Letter 742: Agroicius and Eusebius are both former students of mine.

To Atarbius. (362) Agroecius and Eusebius are among those who have been my close students; and now that the young men have become noble orators, they are honored by me, and they are honored too by the better sort of people, so that their relatives as well, if they are troubled, find no shortage of those who will come to their aid. This Alexander, then, was not going to be overlooked by me, since he is married to the sister of those two; for it was clear that the wife would share in this man's misfortune, and these men in hers, and I in their grief. It is therefore your task, most excellent one, through this one man, the foremost, to spare so many, and through this one, who is the last and a friend. And do not suppose that I consider Alexander to be free of blame, even though he says and demands that he be punished with the extreme penalties, if anyone should convict him. I, then, have been found out to be the one convicting him, having taken the very man who is trying to flee as a witness against himself. For when in his speech he made mention of your anger, I said that this was an admission of his fault; for this malady has never once touched you, but he, perhaps having been somewhat careless, brought upon you the necessity of finding fault with something he had done. Now, then, having already passed sentence against Alexander, I beg the noble Atarbius to adopt such a resolution as will free Alexander from his present fears. So that it may be possible for my fellow citizens as well to learn that it is not in vain that I call Ancyra my father's city, since I obtain everything, one thing after another, from her inhabitants.

Ἀταρβίῳ. (362) Ἀγροίκιος καὶ Εὐσεβίος τῶν ἐμοὶ πεπλησιακότων ἐστόν· γενομένω δὲ τὼ νεανίσκω ῥήτορε γενναίω τιμῶνται μὲν ὑπ ἐμοῦ, τιμῶνται δὲ ὑπὸ τῶν δεξιωτέρων, ὥστε καὶ τοῖς οἰκείοις αὐτοῖν, εἰ ταράττοιντο, συμβαίνει τῶν βοηθησόντων εὐπορεῖν. Ἀλέξανδρος τοίνυν οὗτος οὐκ ἔμελλεν ὑπ’ ἐμοῦ περιοφθὴ- σεσθαι συνοικῶν ἐκείνοιν ἀδελφῇ· δῆλον γὰρ ἦν ὡς τῆς μὲν τούτου συμφορᾶς ἡ γυνὴ κοινωνήσει, τῆς δὲ ἐκείνης οὗτοι, τῆς δὲ τούτων λύπης ἐγώ. σὸν τοίνυν, ὦ ἄριστε, δι’ ἑνὸς τοῦ πρώτου φείσασθαι τοσούτων, τοῦ Γε τελευταίου καὶ φί- λου. καὶ μή με οἴου καθαρὸν αἰτίας ἡγεῖσθαι τὸν Ἀλέξανδρον εἶναι, καίτοι φησὶ καὶ κελεύει τῶν ἐσχάτων αὑτῷ τιμᾶν, εἴ τις ἐξελέγξειεν. ἐγὼ τοίνυν ὁ ἐλέγχων εὑρέθην αὐτὸν τὸν φεύ- γοντα μάρτυρα καθ’ αὑτοῦ λαβών. ὡς γὰρ ἐν τῷ λόγῳ σῆς ὀργῆς ἐμνήσθη, τοῦτ’ ἔφην ὁμολογίαν εἶναι τῆς ἁμαρτίας ἐκείνου· σοῦ μὲν γὰρ οὐδεπώποτε τοῦτο ἅψασθαι τὸ νόσημα, τὸν δ’ ἴσως τι ῥᾳθυμήσαντα περιστῆσαί σοι τοῦ μέμφεσθαί τι τῶν ἐκείνῳ πεπραγμένων ἀνάγκην. ἤδη τοίνυν Ἀλεξάν- δρου κατεψηφισμένος Ἀταρβίου δέομαι τοῦ καλοῦ γνώμην τοιαύτην λαβεῖν, ἣ τῶν παρόντων Ἀλέξανδρον ἀπαλλάξει φό- βῶν. ὥστε καὶ ἐμοῖς ἐμοῖς πολίταις ἐγγενέσθαι μαθεῖν ὡς οὐ μάτην Ἄγκυραν ἐμαυτοῦ πατρί καλῶ πάντων ἐφεξῆς παρὰ τῶν ἐκείνης οἰκητόρων τυγχάνων.