His favourite name shall be ‘the Misanthrope,’ and
his characteristic traits shall be testiness, acerbity,
rudeness, wrathfulness and inhumanity. If I see
anyone perishing in a fire and begging to have it put
out, I am to put it out with pitch and oil; and if
anyone is being swept off his feet by the river in
winter and stretches out his hands, begging me to
take hold, I am to push him in head-foremost,
plunging him down so deep that he cannot come up
again. In that way they will get what they deserve.
Moved by Timon, son of Echecratides, of Collytus;
motion submitted to the assembly by the aforesaid
Timon.” 
Good! Let us pass this resolution and abide by
it stoutly.

 

Yet I would have given a great deal if
everybody could have found out somehow that I am
tremendously rich; they would be fit to hang themselves over the thing. But what is this? I say,

 

what haste they make! They are running up from
all sides, dusty and out of breath, for they scent the
gold somehow or other. Shall I climb this hill and
drive them off with a skirmish fire of stones from
above, or shall I break the law to the extent of
talking to them just this once, in order that they
may be hurt even more by being treated with contempt? That way is better, I think; so let us
stand our ground now and receive them. Let me
see, who is the first of them? Gnathonides the
toady, the man who gave me a rope the other day
when I asked for a loan, though often he has spewed
up whole jars of wine at my house. I am glad he
came: he shall be the first to smart.

 GNATHONIDES 
Didn’t I say that the gods would not neglect an
upright man like Timon? Good day to you, Timon,
first in good looks, first in good manners and first in
good fellowship.
 TIMON 
The same to you, Gnathonides, first of all vultures
in voracity and first of all mankind in rascality.
 GNATHONIDES 
You are always fond of your joke. But where
are we to dine? I have brought you a new song
from one of the plays Literally: “From one of the dithyrambs.” The allusion is anachronistic, for in Timon’s day the dithyramb was not dramatic in character. Cf. Bywater, Aristotle on the Art of Poetry, p. 99. that have just been put on.
 TIMON 
I assure you, it will be a very mournful dirge that
you will sing, with this pick of mine to prompt you.

 

 GNATHONIDES 
What’s this? A blow, Timon? I appeal to the
witnesses. O Heracles! Oh! Oh! I summon you
before the Areopagus for assault and battery.
 TIMON 
If you will only linger one moment more, the
summons will be for murder.
 GNATHONIDES 
No, no! Do heal my wound, at least, by putting
alittle gold on it. That is a wonderful specific for
staunching blood.
 TIMON 
What, are you still bent on staying?
 GNATHONIDES 
I am going; but you shall be sorry that you left
off being a gentleman and became such a boor.