To Maximus. (360)
You call Hyperechius my son in one breath and say you are grateful to me for what you have done for him in the next. But one of these two things is either untrue or illogical. Or rather, since the first is true -- that he is my son -- the second becomes pointless: I should be grateful to you, not the other way around, unless he himself ought to thank you for favors done to himself.
But look: you did nothing remarkable in doing what you did for a son, and such a son. And I, having considered him my own, was only doing what was natural in wishing him well -- I would not seek payment for that. Let me tell you who does deserve our gratitude, yours and mine, for their goodwill toward this young man.
The people of sacred Ancyra [Ankara] -- for that Homeric epithet suits the city well -- those citizens are my benefactors and yours, and they deserve crowns and prayers. And indeed I pray to all the gods and goddesses that the earth may give them the richest harvest, that the weather may keep its proper measure, that their wives may bear children who resemble their parents, that the city may continue to love eloquence as it does now, and that nothing which brings prosperity may be absent. For when they saw me passing through their city they received me graciously, and now they have honored me still more by what they did for the young man's reputation.
Do not think I mean that they took a worthless man and made him famous. Rather, they did not let envy obscure the truth. Citizens overcame envy by loving a fellow citizen. For this we owe them gratitude.
What I can offer them is prayers on their behalf and public praise. But you are in a position to repay them in deeds as well. And no matter how much you do, never think you have paid the full debt.
Know, too, that our own city feels grateful to theirs: it considers that city's verdict on the young man a testimony to Antioch's own merit.
As for your generosity toward your son, I was not surprised. Being a man of sense, you gave as a father's gift what the law would eventually have granted anyway. But I am surprised that with so many fine young women among your leading families, you have not yet arranged for him to marry -- so that you might see your son's children as soon as possible. If you have already been called grandfather through another line, well and good -- but it would be fine to be called grandfather through this one too. Another man might say: finer still.
You call Hyperechius my son in one breath and say you are grateful to me for what you have done for him in the next. But one of these two things is either untrue or illogical. Or rather, since the first is true -- that he is my son -- the second becomes pointless: I should be grateful to you, not the other way around, unless he himself ought to thank you for favors done to himself.
But look: you did nothing remarkable in doing what you did for a son, and such a son. And I, having considered him my own, was only doing what was natural in wishing him well -- I would not seek payment for that. Let me tell you who does deserve our gratitude, yours and mine, for their goodwill toward this young man.
The people of sacred Ancyra [Ankara] -- for that Homeric epithet suits the city well -- those citizens are my benefactors and yours, and they deserve crowns and prayers. And indeed I pray to all the gods and goddesses that the earth may give them the richest harvest, that the weather may keep its proper measure, that their wives may bear children who resemble their parents, that the city may continue to love eloquence as it does now, and that nothing which brings prosperity may be absent. For when they saw me passing through their city they received me graciously, and now they have honored me still more by what they did for the young man's reputation.
Do not think I mean that they took a worthless man and made him famous. Rather, they did not let envy obscure the truth. Citizens overcame envy by loving a fellow citizen. For this we owe them gratitude.
What I can offer them is prayers on their behalf and public praise. But you are in a position to repay them in deeds as well. And no matter how much you do, never think you have paid the full debt.
Know, too, that our own city feels grateful to theirs: it considers that city's verdict on the young man a testimony to Antioch's own merit.
As for your generosity toward your son, I was not surprised. Being a man of sense, you gave as a father's gift what the law would eventually have granted anyway. But I am surprised that with so many fine young women among your leading families, you have not yet arranged for him to marry -- so that you might see your son's children as soon as possible. If you have already been called grandfather through another line, well and good -- but it would be fine to be called grandfather through this one too. Another man might say: finer still.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.