Letter 323: The reports that reach me of your administration are uniformly excellent.
Ἰαμβλίχῳ. (357)
Μή σοι φαινέσθω καθ’ ἡμῶν ἔγκλημα τὸ πολλὰ παρὰ
σοῦ λαβόντας γράμματα μὴ τοσαῦτα ἀντεπιστεῖλαι. σὺ μὲν
γὰρ ᾐόεις, οὗ καθημένοις ἐπέστελλες, ἡμῖν δὲ οὐκ ἦν ταὐτὸ
πρὸς ἄνδρα ὁδῷ χρώμενον, ὥοθ᾿ ὁ γράφων τηνάλλως ἔγρα-
φεν ἄν.
τὸ δὲ ἐλθεῖν Ἀθήναζε καὶ ταύτῃ κουφίσαι τὴν
λύπην. εἴτε αὐτὸς ἰδὼν εἴτε ἄλλῳ πεισθεὶς ἐποίησας, ἐπαινῶ·
μέγα γὰρ εἰς τὸν λοιπὸν βίον τὸ μὴ τὴν πόλιν ἀγνοεῖν. καίτοι
δέδοικα μὴ τῶν ἀετῶν πεῖραν λαβὼν ὑπερίδῃς τῶν κολοιῶν.
ἀλλ’ ὅμως οὔ μοι μέλει τῶν ἐμῶν, εἰ τὰ σὰ γίγνοιτο βελ-
τίω. κοινὰ γὰρ τὰ φίλων. φίλοι δὲ κέκληνται μὲν πολλοί, σα-
φὴς δὲ σὺ τῷ Ἀθηναίων περὶ ταῦτα νόμῳ πειθόμενος, ὧν
νῦν μὲν ἑώρακας τὸ ἄστυ, πάλαι δὲ καλῶς τοὺς τρόπους.
ἐκείνους τε γὰρ ὁ Θουκυδίδης φησὶν εὖ ποιοῦντας, οὐ
πάσχοντας κτᾶσθαι τοὺς φίλους σοί τε ἐκ τῶν ἴσων ὑπῆρξε
τοῦτο τὸ κτῆμα.
εἰ οὖν σοι λόγος <τοῦ> α μὴ τοὺς
θεις ἀθυμεῖν, μᾶλλον δέ, ἐπειδή σοι λόγος τοῦ μὴ τοὺς φί-
λους ἀνιᾶν, πράξας ἐφ’ οἷσπερ ἀπῆρας ἥκειν ὡς τάχιστα.
πάλαι γὰρ ἀπειρήκαμεν ἐρωτῶντες· ποῦ νῦν Ἰάμβλιχος;
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