(Now that it is natural for me to be grieved by the present event, on being parted for ever so short a time—and God grant that it may be short!—from one who is not only my friend but my loyal fellow-worker, I think even Socrates, that great herald and teacher of virtue, will agree; so far at least as I may judge from the evidence on which we rely for our knowledge of him, I mean the words of Plato. At my rate, what he says is: “Ever more difficult did it seem to me to govern a state rightly. For neither is it possible to achieve anything without good friends and loyal fellow-workers, nor is it very easy to obtain enough of these.”[306] And if Plato thought this more difficult than digging a canal through Mount Athos,[307] what must we expect to find it, we who in wisdom and knowledge are more inferior to him than he was to God? But it is not only when I think of the help in the administration that we gave one another in turn, and which enabled us to bear more easily all that fate or our opponents brought to pass contrary to our purpose; but also because I am destined soon to be bereft also of what has ever been my only solace and delight, it is natural that I am and have been cut to the very heart.[308] For in the future to what friend can I turn as loyal as yourself? With whose guileless and pure frankness shall I now brace myself? Who now will give me prudent counsel, reprove me with affection, give me strength for good deeds without arrogance and conceit, and use frankness after extracting the bitterness from the words, like those who from medicines extract what is nauseating but leave in what is really beneficial?[309] These are the advantages that I reaped from your friendship! And now that I have been deprived of all these all at once, with what arguments shall I supply myself, so that when I am in danger of flinging away my life out of regret for you and your counsels and loving kindness,[310] they may persuade me to be calm and to bear nobly whatever God has sent?[311] For in accordance with the will of God our mighty Emperor has surely planned this as all else. Then what now must be my thoughts, what spells must I find to persuade my soul to bear tranquilly the trouble with which it is now dismayed? Shall I imitate the discourses of Zamolxis[312]—I mean those Thracian spells which Socrates brought to Athens and declared that he must utter them over the fair Charmides before he could cure him of his headache?[313] Or must we leave these alone as being, like large machinery in a small theatre, too lofty for our purpose and suited to greater troubles; and rather from the deeds of old whose fame we have heard told, as the poet says,[314] shall we gather the fairest flowers as though from a variegated and many-coloured meadow, and thus console ourselves with such narratives and add thereto some of the teachings of philosophy? For just as, for instance, certain drugs are infused into things that have too sweet a taste, and thus their cloying sweetness is tempered, so when tales like these are seasoned by the maxims of philosophy, we avoid seeming to drag in a tedious profusion of ancient history and a superfluous and uncalled-for flow of words.)
