Letter 195: If it were proper to send you something lesser, I would have sent it already.
To Sophronius. (358-361)
What I long prayed for, I now have: your son. It took time, but I have him -- the very image of his father in nearly every way: his appearance, his gentleness, his walk. What is more, there is no hesitation in him, and he is strong in his studies. That is your contribution.
One thing alone is still needed: Fortune's favor. Let us pray for it -- you, I, and the young man's uncle, who is my friend. I expect the excellent Julian too will invoke Hermes on his behalf. Me he has commanded; Julian he will supplicate.
AI-assisted translation — This translation was produced with AI assistance and has not been peer-reviewed.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.
Latin / Greek Original
Σωφρονίῳ. (358—361)
Ὃ πάλαι εὐχόμην, ἰχῶ παῖδα σόν, βραδέως μέν, ἀλλ’ ἰχῶ
πάνθ’ ὡς εἰπεῖν ἐοικότα τῷ πατρί, τὴν μορφὴν, τὴν ἐπιεί-
κειαν, τὴν βάδισιν, καὶ μὴν καὶ ὄκνος ἄπεστι καὶ πρὸς λόγους
ἔρρωται. τοῦτο δὴ τὸ σόν.
ἑνὸς δὴ δεῖ, τῆς Τύχης. ἀλλ᾿
εὐχώμεθα, σύ τε κἀγὼ καὶ ὁ τοῦ νεανίσκου μὲν θεῖος, ἐμοὶ
δὲ φίλος. οἶμαι δὲ καὶ τὸν ἄριστον Ἰουλιανὸν παρακαλέσειν
τὸν Ἑρμῆν. ἐμοὶ μὲν γὰρ ἐπέταξεν, ἐκεῖνον δ’ ἱκετεύσει.
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