Letter 107
Libanius→Archelaus|libanius
From: Libanius, rhetorician in Antioch
To: Archelaus
Date: ~359 AD
Context: A brief, graceful thank-you combined with a request for continued support.
One favor I owe you thanks for; another I'm asking. You received this Cyriacus kindly, you helped him in every way, and you were generous about it -- honoring us doubly, both by doing the favor and by saying you did it on my account.
Now be just as helpful with what comes next -- or better still, surpass yourself, so that even the proverb [about the importance of follow-through] may owe you a debt of gratitude for proving it right. And surely it's nothing new for the excellent Archelaus to stand on the side of justice -- you've been walking that road for a long time.
**To Archelaus** (359/60)
We owe you one debt of gratitude and ask another. For you received our friend Cyriacus warmly, assisted him in all his affairs, and granted every favor without hesitation — honoring me doubly, both by acting and by declaring that you acted on my account.
Now show yourself the same toward us in this second matter — or rather, better still — so that even the proverb may owe you thanks for proving it true. And surely it is nothing new if the good Archelaus takes his stand on the side of justice, having long traveled that road.
Ἀρχελάῳ. (359/60)
Χάριν τὴν μὲν ἔχομέν σοι, τὴν δὲ αἰτοῦμεν. ὅτι μὲν
γὰρ ἡδέως τε εἶδες τουτονὶ Κυριακὸν καὶ πρὸς ἅπαντα συνἐ-
πράξας καὶ οὐδὲν ἀργῶς ἐχαρίζου, διπλῇ γε ἐτίμας, τῷ τε
ποιεῖν καὶ τῷ δι’ ἐμὲ φάσκειν τοῦτο ποιεῖν.
γενοῦ δὴ καὶ
πρὸς τὰ δεύτερα ὅμοιος ἡμῖν, μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ βελτίων, ὅπως
εἰδῇ σοι καὶ ἡ παροιμία χάριν, ὅτι αὐτὴν βεβαιοῖς. πάντως
δὲ οὐ καινόν, εἰ μετὰ τῶν δικαίων Ἀρχέλαος ὁ καλὸς στήσεται
πάλαι ταύτην πεπορευμένος τὴν ὁδόν.
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From: Libanius, rhetorician in Antioch
To: Archelaus
Date: ~359 AD
Context: A brief, graceful thank-you combined with a request for continued support.
One favor I owe you thanks for; another I'm asking. You received this Cyriacus kindly, you helped him in every way, and you were generous about it -- honoring us doubly, both by doing the favor and by saying you did it on my account.
Now be just as helpful with what comes next -- or better still, surpass yourself, so that even the proverb [about the importance of follow-through] may owe you a debt of gratitude for proving it right. And surely it's nothing new for the excellent Archelaus to stand on the side of justice -- you've been walking that road for a long time.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.