Τί πρῶτον; τί δ᾽ ἔπειτα; τί δ᾽ ὑστάτιον καταλέξω;
(“What first, what next, what last shall I relate?”[315])
πότερον ὡς ὁ Σκηπίων ἐκεῖνος, ὁ τὸν Λαίλιον ἀγαπήσας καὶ φιληθεὶς τὸ λεγόμενον ἴσῳ ζυγῷ παρ᾽ ἐκείνου πάλιν, ἡδέως μὲν αὐτῷ συνῆν, ἔπραττε δὲ οὐδέν, ὧν μὴ πρότερον ἐκεῖνος πύθοιτο καὶ φήσειεν εἶναι πρακτέον; ὅθεν οἶμαι καὶ λόγον παρέσχε [D] τοῖς ὑπὸ φθόνου τὸν Σκηπίωνα λοιδοροῦσιν, ὡς ποιητὴς μὲν ὁ Λαίλιος εἴη τῶν ἔργων, Ἁφρικανὸς δὲ ὁ τούτων ὑποκριτής. αὕτη τοι καὶ ἡμῖν ἡ φήμη πρόσκειται, καὶ οὐ μόνον οὐ δυχεραίνω[316] χαίρω δὲ ἐπ᾽ αὐτῇ πλέον. τὸ γὰρ τοῖς ὀρθῶς ὑπ᾽ ἄλλου γνωσθεῖσι πεισθῆναι μείζονος ἀρετῆς[317] ὁ Ζήνων ποιεῖται γνώρισμα [245] τοῦ γνῶναί τινα αὐτὸν ἐξ αὑτοῦ τὰ δέοντα, τὴν Ἡσιόδου μεθαρμόττων ῥῆσιν,
(Shall I tell how the famous Scipio, who loved Laelius and was loved by him in return with equal yoke of friendship,[318] as the saying is, not only took pleasure in his society, but undertook no task without first consulting with him and obtaining his advice as to how he should proceed? It was this, I understand, that furnished those who from envy slandered Scipio with the saying that Laelius was the real author of his enterprises, and Africanus merely the actor. The same remark is made about ourselves, and, far from resenting this, I rather rejoice at it. For to accept another's good advice Zeno held to be a sign of greater virtue than independently to decide oneself what one ought to do; and so he altered the saying of Hesiod; for Zeno says:)
Οὗτος μὲν πανάριστος, ὃς εὖ εἰπόντι πίθηται
(“That man is best who follows good advice” instead of “decides all things for himself.”[319])
λέγων ἀντὶ τοῦ νοήσῃ πάνθ᾽ ἑαυτῷ. ἐμοὶ δὲ οὐ διὰ τοῦτο χαρίεν εἶναι δοκεῖ· πείθομαι γὰρ ἀληθέστερον μὲν Ἡσίοδον λέγειν, ἀμφοῖν δὲ ἄμεινον Πυθαγόραν, ὃς καὶ τῇ παροιμίᾳ παρέσχε τὴν ἀρχὴν καὶ τὸ λέγεσθαι κοινὰ τὰ φίλων ἔδωκε τῷ βίῳ, οὐ δήπου τὰ χρήματα λέγων μόνον, [B] ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν τοῦ νοῦ καὶ τῆς φρονήσεως κοινωνίαν, ὥσθ᾽ ὅσα μὲν εὗρες αὐτός, οὐδὲν ἔλαττον ταῦτα τοῦ πεισθέντος ἐστίν, ὅσα δὲ τῶν σῶν ὑπεκρινάμην, τούτων αὐτῶν εἰκότως τὸ ἴσον μετέχεις. ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν ὁποτέρου μᾶλλον ἂν φαίνηται, καὶ[320] θατέρῳ προσήκει, καὶ τοῖς βασκάνοις οὐδὲν ἔσται πλέον ἐκ τῶν λόγων.
(Not that the alteration is to my liking. For I am convinced that what Hesiod says is truer, that Pythagoras was wiser than either of them when he originated the proverb and gave to mankind the maxim, “Friends have all things in common.”[321] And by this he certainly did not mean money only, but also a partnership in intelligence and wisdom. So all that you suggested belongs just as much to me who adopted it, and whenever I was the actor who carried out your plans you naturally have an equal share in the performance. In fact, to whichever of us the credit may seem to belong, it belongs equally to the other, and malicious persons will gain nothing from their gossip.)
