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he resolved, considering it a terrible thing that the wonder of his wisdom should be confined to Attica, he visited the Egyptians, although they boasted of being wiser than others, and he also visited Croesus as one who prided himself on his wealth for happiness; for it seemed greater to Solon to revel in wisdom than the Pactolus flowing with gold ... the land, as much as that man traversed. And those who saw him admired him, but when he departed, they longed for Solon again. But the Athenians, among whom he had laid the foundation of his teachings, perhaps even prayed to Athena to give the lawgiver back to the city. But if for these reasons too he contrives his journey abroad, wishing to know with what longing the Athenians would feel for him, I think I should not be surprised. But if the Athenians wept when one man was absent, although they were fortunate, as is likely, in having other wise men, what would become of us if we were deprived of the whole sum? And she whom one formerly hesitated whether it was proper to call her Attica or Italy, is now suddenly silent and has been stripped of her distinguishing marks, and she seems to suffer the same thing as Cithaeron, when, after receiving the god in his fullness, he is suddenly desolate again at his departure, and Dionysus is nowhere. Wherefore I will cry out against Apollo, who summoned him to his side, disregarding our affairs. And I think that the Muses rejoice with him at his good fortune; and you, I suppose, are filled with ancient tales, right there beside Daphne herself, considering the passion of the god, the chastity and humanity of Daphne, and a plant consoling a lover; and among you alone the sight of things seen grants its testimony to the story. And if thick cypresses are let grow for the sake of Apollo's beloved, and abundant water, and cicadas sing, and a path is spread soft with grass, and trees one after another, and houses hidden in their midst by their height, and a gentle breeze and mingled fragrance, and shade that shuts out the sun's harshness, it is your task either to report it as quickly as possible or to describe it in a letter. But I would wish to see them having come to us, so that in addition to other things I might also hear them prophesying. For this too, I think, Daphne has given you. 14 To Palladius The virtue of the powerful I think is the greatest consolation for those who are wronged. For when power has come together with a will that honors justice, what prevents the decrees of the laws from being carried to completion? But what does this preamble mean for me? Isidorus the scholasticus, formerly my friend when he was alive, but now only in memory, what he was like in his life and how he presented himself for admiration from all