.

For instance, the murderers of one of your own citizens, Ephialtes,The murder had been committed some forty-five years before (first half of 461). Ephialtes was an extreme radical, and in conjunction with Pericles was responsible for the violent attack made upon the prerogatives of the Areopagus in 462. His assassination was the result. Aristotle states that the crime was committed by Aristodicus of Tanagra, employed for the purpose by Ephialtes’ enemies. This may well be true, as it suited Antiphon’s requirements here to assume that the mystery had never been satisfactorily solved. Cf. Aristot. 35.5, Dio. Sic. 11.77.6, Plut. Per. 10. have remained undiscovered to this day; it would have been unfair to his companions to require them to conjecture who his assassins were under pain of being held guilty of the murder themselves. Moreover, the murderers of Ephialtes made no attempt to get rid of the body, for fear of the accompanying risk of publicity—unlike myself, who, we are told, took no one into my confidence when planning the crime, but then sought help for the removal of the corpse.

Once more, a slave, not twelve years old, recently attempted to murder his master. Had he had the courage to stay where he was, instead of taking to his heels in terror at his victim’s cries, leaving the knife in the wound, the entire householdi.e., of slaves. would have perished, as no one would have dreamed him capable of such audacity. As it was, he was caught, and later confessed his own guilt.

Then again, your HellenotamiaeNothing further is known of the incident. The Hellenotamiae were ten in number and administered the funds of the Delian League. were once accused of embezzlement, as wrongfully as I am accused today. Anger swept reason aside, and they were all put to death save one. Later the true facts became known.

This one, whose name is said to have been Sosias, though under sentence of death, had not yet been executed. Meanwhile it was shown how the money had disappeared. The Athenian people rescued him from the very hands of the ElevenThe accusation must have taken the form of an impeachment (εἰσαγγελία) before the Assembly. The task of the Eleven was to supervise the execution of the sentence.: while the rest had died entirely innocent.