Letter 152: This Auxentius is not technically my student, but he is far more devoted than many who are.
Libanius→Andronicus, a general|c. 328 AD|Libanius|AI-assisted
friendship
To Andronicus. (359/60)
This Auxentius is not technically my student, but he is far more devoted than many who are. He shared my pain in bad times and my joy in better ones.
You know that when you were leaving us, I pointed the young man out to you, said he would soon be coming to Phoenicia, and asked that he be counted among your friends. You nodded your agreement.
Well, he has arrived. So fulfill your promises: welcome him warmly in person, and send him off with letters of recommendation. If he were a Phoenician, I would be asking you for a practical favor. But since the man is from a neighboring region, let him himself ask the good Hypatius for a favor -- by letter.
**To Andronicus** (359/60)
This man Auxentius is not a student of mine, yet he is far more devoted than many of my students, having shared in my sorrows during hard times and in my joys during better ones.
You recall that when you were leaving us, I pointed out the young man and said he would soon be coming to Phoenicia, and I asked that he be counted among your friends — and you nodded your assent.
Well, he has arrived. Now fulfill your promises: receive him warmly while he is there, and send him off with a letter from you. For if he were a Phoenician, I would be asking you for a deed; but as it is, since the man comes from the neighboring country, ask that good fellow Hypatius for a deed — in letters.
This Auxentius is not technically my student, but he is far more devoted than many who are. He shared my pain in bad times and my joy in better ones.
You know that when you were leaving us, I pointed the young man out to you, said he would soon be coming to Phoenicia, and asked that he be counted among your friends. You nodded your agreement.
Well, he has arrived. So fulfill your promises: welcome him warmly in person, and send him off with letters of recommendation. If he were a Phoenician, I would be asking you for a practical favor. But since the man is from a neighboring region, let him himself ask the good Hypatius for a favor -- by letter.
AI-assisted translation — This translation was produced with AI assistance and has not been peer-reviewed. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek below for scholarly use.