Letter 17

To the same person. (358) Before now, I admired the excellent Hermogenes on account of the philosophy I heard he devoted himself to. But now I have come to love the man as well, because he recognizes exactly how much you are worth and what kind of person you are. He is said to consider you a good man, to value your company greatly, and to find your absence a real burden. Others have reason to congratulate you, but I have reason to congratulate you both -- you, because such a powerful man is attached to you, and him, because in loving the right person he has shown excellent judgment. Since you are loved by him, you must not hesitate to help him with whatever advice you can. And right now, you have the chance to prevent a friend from wronging another friend. Nicentius -- that fine man whom you praised to me in a letter, and that very letter created a friendship between us -- this man, through whom justice prevails in our city and violence has been driven out, who has made our city feel like a festival, now finds himself facing a penalty when he expected praise. The financial loss is painful enough, for our Nicentius remains poor despite holding so many offices. But worse than the material loss is the disgrace, for a conviction is a penalty that declares a man guilty of wrongdoing.

**To the same person (358)** Previously I admired the excellent Hermogenes on account of the philosophy which I heard he pursued. But now I have come to love the man as well, because he recognizes how great and how worthy you are. For he is said to regard you as a good man, to count your company a great blessing, and your absence a heavy burden. Now while others have reason to congratulate only you, I have reason to congratulate both of you — you, because so great a power is devoted to you, and him, because in loving the man he ought to love, he wins a fine reputation for his judgment. Since you are so loved, you must not hesitate to benefit him with your counsel in every way you can. And just now you have the opportunity to prevent a friend from committing an injustice against another friend who is being wronged. For that fine man Nicentius — whom you yourself praised to me in a letter, and that very letter forged a friendship between us — this man, through whom justice dwells among us, violence has departed, and our city is like a festival: though he expected praise, a penalty has instead closed in upon him, grievous enough in the financial loss it inflicts — for our Nicentius is a poor man despite holding so many offices — but carrying something still more bitter than the loss itself: disgrace. For a conviction is a penalty that pronounces a verdict of wrongdoing. Now when Hermogenes brings suit against those who are truly guilty, I am the first to applaud his anger — and should he ever cease his anger against such men, I shall cease my praise. But in the present case, this is a kind of misdirection, the work of deception, not of Hermogenes' true nature. Hear the facts. There is a military post on the Euphrates; its name is Callinicum — for a sophist named Callinicus was slain there, and so the man became the name of the place, as has often happened both on land and on sea since ancient times. This garrison has troops stationed in it, and they must be fed by us — not by shipping provisions directly there, but to another location, from which the governor of the Euphrates district is required by law to transport the supplies onward to Callinicum. Now Nicentius, having faithfully discharged his own duties, is being punished for the failures of others — the very thing that happened at Aulis. Perhaps I have not told the story badly myself, but if I have gone astray in any detail, Nicentius will set you right. Help two officials at once: rescue the lesser one from an unjust penalty, and draw the greater one back from an anger that is not just. And if Hermogenes considers it beneath him to reverse his decision, let him regard a change for the worse as shameful, but one that undoes an injustice as good — especially when he could still collect the fine while releasing the man who bears no guilt. Let him exact the gold, by all means — but let him exact it from those who deserted their post, and furthermore from those who deceived him, men who, doing themselves a favor, reported things that were not true. For since his great wrath over the provisioners exists, let the deceivers enjoy no impunity, so that when truth prevails, no one is punished unjustly. And in reversing his own verdict, let him think of the king of the Cretans, the son of Zeus, who journeyed to the cave every ninth year and was not ashamed to alter whichever of his own laws it was better to alter.

