Letter 10: You have no idea, my dear Heortius, how many illnesses have hit me, how severe they've been, or how long they've...

You have no idea, my dear Heortius, how many illnesses have hit me, how severe they've been, or how long they've dragged on. If you knew, you would never have skipped past sympathy and gone straight to blame. Ignorance is harmful in every circumstance, and in your case it drove you to accuse me when you should have been offering comfort. For my part, I don't blame you for not knowing about my troubles. Though someone as quick to criticize as you might point out that your ignorance comes from not asking, and that you don't ask because you don't care -- so that in leveling the charge of contempt, you'd find yourself open to even graver ones. But I won't do that. I don't think it's right to insult a strong friendship with trumped-up accusations. When something like this happens, I look for a more charitable explanation and make my friends' defense to myself. You, however, are playing the rhetorician at the wrong moment -- claiming that "others" are the ones accusing me, others you clearly invented in your letter. Why on earth didn't you silence them instead of letting yourself be persuaded? As for your mention of contempt -- if you don't pay for that remark, you can thank Heracles the Averter of Evil. I've already punished an entire city for using that word -- with a speech.

**To Heortius** (380 AD) You do not know, my dear Heortius, the number of the illnesses that have struck me, nor their severity, nor how long they have dragged on. For had you known, you would never have passed over sympathy to go straight to reproach. But ignorance is harmful to people in every circumstance, and in your case it has driven you to accuse me when you should have been offering consolation. For my part, I do not blame you for being unaware of my troubles. And yet, someone as quick to censure as you might say that your ignorance comes from not inquiring, and that you do not inquire because you do not care — and so, while leveling the charge of contempt, you would find yourself open to even graver ones. But I will not do this, for I do not think it right to insult a strong friendship with false accusations. Rather, whenever something of this sort happens, I search for a more charitable explanation of events and thus make my friends' defense to myself. You, however, play the rhetorician at the wrong moment, claiming that "others" are the ones making accusations — others you yourself invented in your letter. For why on earth did you not silence them instead of letting yourself be persuaded? As for your mention of contempt — if you do not pay the penalty for that, you may thank Heracles the Averter of Evil. I myself have already punished an entire city for uttering that word, with a speech.

Ἑορτίῳ. (380) Οὐκ οἶσθα, ὦ φίλε Ἑόρτιε, τῶν προσβαλόντων μοι vo- σημάτων οὔτε τὸ πλῆθος οὔτε τὸ μέγεθος οὔτ’ ἐφ’ ὅσον προῆλθε τοῦ χρόνου. οὐ γὰρ ἄν ποτε ὑπερβὰς τὸ συναλγεῖν ἐμέμφου νῦν δὲ ἡ ἄγνοια πανταχοῦ τοῖς ἀνθρώποις βλαβε- ρὸν καὶ δὴ καὶ σὲ κατηγορεῖν ἐπῆρεν ἀντὶ τοῦ παραμυθεῖ- σθαι. ἐγὼ δέ σοι οὐκ ἐγκαλῶ τὸ τὰς δυσκολίας ἡμῶν ἀγνοεῖν. καίτοι φαίη τις ἂν τῶν ὥσπερ σὺ ῥᾳδίως ἐπιτιμώντων, ὡς ἀγνοεῖς μὲν τῷ μὴ πυνθάνεσθαι, οὐ πυνθάνῃ δὲ τῷ μισεῖν, καὶ οὕτως ἂν ὑπεροψίαν προφέρων αὐτὸς ἐνέχοιο μείζοσιν ἐγὼ δὲ τοῦτο οὐ ποιήσω φιλίαν ἰσχυρὰν ὑβρίζειν οὐκ ἀξιῶν συκοφαντίᾳ. ἀλλ’ ὅταν τι γένηται τοιοῦτον, ζητήσας αἰτίαν τοῖς πράγμασιν ἐπιεικεστέραν οὕτω πρὸς ἐμαυτὸν ὑπὲρ ἐκεί- νων ἀπολογοῦμαι. σὺ δὲ οὐκ ἐν καφῶ ῥητορεύεις ἄλλους εἶναι λέγων τοὺς αἰτιωμένους, οὓς αὐτὸς ἀνέπλασας διὰ τῆς ἐπιστολῆς. ἐπεὶ τί παθὼν οὐκ ἐπεστόμιζες ἀλλ’ ἐπείθου; ὑπεροψίας δὲ μνησθείς, ει’ μὴ δώσεις δίκην, Ἡρακλεῖ χάριν ἔχειν ἀλεξικάκῳ. ἐγὼ δὲ ἤδη πόλιν ὅλην τοῦτο φθεγξαμένην τετιμώρημαι λόγῳ.