Letter 763: Well, Celsus — a man, as you know, incapable of lying — said he both saw the books and received them from Diotimus,...

LibaniusAlexandra (2)|c. 386 AD|Libanius
barbarian invasioneducation books

Ἀλεξάνδρᾳ. (362)

Ἀλλ’ ὅ γε Κέλσος, ἀνήρ, ὡς οἶσθα, ψεύδεσθαι οὐκ εἰ-
δώς, ἰδεῖν τε ἔφησε τὰ βιβλία καὶ λαβεῖν Διοτίμου διδόντος

αὐτοῦ λέγοντος εἶναι δεσπότου.

ἔοικεν οὖν ὁ Διότιμος
ἵππῳ μετ’ ὄνον ἐντυχὼν καταπεφρονηκέναι ἐμοῦ τοῦ ὄνου
καὶ νομίζειν ἢ τοῦ μηδενὸς ἄξιον ἢ φόβου μὴ κακὸς ἀποδοῦ
νᾶι γενοίμην.

σὺ οὖν ἐγγύησαί με καὶ παῦε τὸ δέος αὐτῶ
καὶ πεῖθε μήτ’ ἐμὲ πονηρὸν ἡγεῖσθαι μήτε σὲ ἐξαπατᾶν. εἰ
δ’ <ὁ> αὐτὸς εἴη, λείπεται παρ’ ἑτέροις ζητεῖν, μᾶλλον δὲ
δτηθι καὶ τούτου τοῦ πόνου καὶ τοῦ περὶ τὸν Ὅμηρον· ὁρῶ
γὰρ ὅτι γλαῦκα Ἀθήνησιν οὐκ ἔστιν εὑρεῖν.

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