To Iphicrates. (358/359)
What you write is neither true nor flattering to us -- you who wrestled with our teaching for so long. Whether anything of value resides in our school, I cannot say, but what we do have is more freely available to those who want it than the waters of a fountain. And among my students, the one who is loved most is the one who gives me the most work to do.
As for Philopatris, if he can persuade himself that eloquence is a fine possession, he will come back to you carrying the kind of thing that will make you happy. You, meanwhile, have already made me happy by telling me that the governor really is what his title says he is. I am grateful to Eutherius because he is a good man, and to you because you report such things about him.
What you write is neither true nor flattering to us -- you who wrestled with our teaching for so long. Whether anything of value resides in our school, I cannot say, but what we do have is more freely available to those who want it than the waters of a fountain. And among my students, the one who is loved most is the one who gives me the most work to do.
As for Philopatris, if he can persuade himself that eloquence is a fine possession, he will come back to you carrying the kind of thing that will make you happy. You, meanwhile, have already made me happy by telling me that the governor really is what his title says he is. I am grateful to Eutherius because he is a good man, and to you because you report such things about him.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.