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the affairs of the market, but by simply waiting I discovered all the debts and loans in three months. Whereas this man had two generations of perfume sellers behind him; he used to sit in the market every day, was the owner of three stalls and had accounts submitted to him monthly and still he did not know his debts. Though an expert in other matters he was a complete simpleton in dealing with his slave, and though he knew, apparently, of some of the debts, he pleads ignorance of others—to suit his convenience.
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In using an argument like this, gentlemen of the jury, he is accusing, not excusing, himself, since he is admitting that I need not pay the debts. For if he says that he did not know the full amount owing, surely he cannot claim that he informed me of the debts beforehand; and I am not bound to pay those of which the seller did not notify me. You knew that Midas owed this money, Athenogenes, as I think we all realize for several reasons, and chiefly because you summoned Nicon to give security for meThis passage was restored by Blass, partly following Revillout, to give the following meaning: because you summoned Nicon to give security for me, knowing that I could not meet the debts alone without his help. And indeed I cannot, but I want to get to grips with this claim of yours that you did not know who had invested what sums, or what the individual debts were. Let us consider it in this way. For Nicon see § 8.
