Letter 727: But what did you expect me to do, by Athena herself, when Titianus was being sent elsewhere and your vote -- the...

But what did you expect me to do, by Athena herself, when Titianus was being sent elsewhere and your vote -- the vote that had spurred our progress -- seemed to be shifting, or at least appeared to be? Was I supposed to cheer, put on a garland, and light thank-offerings to the gods, as I did when the young man first came to me? You would have been right to despair then, and to file a charge of insolence on the grounds that your support counted for little in my eyes. But now you may rightly rejoice at my relief. I was grieving, and while I let slip no bitter word, the thought that others would reap the glory of what the Phocians had labored for [a proverb: Philip of Macedon took credit for the Phocians' work] kept me from being at ease. Then Celsus's letter was the first to break the gloom, reporting that the decree had been reversed, and I breathed easier. After that someone else brought the same news, then a third, then a flood of them -- for great good news always has many messengers. And the admirable Rufinus put the crown on it: he said the young man had honored the governor with a speech. That was the same as honoring me -- the one through his deeds, the other through his words. For both are my pupils.

Ἀκακίῳ. (362) Ἀλλὰ τί με ἐβούλου ποιεῖν, πρὸς αὐτῆς τῆς Ἀθηνᾶς, Τιτιανοῦ μὲν ἑτέρωσε πεμπομένου, τῆς δὲ σῆς ψήφου, δι’ ἣν ἔμπροσθεν ἐπεδώκαμεν, κινουμένης ἢ κινουμένης μὲν οὐδα- μῶς, δοκούσης δέ; κροτεῖν ἔδει με καὶ στεφανοῦσθαι καὶ χα- ριστήρια θεοῖς ἀνάπτειν κοὶ ποιεῖν οἷάπερ, ἡνίκα μοι τὸ πρῶτον ἧκεν ὁ νέος; δικαίως μέντ’ ἂν τότε ἠθύμεις καὶ γραφὴν ἀπέφερες ὕβρεως ὡς μικρῶν τῶν σῶν παρ’ ἐμοὶ κι- κριμένων, νῦν δ’ εἰκότως ἂν ἐκ τῆς ἐμῆς λύπης ἔχαιρες, ἣν ἐγὼ λυπούμενος ῥῆμα μὶν οὐδὲν ἐξέβαλον πικρόν, ἐννοῶν δ’ ὅτι τῶν Φωκεῦσι πεπονημένων Φίλιππος ἆν εἶχε τὴν δόξα οὐ διῆγον ἡδέως. ταύτην δὴ τὴν ἀθυμίαν πρώτου Κέλσου λύει γράμματα μηνύοντα λελύσθαι τὸ δόγμα καὶ ἐγεγόνειν ῥᾴων. ἔπειτ᾿ ἄλλος τις ἤγγειλεν ὅμοια καὶ τρίτος καὶ μυρίοι τὰ γὰρ μεγάλα τῶν ἀγαθῶν πολλοὺς ἔχει τοὺς ἀγγέλους. Ῥουφῖνός δὲ ὁ καλὸς τὸν κολοφῶνα ἐπέθηκε· κεκοσμῆσθαι γὰρ ὑπὸ τοῦ νεανίσκου λόγῳ τὸν ἄρχοντα ἔφησε. τοῦτο οἱ ἦν καὶ ἐμὲ κεκοσμῆσθαι τοῦ μὲν τοῖς ἔργοις, τοῦ δὲ τοῖς λόγοις· ἄμφω γὰρ ἐμὰ θρέμματα, ὅ τε ἐπαινούμενος ὅ τε τὸν ἔπαινον ἐργαζόμενος τοιαύταις τερπόμενος ἀκοαῖς εἶδόν τε τὸν ῥήτορα καὶ τὰς ἐπιστολὰς δόντος ἀνέγνων καὶ τὴν ἐν ἀμφοτέραις τιμὴν ὑπὲρ τὸν Γύγου χρυσὸν ἦγον οἱ γε μὴν ἐν τοῖς βαλανείοις Μαραθωνομάχαι πᾶσαν παριόντες κωμῳ- δίαν οὐδὲ ἔστιν εἰπεῖν ὁπόσον ἤνεγκαν γέλωτος. ἓν μόνον ἐδόκεις μοι ψεύδεσθαι τὸ φάσκειν οὐ γενέσθαι σοι δύναμιν, ἀφ’ ἧς ἂν εἶχες συνεῖναι νέοις. ἐγένετο γάρ, καὶ οὐκ ἐκώλυ- σαν αἱ γραφαί, ἀλλ’ ἀμφότερα σύγε, ῥήτωρ τ’ ἀγαθὸς κρατερός τ’ αἰχμητής. ἀλλ᾿ , οἶμαι, τοῦ θρόνου τοὺς πόνους ἔδεισας. μαρτυρεῖ δὲ ἃ γράφεις καὶ οἱ τὰ τῶν σοφι- στῶν κρύψοντες, ἡνίκα ἂν μηκέτι κρύπτωνται, λόγοι, καὶ κρυπτομένων δὲ ἐκείνων τοῖς ἤδη πεμπομένοις τε καὶ φαινο- μἐνοις πάντα τὰ πάντων ἐλέγχεις. ἐλπίζω δὲ ὅτι καὶ διὰ τοῦ παιδὸς πολλοὺς ἡμῖν ἐλέγξεις ῥήτορας οὕτως ὀξὺ βλέπον- τος καὶ ῥέοντος. ὃν ᾠήθην δεῖν εὐθὺς ἀποδύντα παλαίειν, ὅπως μὴ παρελθόντα καιρὸν ζητῶμεν.