τῶ αὐτῷ (358) Πρότερον μὲν ἐθαύμαζον τὸν κράτιστον Ἑρμογένην ἀπὸ τῆς φιλοσοφίας ἧς ἤκουον αὐτῷ μέλειν. νῦν δὲ δὴ καὶ φιλῶ τὸν ἄνθρωπον, διότι δὴ πόσου τε καὶ τίνος ἄξιος εἶ γινώσκει. λέγεται γὰρ ἄνδρα τέ σε ἀγαθὸν ἡγεῖσθαι καὶ τὸ συνεῖναι μέγα ποιεῖν καὶ τὸ μὴ συνεῖναι βαρύ. τοῖς μὶν οὖν ἄλλοις ἔπεισι σοὶ συγχαίρειν, ἐμοὶ δὲ ἀμφοῖν· σοὶ μέν. ὅτι σοι πρόσκειται τοσαύτη δύναμις, τῷ δ’, ὅτι φιλῶν ὃν ἐχρῆν εὐδο- κιμεῖ τῇ κρίσει. δεῖ δή σε φιλούμενον ὅσα ἂν ἐξῆ ἐν ταῖς παραινέσεσιν ὠφελεῖν ἐκεῖνον μὴ κατοκνεῖν· ἔξεστι δὲ νῦν ὑπὲρ ἀδικουμένου φίλου κωλῦσαι φίλον ἁμαρτάνειν. Νικέν- τιον γὰρ τὸν καλόν, ὃν σὺ πρὸς ἡμᾶς ἐπῄνεις ἐν γράμμασι, καὶ τὸ γράμμα γε ἐκεῖνο φιλίαν ἡμῖν εἰργάσατο, τοῦτον δὴ τὸν ἄνδρα, δι’ ὃν ἐπιδημεῖ μὲν ἡ δίκη, βία δὲ οἴχεται, πανή- γυρις δὲ ἡμῖν ἡ πόλις, εὐφημίας ἐλπίζοντα περιέστηκε ζημία λυποῦσα μὲν καὶ τῇ βλάβῃ, πένης γὰρ ἡμὶν ἐπὶ τοσαύταις ἀρχαῖς ὁ Νικέντιος, ἔχουσα δέ τι πικρότερον τῆς βλάβης τὴν ἀδοξίαν. ἡ γὰρ καταδίκη ζημία τίς ἐστι κατεγνωκυῖα κακίαν. τοῖς μὲν οὖν ἀδικοῦσιν Ἑρμογένης ἐπαγέτω δίκην ἐγὼ πρῶτος ἐπαινῶ τὴν ὀργήν, κἂν παύσηται τῆς ἐπὶ τοῖς τοιού- τοις ὀργῆς, καὶ ἐγὼ τῶν ἐπαίνων, τὸ νῦν δὲ τοῦτο παραγωγή τίς ἐστι καὶ ἔργον ἀπάτης, οὐ τῆς Ἑρμογένους φύσεως. ἄκουε δέ· σταθμός τίς ἐστι περὶ τὸν Εὐφράτην, Καλλίνικος ὄνομα αὐτῷ· Καλλινίκου γὰρ ἐνταῦθα ἀποσφαγέντος ὁ σοφι- στὴς γίνεται προσηγορία τῷ τόπῳ, οἷα πολλὰ μὲν ἐν γῇ, πολλὰ δὲ ἐν θαλάττῃ πάλαι. τοῦτο δὴ τὸ χωρίον ἔχει στρα- τιὰν ἱδρυμένην, ἣν τρέφεσθαι παρ’ ἡμῶν οὐκ ἐκεῖσε κομι- ζόντων, ἀλλ’ ἑτέρωσε τὴν τροφήν, ἐκεῖθεν δὲ εἰς Καλλίνικον ἄγειν νόμος τὸν ἄρχοντα τῶν περὶ τὸν Εὐφράτην. Νικέντιος δὲ τὰ αὑτοῦ διακονήσας ὧν ἐπλημμέλησαν ἕτεροι δίκας δί- δωσι, τοῦτο δὴ τὸ ἐν Αὐλίδι. ἴσως μὲν οὖν οὐδ’ αὐτὸς διηγησάμην κακῶς, εἰ δ’ οὖν τι καὶ ἐξηνέχθην, Νικέντιός σε διδάξει καλῶς. σὺ δὲ βοήθησον δυοῖν ἄρχουσι τὸν μὲν ἐξελό- μενος βλάβης ἀδίκου, τὸν ἐλάττω, τὸν δ’ ἀποστήσας ὀργῆς οὐ δικαίας, τὸν κρείττω. εἰ δὲ παιδὸς ἡγεῖται τὴν μεταβολήν, τὴν μὲν ἐπὶ <τὰ> χείρω νομιζέτω φαύλην, τὴν δὲ τῶν λων τι λύουσαν ἀγαθήν, ἄλλως θ’ ὅτε τὸ μὲν τίμημα τηρεῖν ἂν ἔχοι, τὸν δ’ ἔξω τῆς αἰτίας ἀφιέναι. τὸ γὰρ χρυσίον εἰσπραττέτω μέν, εἰσπραττέτω δὲ παρὰ τῶν λελοιπότων τὴν τάξιν καὶ προσέτι γε τῶν ἐξηπατηκότων, οἳ σφίσιν αὐτοῖς χαριζόμενοι τὰ οὐκ ὄντα ἔφρασαν. ἐπειδὴ γὰρ θυμὸς μἐ- γας διο τρεφέων ὑπάρχων, μὴ ἴστω τοῖς φενακίζουσιν ἄδεια, ὅπως τῆς ἀληθείας κρατούσης μηδεὶς ἀδίκως κολάζηται. λύων δὲ τὴν αὑτοῦ ψῆφον ἐννοείτω τὸν βασιλέα Κρητῶν τὸν παῖδα Δῖός, ὃς εἰς τὸ ἄντρον δι’ ἐνάτου πορευόμενος ἔτους ὧν ἐτε- θείκει νόμων οὐκ ᾐσχύνετο κινῶν ὃν κρεῖττον ἦν κινεῖσθαι.