Letter 694: If justice were done, you would have held that office long ago, and by now you would hold one even greater.
Ἰουλιανῷ. (362)
Εἰ τι τῶν δικαίων ἐγίγνετο, πάλαι μὲν ἐπ’ ἐκείνης ἂν
ἦσθα τῆς ἀρχῆς, νῦν δὲ ἐπὶ μείζονος ἢ κατ’ ἐκείνην ἐξουσίας.
ἀλλ’, οἶμαι, τέρπεται ἡ Τύχη τοῖς μὲν ἀμείνοσιν ἐλάττω όι-
οἰδοῦσα, τοῖς δὲ φαυλοτέροις μείζω καὶ διατελεῖ δὴ τοῦτο ποι-
9γΠβ,qη.Var,πέ.kο(Rπέ.SΙέ(ξέ).Βιέ-
οὖσα καθάπερ φοβουμένη μὴ τῆς ἰσχύος αὑτῆς ἐπιλαθώμεθα.
ἐγὼ δὲ ὅτι μὲν ὁμοίως ἡδέως καὶ λέγω καὶ τῆς σῆς ἀκοῆς
τυγχάνω — καὶ γὰρ οἶσθα πηδᾶν λέγοντος — οὐκ ἀγνοεῖς·
πλῆθος δὲ ἐπιστολῶν τὸ τῶν πραγμάτων πλῆθος οὐκ ἀφῆκε
γενέσθαι. πολλοὶ μὲν γὰρ οἷς δεῖ βοηθεῖν, οἱ δ’ ὑπερπηδῶντες
πολλῶν δυνάμεις ἐπὶ τὴν ἐμὴν καταφεύγουσιν ἀσθένειαν
ἀτόπῳ κεχρημένοι πάθει, συκίνην ἀνθ’ Ἑρμιόνος ζητοῦντες
ἐπικουρίαν.
ἐμοὶ δὲ ἀνάγκη παρέχειν ἐμαυτόν, τί γὰρ ἄν
τις καὶ ποιοῖ; ἔπειτα μικρὰ δεομένων μὲν ὠφελῶ, χρόνος δὲ
ἀναλίσκεται, γράμματα δὲ ὑμῖν οὐχ ὅσα βούλεσθε γίγνεται.
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