Letter 401: When we heard your wife was ill, we shared your pain, imagining how you must feel as she suffered.

To Aristaenetus. (355) When we heard that your wife was ill, we shared in your grief, reflecting how you must naturally be feeling while she suffered; and when I learned of her death, I cried out in lamentation, thinking it a terrible thing that Aristaenetus should be in mourning, a man whose nature is suited to festivals. But though I set out to console you with words, I held back, fearing that, having seemed to know you well, I might then be caught out as ignorant. For the very things by which I meant to lighten your burden, those sayings of Pindar and Simonides, and all the remedies that we are accustomed to apply to grief from the tragedies, all these you seemed to me both to have known long ago and to be able to speak to others. So I reasoned that, if you are able to lull despondency to sleep, you will cure yourself, but if you are not able, then it would be said in vain by another as well. For these reasons I refrain from that, but I render to you the account of the events that happened during the winter. We began our teaching with a prologue and a certain contest concerning one of the works of Demosthenes. The one [theme] was a man asking Fortune for a secure and lasting abode, while the contest had many forms. And after I rose to speak, seventeen young men came forward. But Plato, I think, was unwell; Zenobius, the worthy man [...]. Then I devoted myself to teaching, and the tribes streamed in, citizens and foreigners, wishing in this way too to know who I might be. For that I was no maker of bad speeches had been conceded, but the other point was being put to the test. And I seemed to some to be in this respect no worse [than expected], and to others even better, so that in not many days the chorus was fifty young men. There was no time to take the midday meal, but one had to labor until evening, and along with the rest it was admired that I mastered my belly too. Strategius arrived, and I received the man with a speech, a short one, for this, I think, is the custom for one delivering an address of welcome, but one spoken to the satisfaction both of himself and of the others. But my rival, for I call him what he himself also calls himself, threatened that he would speak. And this promise was his display. And seeing that the tutors were growing strong from selling the young men and that the good order in the schools of the Muses had been destroyed, I advise my own fellow citizens not to overlook these things, but both to be indignant and to put a stop to them. And there arose no small anger against the wrongdoers. But my rival threatened to plead along with them. And this promise was his display. Zenobius dies, and I sang a solo lament as I departed from the tomb. And a little later I deliver an encomium of the teacher in a rather long speech, and it seemed that he had received no mean wages. But my rival promised that he would speak, if his father should die. But the man is still living. While these things were happening, those who were utterly shameless, and they were three who were doing this instead of a splendid table, gave in. Now I, for my part, needed a rest, but for my uncle nothing was enough. And Quirinus too was among those who gave us no respite, having his son with us and imitating you in my affairs, and me in yours. So I compete in a certain contest of those declamations on fictitious themes, and they danced [for joy] as men reared up in these very things, and they begged me, once I had reached the middle of the speech, to write the counter-argument too with equal skill. And having written it, I came forward as quickly as possible. And the speech was a brother to the former one, and the affairs of the adversaries had been shaken to pieces. But he, fearing that he might be left exposed, came in as if to restrain the defections, but he set in motion even those that would not, had he kept silent, have come about. For in his preliminary remarks he begged that it be granted to him to speak the conclusion, and when Quirinus would not allow him to skip ahead, he granted this to himself. And from that day he sits alone, and oaths and all compulsions and bonds, and whatever was believed to keep the [...] in check, was trampled underfoot and washed away. In addition to these things a letter from the emperor arrives ordering me to return, to which my illness of the head and of the kidneys replied that I would not be able. Having settled this in this way, I present a speech about natural talent, the type of the discourse being your beloved themes. And it required a second day, in which Clematius took part. Now the stir occasioned by it is not for me to tell; but this it was both mine to tell and was loudly proclaimed, that the teacher of these things, mark you, is Aristaenetus, and indeed of all the other things as well that may receive praise.

