Letter 754: I owe this Sopater a debt from an old kindness.
Παλαιᾶς τινος εὐεργεσίας Σωπάτρῳ τούτῳ χάριν ὀφείλω·
τυχον μὶν γὰρ Ἀθήνηθέν πότι πορευόμενος ἐπὶ Θρᾴκης,
Μου δὲ γενομένου πολλοῦ καταφεύγω Πλαταιᾶσιν εἰς οἴκημα
φαῦλον, εἰς ὃ καὶ αὐτὸς οὗτος ὑπὸ τοῦ αὐτοῦ καταφεύγει.
τὸ μὲν οὖν πρῶτον λόγος ἦν ἡμῖν ὁ σφοδρὸς ὑετὸς καὶ
οἵαν ἐργάσεται τὴν ὁδόν· ἔπειτ’ ἀλλήλους ἡρωτῶμεν, οἶ σπεύ-
δομεν. ὡς δὲ ἐγένετο δῆλον ὅτι πρὸς τὸ αὐτὸ χωρίον, καὶ
προσέθηκα τὸ βαδίζειν ἐπὶ συνουσίᾳ νέων, ὁ μέν, καὶ
γὰρ ἤ τῷ ἄρχοντι φίλος, ἥσθη δύναμιν ἔχων εὖ με ποιεῖν,
ἐγὼ δὲ Ἑρμοῦ δῶρον τὸν ἄνθρωπον ἡγούμην. ἥ τε οὖν ὁδὸς
οὐ χείρων ἡμῖν ἑορτῆς, καὶ ὡς ἥκομεν ἐπὶ τὸν Βόσπορον, ἐμ
βαίου τὰς ὑποσχέσεις.
ἐγὼ δὲ τῆς μὲν χάριτος ἐμεμνήμην,
ἀποδοῦναι δὲ ἐπεθύμουν, καιρὸν δὲ ἐζήτουν, ὁ δὲ εὖ ποιῶν
ἥκει· σοῦ γὰρ ἐφεστηκότος Ἀραβίᾳ γένοιτ’ ἄν τι τῷδε καλὸν
ἐμοῦ δεομένου.
δέομαι δή σου τὸν πρεσβύτην τοῦτον πρῶ-
τὸν ἢ ἡδέως ὁρᾶν, ἔπειτα ἀπόντα ζητεῖν καὶ τρίτον ἰσχυρό-
τερον τῶν βιαζομένων ποιεῖν, ὅπως ἂν ὧν ἔλαβον παρ’ αὐτοῦ
τὸ μέτρο· τοῖς διὰ σοῦ διδομένοις παρέλθω.
Related Letters
You possess such an abundance of eloquence that you earn pardon for your previous silence through the excellence of...
...and you care for me, but I worry that you might take up some fight on my behalf while I'm away and draw hostility...
I recently sent you news of my good health, and I still haven't received a matching report about yours.
Someone might think it is merely a formality that the consul of the previous year still owes these obligations.
It's an old saying that talent is nourished by honor.