quarters, you yourself might narrate to others. But now, having departed from mankind, he has left his house bereft of alliance; for she who was formerly a mother is now childless on the threshold of old age and no longer a mother, and his wife bears the yoke of widowhood. And of the children, what need is there even to speak? For they are daughters of a young age and are experiencing the fate of orphanhood. And to speak concisely, they are exposed to all who wish to do them wrong, unless you prevent it, you upon whom their hopes look. For so-and-so is wicked by nature, but having gained impunity and seeing their desolate state, he has appeared more wicked; for dwelling near their house and conceiving envy from his proximity, he has formed the single purpose of rendering their dwelling useless to them. Wherefore, he has not tolerated being lawfully hindered by those who are building, and considering the written agreements between them as nonsense, he declares himself more authoritative than the laws and what he himself agreed to. But you, adopting the resolve of a judge who hates evil, become a father to the daughters, and a son to the mother, and to the wife in turn the equal of a husband, and to us such a man as previous experience has often shown you to be; and let him know well that it is not possible to be bereft of alliance, as long as both the laws are preserved and men who honor justice. 15 To Nephalius I was pleased to receive your letter, but wishing to put it into effect, I did not have the opportunity to serve my enthusiasm. And the reason I would never say is chance, especially to you, but entirely the providence of God, which governs our affairs as it wishes. 16 To Gessius the iatrosophist Taking your letter into my hands, I scarcely thought

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ἐδόκει, δεινὸν ἡγούμενος μέχρι τῆς Ἀττικῆς αὐτῷ τῆς σοφίας ἑστάναι τὸ θαῦμα, ἐφοίτα μὲν παρ' Αἰγυπτίους καίπερ σοφωτέρους εἶναι τῶν ἄλλων αὐχοῦν τας, ἐφοίτα δὲ καὶ παρὰ Κροῖσον ὡς ἐπ' εὐδαιμονίᾳ τῷ πλούτῳ κομῶντα· μεῖζον γὰρ ἐδόκει τῷ Σόλωνι σοφίᾳ τρυφᾶν ἢ χρυσῷ ῥέων ὁ Πακτωλὸς ... γῆν τὴν ὅσην ἐπῆλθεν ἐκεῖνος. καὶ οἱ μὲν ὁρῶντες ἐθαύμαζον, ὡς δὲ ἀπεφοίτα, πάλιν ἐπόθουν τὸν Σόλωνα. Ἀθηναῖοι δὲ παρ' οἷς τὴν κρηπῖδα τῶν μαθημάτων ἐβάλετο, τάχα καὶ τὴν Ἀθηνᾶν ηὔχοντο τὸν νομοθέτην αὖθις ἀποδοῦναι τῇ πόλει. εἰ δὲ καὶ τούτων ἕνεκα τὴν ἀποδημίαν σοφί ζεται, γνῶναι θέλων ὅπως ἔρωτος ἥκουσιν εἰς αὐτὸν Ἀθηναῖοι, οὐκ ἂν οἶμαι θαυμάσαιμι. πλὴν εἰ ἑνὸς ἀνδρὸς ἀπόντος ἐδάκρυσαν Ἀθηναῖοι, καί τοι σοφοὺς ὡς εἰκὸς εὐτυχοῦντες ἑτέρους, τίνες ἂν γενοίμεθα τὸ κεφάλαιον ὅλον ἀφαιρούμενοι; καὶ ἣν ἄν τις ἐδίστασε πρότερον εἴτε τὴν Ἀττικὴν εἴτε τὴν Ἰταλίαν προσῆκεν εἰπεῖν, αὕτη σιγᾷ νῦν ἐξαίφνης καὶ τῶν γνωρισμάτων ἀφῄρηται, καὶ ταὐτὰ πάσχειν ἔοικε τῷ Κιθαιρῶνι, ὅταν πολὺν δεξάμενος