Ἀρισταινέτῳ. (355) Καὶ ὅτε ἀσθενεῖν σοι τὴν γυναῖκα ἠκούομεν, συνηλγοῦ- μεν ἐννοοῦντες ὡς εἰκός σε διακεῖσθαι καμνούσης, καὶ ἐπειδὴ τὴν τελευτὴν ἐπυθόμην, ἀνῴμωξα δεινόν τι ποιούμενος Ἀρι- σταίνετον εἶναι ἐν πένθει, οὗ τῇ φύσει πανηγύρεις πρέπουσιν. ὁρμήσας δὲ παραμυθεῖσθαι λόγοις ἀνέσχον δείσας μὴ πάνυ σε δοκῶν εἰδέναι ἔπειτα ἁλοίην ἀγνοῶν. οἷς γὰρ ἔμελλόν σε κουφιεῖν, τούτοις δὴ τοῖς Πινδάρου καὶ Σιμωνίδου, καὶ ὅσα ἐκ τραγῳδιῶν εἰώθαμεν φάρμακα λύπῃ προσάγειν, πάντα ἐδό- κεις μοι πάλαι τε εἰδέναι κἂν πρὸς ἄλλους εἰπεῖν. ἐλογι- ζόμην οὖν ὅτι, εἰ μὲν οἵα τε κατακοιμίζειν ἀθυμίαν, αὐτὸς ἰάσῃ σαυτόν, εἰ δ’ οὐχ οἷά τε, καὶ παρ’ ἄλλου μάτην ἂν λέ- γοιτο. διὰ ταῦτα τοῦ μὲν ἀφίσταμαι, τὴν διήγησιν δέ σοι τῶν πραγμάτων ἀποδίδωμι, ἃ τοῦ χειμῶνος συνέβη. ἠρξάμεθα τῆς σ νουσίας μετὰ προλόγου καί τινος ἁμίλλης πρός τι τῶν Δημοσθένους. ἦν δὲ ὁ μὲν Τύχην μονὴν αἰτῶν βεβαίαν, τῇ δὲ ἁμίλλῃ πολλαὶ μορφαί. καὶ προσῆλθον, ἐπ ιδὴ ἀνέστην, ἑπτακαίδεκα νέοι. Πλατῶν δέ, οἶμαι, ἠσθένει Ζηνόβιος ὁ χρη- στός ἔπειτα ἐγὼ μὲν τοῦ διδάσκειν εἰχόμην, τὰ δὲ ἐπέρ- ρεεν ἔθνεα, πολῖται καὶ ξένοι καὶ ταύτῃ ὅστις εἴην εἰδέναι ἐθέλοντες. τὸ μὲν γὰρ εἶναί με μὴ κακῶν λόγων δημιουργὸν συνεκεχώρητο, θάτερον δὲ ἐδοκιμάζετο. καὶ ἔδοξα τοῖς μὲν οὐκ εἶναι ταύτῃ χείρων, τοῖς δὲ καὶ βελτίων, ὥστ’ ἐν οὐ πολ- λαὶς ἡμέραις πεντήκοντα νέων ἦν ὁ χορός. ἀριστᾶν δὲ οὐκ ἦν, ἀλλ’ ἴδει πονεῖν εἰς ἑσπέραν καὶ ἐθαυμάζετο μετὰ τῶν ἄλλων καὶ τὸ τῆς γαστρὸς κρατεῖν. ἧκεν ὁ Στρατήγιος, καὶ ἐδε- ξάμην τὸν ἄνδρα λόγῳ, μικρῷ μέν, οὗτος γάρ, οἶμαι, προσ- φωνοῦντι νόμος, ῥηθέντι δὲ κατὰ νοῦν αὐτῷ τε καὶ τοῖς ἄλ- λοις. ὁ δὲ ἀντίτεχνος, καλῶ μὲν γὰρ αὐτὸν ὃ καὶ αὐτὸς έαυ- τόν, ἠπείλησεν ἐρεῖν. καὶ τοῦτ’ ἦν ἐπίδειξις ἡ ὑπόσχεσις. ἰδὼν δὲ τοὺς παιδαγωγοὺς ἰσχύοντας ἀπὸ τοῦ πωλεῖν τοὺς νέους καὶ τὸν ἐν μουσείοις κόσμον ἀπολωλότα συμβουλεύω τοῖς ἐμαυτοῦ πολίταις μὴ ταῦτα περιορᾶν, ἀλλ’ ἀγανακτῆσαί τε καὶ κωλύσαι. καὶ ἐγένετό τις ὀργὴ κατὰ τῶν ἀδικούντων οὐ μικρά. ὁ δὲ ἀντίτεχνος ἠπείλει συνερεῖν αὐτοῖς. καὶ τοῦτ ἦν ἐπίδειξις ἡ ὑπόσχεσις. τελευτᾷ Ζηνόβιος καὶ ἐμονῴ- δοῦν ἀπελθὼν τοῦ τάφου. καὶ μικρὸν ὕστερον ἐγκωμιάζω τὸν διδάσκαλον μακροτέρῳ λόγῳ καὶ ἔδοξεν οὐ φαύλους κεκομί- σθαι μισθούς. ὁ δὲ ἀντίτεχνος ὑπέσχετο λέξειν, ἢν ὁ πατὴρ αὐτῷ ἀποθάνῃ. ὁ δ’ ἔτι ζῇ. τούτων γιγνομένων οἱ σφόδρα ἐγνωκότες ἀναισχυντεῖ ἦσαν δὲ τρεῖς ἀντὶ τραπέζης λαμπρᾶς οἱ τοῦτο ποιοῦντες, ἐνέδοσαν. ἐγὼ μὲν οὖν ἀναπαύλης ἐδεόμην, τῷ θείῳ δὲ οὐδὲν ἄρα ἤρκει. καὶ Κυρῖνος δὲ ἦν τῶν οὐκ ἀνιέντων παρ’ ἡμῖν τε ἔχων τὸν υἱὸν καὶ μιμούμε- νος σὲ μὲν εἰς τἀμά, ἐμὲ δὲ εἰς τὰ σά. ἀγωνίζομαι δή τινα ἀγῶνα τῶν ἐν τοῖς πλάσμασι τούτοις, οἱ δὲ ὠρχοῦντο ἅτε ἐν αὐτοῖς τεθραμμένοι καὶ ἐδέοντό μου κατὰ μέσον γενο- μένου τὸν λόγον μετὰ τῆς ἴσης τέχνης καὶ τὴν ἀντιλογίαν γράφειν. καὶ γράψας ἐπῆλθον ὅτι τάχιστα. καὶ ἦν ἀδελφὸς ὁ λόγος τοῦ προτέρου καὶ διεσέσειστο τῶν πολεμίων τὰ πράγ- μάτα. δείσας δὲ μὴ γυμνωθείη εἰσῆλθε μὲν ὡς καθέξων τὰς ἀποστάσεις, ἐκίνησε δὲ καὶ τὰς οὐκ ἄν, εἴπερ ἐσίγα, συμ- βάσας. ἐν γὰρ τοῖς προοιμίοις ἐδεῖτο ἐφεθῆναί οἰ τὸ τέλος εἰπεῖν, Κυρίνου δὲ οὐ διδόντος ὑπερπηδᾶν αὐτὸς αὑτῷ τοῦτο ἔδωκε. καὶ ἀπ’ ἐκείνης τῆς ἡμέρας κάθηται μόνος, ὅρκοι δὲ καὶ ἀνάγκαι πᾶσαι καὶ δεσμοὶ καὶ ὅσα ἐπιστεύετο τηρήσειν τοὺς Ἄους. ἐπατεῖτο καὶ μετέρρεεν. ἐπὶ τούτοις γράμματα βασιλέως ἀφικνεῖται κελεύοντά με ἀναστρέφειν, πρὸς ἃ ἀπε- κρίνατο τό τε τῆς κεφαλῆς καὶ τὸ τῶν νεφρῶν νόσημα, ὡς οὐκ ἂν δυναίμην. τοῦτο δὲ οὕτω θέμενος δείκνυμι λόγον περὶ εὐφυίας, τύπος δὲ τῆς διαλέξεως, τὰ σὰ παιδικά. καὶ δευτέ- ῥᾶς ἐδέησεν ἡμέρας, ἧς ἐκοινώνει Κλημάτιος. τὴν μὲν οὖν ἐπ’ αὐτῶ κίνησιν οὐκ ἐμὸν εἰπεῖν· ἐκεῖνο δὲ ἐμόν τε ἦν εἰπεῖν καὶ ἐβοᾶτο, ὅτι τούτων μέντοι διδάσκαλος Ἀρισταίνετος καὶ δὴ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ὅσα ἂν ἔπαινον δέχηται.