Ἡμῖν δὲ ἐπανιτέον ἐπὶ τὸν Ἀφρικανὸν καὶ τὸν Λαίλιον. ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἀνῄρητο μὲν ἡ Καρχηδὼν καὶ τὰ περὶ [C] τὴν Λιβύην ἅπαντα τῆς Ῥώμης ἐγεγόνει δοῦλα, πέμπει μὲν Ἀφρικανὸς τὸν Λαίλιον· ἀνήγετο δὲ ἐκεῖνος εὐαγγέλια τῇ πατρίδι φέρων· καὶ ὁ Σκηπίων ἤχθετο μὲν ἀπολειπόμενος τοῦ φίλου, οὐ μὴν ἀπαραμύθητον αὑτῷ τὸ πάθος ᾤετο. καὶ τὸν Λαίλιον δὲ δυσχεραίνειν εἰκός, ἐπειδὴ μόνος ἀνήγετο, οὐ μὴν ἀφόρητον ἐποιεῖτο τὴν συμφοράν. ἔπλει καὶ Κάτων ἀπολιπὼν οἴκοι τοὺς αὑτοῦ συνήθεις, καὶ Πυθαγόρας, καὶ Πλάτων καὶ Δημόκριτος οὐδένα παραλαβόντες κοινωνὸν τῆς ὁδοῦ, [D] καίτοι πολλοὺς οἴκοι τῶν φιλτάτων ἀπολιμπάνοντες. ἐστρατεύσατο καὶ Περικλῆς ἐπὶ τὴν Σάμον οὐκ ἄγων τὸν Ἀναξαγόραν, καὶ τὴν Εὔβοιαν παρεστήσατο ταῖς μὲν ἐκείνου βουλαῖς, ἐπεπαίδευτο γὰρ ὑπ᾽ ἐκείνῳ, τὸ σῶμα δὲ οὐκ ἐφελκόμενος ὥσπερ ἄλλο [246] τι τῶν ἀναγκαίων πρὸς τὰς [pg 180] μάχας. καίτοι καὶ τοῦτον ἄκοντα, φασίν, Ἀθηναῖοι τῆς πρὸς τὸν διδάσκαλον ἀπέστησαν συνουσίας. ἀλλ᾽ ἔφερεν ὡς ἀνὴρ ἔμφρων ὢν[322] τὴν ἄνοιαν τῶν αὑτοῦ πολιτῶν ἐγκρατῶς καὶ πρᾴως. καὶ γὰρ ἀνάγκῃ τῇ πατρίδι καθάπερ μητρὶ δικαίως μὲν οὔ, χαλεπῶς δὲ ὅμως ἐχούσῃ πρὸς τὴν συνουσίαν αὐτῶν, εἴκειν ᾤετο χρῆναι, ταῦτα, ὡς εἰκός, λογιζόμενος· ἀκούειν δὲ χρὴ τῶν ἑξῆς ὡς τοῦ Περικλέους αὐτοῦ· Ἐμοὶ πόλις μέν ἐστι καὶ πατρὶς ὁ κόσμος, καὶ φίλοι θεοὶ καὶ δαίμονες καὶ πάντες [B] ὅσοι καὶ ὁπουοῦν[323] σπουδαῖοι. χρὴ δὲ καὶ τὴν οὗ[324] γεγόναμεν τιμᾶν, ἐπειδὴ τοῦτο θεῖός ἐστι νόμος, καὶ πείθεσθαί γε οἷς ἂν ἐπιτάττῃ καὶ μὴ βιάζεσθαι μηδέ, ὅ φησιν ἡ παροιμία, πρὸς κέντρα λακτίζειν· ἀπαραίτητον γάρ ἐστι τὸ λεγόμενον ζυγὸν τῆς ἀνάγκης. οὐ μὴν ὀδυρτέον οὐδὲ θρηνητέον ἐφ᾽ οἷς ἐπιτάττει τραχύτερον, ἀλλὰ τὸ πρᾶγμα λογιστέον αὐτό. νῦν ἀπαλλάττεσθαι τὸν Ἀναξαγόραν ἀφ᾽ ἡμῶν κελεύει, [C] καὶ τὸν ἄριστον οὐκ ὀψόμεθα τῶν ἑταίρων, δι᾽ ὃν ἠχθόμην μὲν τῇ νυκτί, ὅτι μοι τὸν φίλον οὐκ ἐδείκνυεν, ἡμέρᾳ δὲ καὶ ἡλίῳ χάριν ἠπιστάμην, ὅτι μοι παρεῖχεν ὁρᾶν οὗ μάλιστα ἤρων. ἀλλ᾽ εἰ μὲν ὄμματά σοι δέδωκεν ἡ φύσις, ὦ Περίκλεις, μόνον ὥσπερ τοῖς θηρίοις[325], οὐδὲν ἀπεικός ἐστι σε διαφερόντως ἄχθεσθαι· [D] εἰ δέ σοι ψυχὴν ἐνέπνευσε [pg 182] καὶ νοῦν ἐνῆκεν, ὑφ᾽ οὗ τὰ μὲν πολλὰ τῶν γεγενημένων καίπερ οὐ παρόντα νῦν ὁρᾷς διὰ τῆς μνήμης, πολλὰ δὲ καὶ τῶν ἐσομένων ὁ λογισμὸς ἀνευρίσκων ὥσπερ ὄμμασιν ὁρᾶν προσβάλλει τῷ νῷ, καὶ τῶν ἐνεστώτων οὐ τὰ πρὸ τῶν ὀμμάτων ἡ φαντασία μόνον ἀποτυπουμένη δίδωσιν αὐτῷ κρίνειν καὶ καθορᾶν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ πόρρω καὶ μυριάσι σταδίων ἀπῳκισμένα τῶν γενομένων παρὰ πόδα [247] καὶ πρὸ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν δείκνυσιν ἐναργέστερον, τί χρὴ τοσοῦτον ἀνιᾶσθαι καὶ σχετλίως φέρειν; ὅτι δὲ οὐκ ἀμάρτυρος ὁ λόγος ἐστί μοι,