τὸν θεόν, ἀπιόντος πάλιν ἐξαίφνης ἔρημος ᾖ, καὶ ὁ ∆ιόνυσος οὐδαμοῦ. ὅθεν καταβοήσομαι τοῦ Ἀπόλλωνος, ὃς παρ' ἑαυτὸν ἐκάλει τὰ ἡμέτερα παριδών. καὶ οἶμαι τούτῳ συνήδεσθαι τῆς εὐτυχίας τὰς Μούσας· ὑμεῖς δέ που καὶ παλαιῶν μυθολογημάτων ἐμπίπλασθε, παρ' αὐτὴν ἤδη τὴν ∆άφνην λογι ζόμενοι τοῦ θεοῦ τὸ πάθος, τῆς ∆άφνης τὴν σωφροσύνην καὶ τὸ φιλάνθρω πον, καὶ φυτὸν παραμυθούμενον ἐραστήν· καὶ παρ' ὑμῖν μόνοις τῶν ὁρω μένων ἡ θέα τῷ λόγῳ τὴν μαρτυρίαν χαρίζεται. εἰ δὲ καὶ κυπάριττοι πυκναὶ πρὸς χάριν ἀνεῖνται τῆς ἐρωμένης Ἀπόλλωνος καὶ ὕδωρ ἄφθονον, καὶ τέττιγες ᾄδουσι καὶ ὁδὸς τῇ πόᾳ μαλθακὴ παρακέχυται, καὶ δένδρα ἄλλ' ἐπ' ἄλλοις καὶ οἰκίαι τῷ τούτων ὕψει κατὰ μέσον κρυπτόμεναι, αὖρά τε μετρία καὶ ὀσμὴ συμμιγὴς καὶ σκιὰ τοῦ ἡλίου τὸ λυπηρὸν ἀποκλείουσα, ὑμέτερον ἢ ὡς τάχος ἀγγέλλειν ἢ διηγεῖσθαι τοῖς γράμμασι. πλὴν βουλοί μην εἰς ἡμᾶς ἐλθόντας ἰδεῖν, ἵνα πρὸς τοῖς ἄλλοις καὶ μαντευομένων ἀκούσω μαι. καὶ τοῦτο γὰρ ὑμῖν οἶμαι δεδωκέναι τὴν ∆άφνην. 14 Παλλαδίωι Τὴν τῶν μέγα δυναμένων ἀρετὴν μεγίστην οἶμαι τοῖς ἀδικουμένοις παρα μυθίαν. δυνάμεως γὰρ εἰς ταὐτὸν ἐλθούσης καὶ γνώμης τιμώσης τὰ δίκαια, τί κωλύει πρὸς πέρας ἰέναι τὰ δοκοῦντα τοῖς νόμοις; ἀλλὰ τί μοι βούλεται τὸ προοίμιον; Ἰσίδωρος ὁ σχολαστικός, ὁ πάλαι μὲν φίλος ἡνίκα ἔζη, νῦν δὲ μέχρι τῆς μνήμης, οἷος μὲν ἦν τὸν βίον καὶ ὡς πανταχόθεν αὑτὸν παρεῖχε θαυμάζειν, κἂν ἑτέροις αὐτὸς διηγήσαιο. νυνὶ δὲ ἀπελθὼν ἐξ ἀνθρώπων ἔρημον συμμαχίας κατέλιπε τὴν οἰκίαν· ἡ μὲν γὰρ πάλαι μήτηρ νῦν ἄπαις ἐπὶ γήραος οὐδῷ καὶ μήτηρ οὐκέτι, ἡ δὲ σύνοικος χηρείας ὑποφέρει ζυγόν. τὰ δὲ παιδία τί δεῖ καὶ λέγειν; κόραι γὰρ αὗται μικρὰν ἄγουσαι τὴν ἡλικίαν καὶ ὀρφανίας τύχης πειρώμεναι. συνελόντι δὲ φάναι, πρόκεινται πᾶσι τοῖς ἀδικεῖν βουλομένοις, εἰ μὴ σὺ κωλύσεις, εἰς ὃν αἱ τούτων ὁρῶσιν ἐλπίδες. ὁ δεῖνα γὰρ φύσει μέν ἐστι πονηρός, ἐπ' ἀδείας δὲ γενόμενος καὶ τὴν ἐρημίαν ἰδὼν πέφηνε πονηρότερος· προσοικῶν γὰρ τὴν τούτων οἰκίαν καὶ τὸν ἐκ τοῦ γειτνιάζειν φθόνον λαβών, μίαν πεποίηται γνώμην ἄχρηστον αὐταῖς ἀποφῆναι τὴν οἴκησιν. ὅθεν οὔτε τῶν οἰκοδομούντων ἐννόμως κωλυομένων ἠνέσχετο, καὶ τὰ πρὸς ἀλλήλους διὰ γραμμάτων συγκείμενα λῆρον ἡγού μενος κυριώτερον αὑτὸν ἀποφαίνει τῶν νόμων καὶ ὧν αὐτὸς ὡμολόγησεν. ἀλλὰ δικαστοῦ καὶ μισοῦντος τὰ φαῦλα γνώμην λαβὼν γενοῦ ταῖς κόραις πατὴρ καὶ τῇ μητρὶ παῖς καὶ τῇ γυναικὶ πάλιν ἴσα καὶ σύνοικος, ἡμῖν δὲ τοιοῦτος οἷον ἡ προλαβοῦσα πεῖρα πολλάκις ἀπέδειξε· καὶ γνώτω καλῶς ὡς οὐκ ἔστιν ἔρημον εἶναι συμμαχίας, ἕως ἂν οἵ τε νόμοι σώζωνται καὶ ἄνδρες τιμῶντες τὰ δίκαια. 15 Νηφαλίωι Ἥσθην δεξάμενος τὴν ὑμετέραν ἐπιστολήν, εἰς ἔργον δὲ ταύτην ἄγειν βουλόμενος οὐκ ἔσχον ὑπουργοῦσαν τῇ προθυμίᾳ τὴν χρείαν. τὸ δ' αἴτιον τύχην μὲν οὐκ ἄν ποτε εἴποιμι, καὶ μάλιστα πρὸς ὑμᾶς, θεοῦ δὲ πάντως πρόνοιαν, κυβερνῶσαν ὡς βούλεται τὰ ἡμέτερα. 16 Γεσσίωι ἰατροσοφιστῆι Τὴν ὑμετέραν ἐπιστολὴν εἰς χεῖρας λαβὼν αὐτὰς ἔδοξα μόλις