Letter 284: To the same person. (361)

To the same person. (361) I imagine Caesarius, whose death has made Armenia a poorer place, was honored with your tears as well. I believe the city publicly went into mourning for the man -- an "upholder of the city," as Pindar would say. And this too is no small part of the misfortune: that his son, torn away from his literary studies by the calamity, must now run home, exchanging the cares proper to a young man for those belonging to a father. Or rather, the family is not altogether unfortunate -- since Providence prepared a remedy for the coming blow in the form of your governorship. For it is clear that you will fight to make their sense of loss as slight as possible, out of respect for the man who lies dead, out of a desire to oblige me, and in the belief that this will win you no less glory than anything else you do -- if you can steady a prosperous household that has been shaken. The greatest benefaction would be...

Τῷ αὐτῷ. (361) Οἴμαι καὶ δάκρυσιν ὑπὸ σοῦ τετιμῆσθαι Καισάριον τὸν φαυλοτέραν δείξαντα τὴν Ἀρμενίαν τῇ τελευτῇ. τὴν μὲν γὰρ πόλιν καὶ δημοσίᾳ κείρασθαι ν·ομίζω πενθοῦσαν τὸν ὀρθό- πόλιν, εἶπεν ἂν Πίνδαρος. ἔστι δὲ καὶ τοῦτο μέρος οὐ μικρὸν τῶν κακῶν τὸ τὸν ἐκείνου παῖδα τῶν περὶ λόγους δια- τριβῶν ὑπὸ τῆς συμφορᾶς ἀφελκυσθέντα τρέχειν οἴκαδε φρον- τίδας φροντίδων ἀλλαξάμενον, τῶν νέῳ πρεπουσῶν τὰς προσ- ηκούσας πατρί. μᾶλλον δέ, οὐ πάντα δυστυχοῦσιν οἱ κεί- νοῦ τοῦ δαίμονος ἑτοιμάσαντος τῇ μελλούσῃ πληγῇ φάρμακον τὴν σὴν ἀρχήν. οὐ γὰρ ἄδηλον ὡς ἀγωνιῇ μικρὰν αὐτοῖς ἀποφῆναι τὴν αἴσθησιν τῆς τύχης τόν τε κείμενον αἰδούμε- νος καὶ ἡμῖν χαριζόμενος νομίζων τε οὐχ ἥττω σοι τοῦτο δόξαν τῶν ἄλλων ὧν ποιεῖς οἴσειν, εἰ οἶκον εὐδαίμονα κινού- μένον στήσαις. μεγίστη δὲ εὐεργεσία τὸ γενέσθαι πάλιν Εὐδοξίῳ παρ’ ἡμᾶς ἐλθεῖν, ὃ ποιήσειν μοι δοκεῖ τὴν παρὰ σοῦ πρόνοιαν ὁρῶν ἀρκοῦσαν ἀντὶ τοῦ μεταστάντος.