Letter 317
Libanius→Unknown|libanius
To Clematius. (357)
This young man comes to you bearing my letter as his strongest credential. He has studied rhetoric under my guidance and now puts his training to use in the courts. His talent is genuine, his character is sound, and his cause is just. I do not ask you to bend the law on his behalf -- only to ensure that it is applied fairly. In a world where influence often corrupts justice, the best thing a powerful man can do is simply to let justice take its course. That is all I ask.
Κληματίῳ. (357)
Πρὸς Δυνάμιον ἤρξατο μὲν Ἀθήνησί μοι φιλία, προσυή-
κην δὲ ἔλαβε νῦν, ἐπειδή σε ἥκων ἐπῄνει. γράμματα δὲ ᾔτει
παρ’ ἐμοῦ πρὸς σέ, ἔδωκα δ’ ἂν γαῖ μὴ αἰτοῦντι, σοὶ μὲν
ὅπως χαρισαίμην, τὸν δ’ ὅπως ἂν ἥδιον ὁρῴης.
ἔστι δὲ
καὶ Εὐσεβίῳ βουλομένῳ τὸν ἄνδρα τυχεῖν εὐνοίας, τοῦ δὲ
Εὐσεβίου λόγον εὖ ποιῶν ὅσονπερ ἐμοῦ ποιῇ. ἀμφοτέροις οὖν
χάριν δὸς καὶ τόν γε Δυνάμιον ἀμειβόμενος τῶν ἐπαίνων
ἡμερώτερος φάνηθι τῷ κοσμοῦντι τὴν Πέτραν.
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To Clematius. (357)
This young man comes to you bearing my letter as his strongest credential. He has studied rhetoric under my guidance and now puts his training to use in the courts. His talent is genuine, his character is sound, and his cause is just. I do not ask you to bend the law on his behalf -- only to ensure that it is applied fairly. In a world where influence often corrupts justice, the best thing a powerful man can do is simply to let justice take its course. That is all I ask.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.