Letter 216: I will not pretend that things are as they were.
To Modestus. (358/59)
Rhetors seek goodwill from judges -- not only those who have condemned themselves as having nothing strong to say, but also those who have confidence in the justice of their case. For even a strong case wants a willing ear, and a willing ear comes from goodwill.
AI-assisted translation — This translation was produced with AI assistance and has not been peer-reviewed.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
Μοδέστῳ. (358/59)
Οἱ ῥήτορες εὔνοιαν ζητοῦσι παρὰ τῶν δικαζόντων οὐ
μόνον οἱ κατεγνωκότες αὑτῶν μηδὲν ἔχειν ἰσχυρόν, ἀλλὰ καὶ
οἷς ὑπάρχει θαρρεῖν δικαίων εἵνεκα.
καὶ ἐγὼ τοίνυν οἶδα
μὲν ἀκριβῶς ὡς οὔτε μικρὸν οὔτε μεῖζον ἀδικεῖ Καλλιόπιος
οὑτοσί, δέομαι δέ σου τὸ κοινὸν δὴ τοῦτο, Μαὶ αὐτῷ τὸ
ὄμμα ἐπὶ τῆς δίκης ἥμερον. οὕτω γὰρ ἂν καὶ χρήσαιτο τοῖς
οὖσιν αὐτῷ δικαίοις, εἰ μὴ ταραχθείη.
εἰ δ’ οὖν οὐκ ἔξ-
εστιν εὐνοίας πρὸς σὲ μνησθῆναι, ἀλλ’ εὔξασθαί γε τοῖς θεοῖς
ὑπὲρ τοῦ σε ποιῆσαι τοιοῦτον ἔξεστι. καὶ δὴ καὶ εὔχομαι·
Ζεῦ Μειλίχιε καὶ πατέρω·ν ἀνθρώποις ἡμερώτερε,
κατάστησον ἵλεων Καλλιοπίῳ τὸν γενναῖον Μόδε-
στον καὶ σαυτῷ προσόμοιον.
καὶ μεμνήσθω δικάζων
τοῦ Μειλιχίου Δῖός, ὅπως ἡμεῖς τε τῷ φίλῳ συγχαίρωμεν καὶ
Μόντιος ὑπὸ γῆς ἥδοιτο. λέγεται γάρ τι περὶ τῶν οἰχομένων
καὶ τοιοῦτον.
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