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we should keep them unharmed by evils, for this is why we have come together, so that for the one of the emperors who is wronged, with God helping, we might preserve both his life and his honor, and for the other, with no necessity compelling us, we should not trouble him in his honor, much less his life.” While they were thus deliberating things contrary to one another, the emperor sat in silence, listening to what was being said, but Syrgiannes took up the argument, 1.44 speaking in opposition to the great domesticus from a contrary position, and said: “Since human nature is wanting and lacks perfect knowledge of things, I think that no one ought to persist in decisions made from the beginning, if afterwards the contrary appears better; or if this principle should prevail, all things would soon be turned upside down. For if neither the merchant, nor the farmer, nor the pilot adapts to what seems advantageous, but necessarily persists in the decisions made from the beginning, soon the pilot will sink the ship along with himself when contrary winds have arisen; the merchant will return empty of money, and the farmer, in addition to being deprived of the fruits of his labors, will also incur deep ridicule. We shall also add some examples of our own. Nor would a general, by persisting in his initially planned strategies, raise a trophy from the enemy, but having been shamefully and ignobly defeated, he will share the danger with his soldiers; for if it should happen that he believes his own army to be many times larger than the enemy's and better trained for war, and for this reason decides he must join battle, then upon arriving at the scene, he sees the enemy's force is superior by a great measure in number, training, and arms; and if, for the sake of not reversing his decisions, he engages rashly and recklessly, would we not say that general was close to madness? It is clear to everyone. Therefore it occurs to me to marvel at you now, declaring thus that one must persist in the decisions made from the beginning, you who from your earliest years until this time have been engaged in campaigns and the toils of campaigning, 1.45 and yet have been ignorant of this, that a single turn of fortune will bring about changes in many affairs.” At this the great domesticus spoke as follows: “I do not think that anyone who has any share of sense has so persuaded himself to persist firmly in what he planned from the beginning, as not to change his mind, when other, better things appear later. And you yourself, you would not have an abundance of excessive reproach for me, or be able to speak thus about matters, had you found yourself in a different situation. But I am so far from being what you say, that both in public and in private affairs, having often cast a vote on some matter as being good and seeming to attain the highest degree of what is advantageous, and even proceeding to action, I have then chosen to yield to another who seemed to be wiser, or, persuaded by myself, have chosen the opposite course. But concerning what we are now considering, I think that we must above all abstain from what you are planning, and adhere to what seems best to me, for many reasons. For first, to raise a hand against an emperor and the anointed of God, and to deprive a soul of salvation, is not only deprived of all pardon among men, but we are also convinced that with God the ultimate retributions are laid up for such deeds. Then, we did not propose this from the beginning, to do away with one, and to establish the other on the imperial thrones; but holding justice in high regard, we were eager to defend 1.46 the young emperor, who was being wronged concerning his rule and was fearing for his life. It is absurd, therefore, for the one to acquire rule with justice, but for the other to be unjustly deprived of his life as well; and for what seemed most absurd when others were doing it to the one, for us to be seen to have perpetrated things more grievous against the other, and just as when the scales of affairs are weighed down on one side, for us to press them down with equal lack of measure in the opposite direction, when we ought to have brought them to a balance. Nor indeed is it more humane to bind and guard him, than to kill him at once. For to those accustomed to

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αὐτοὺς ἀπαθεῖς διατηρήσωμεν κακῶν, εἰς τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ συνεληλύθειμεν, ὅπως τῷ μὲν τῶν βασιλέων ἀδικουμένῳ, θεοῦ συναιρομένου, καὶ τὴν ζωὴν διατηρήσωμεν καὶ τὴν τιμὴν, τῷ δὲ, μηδεμιᾶς ἀκολουθούσης ἀνάγκης, μηδ' εἰς τὴν τιμὴν παρενοχλῆσαι, μήτοιγε τὴν ζωήν.» Τούτων οὕτως ἀλλήλοις ἐναντία βουλευομένων, ὁ μὲν βασιλεὺς καθῆστο σιγῇ, τῶν λεγομένων ἐπακροώμενος, ὁ Συργιάννης δὲ τὸν λόγον ἀναλα 1.44 βὼν, ἐκ τῶν ἐναντίων ἀντιλέγων πρὸς τὸν μέγαν δομέστικον ἔφη· «τῆς ἀνθρωπίνης φύσεως τὸ ἐνδεὲς ἐχούσης καὶ τῆς τελείας τῶν ὄντων γνώσεως ἀπολειπομένης, οὐδένα δεῖν οἶμαι τοῖς ἀπ' ἀρχῆς δεδογμένοις ἐμμένειν, ἂν μετὰ ταῦτα βελτίω τἀναντία φαίνηται· ἢ εἰ τοῦτο κρατήσῃ, οὐκ ἂν φθάνοι πάντ' ἄνω καὶ κάτω γενόμενα. ἂν γὰρ μήτ' ἔμπορος, μήθ' ὁ γεωργὸς, μήθ' ὁ κυβερνήτης πρὸς τὰ δοκοῦντα λυσιτελῆ μεθαρμόζηται, ἀλλ' ἀναγκαίως ἐμμένῃ τοῖς ἀπ' ἀρχῆς δεδογμένοις, ταχέως ὁ μὲν κυβερνήτης ἑαυτῷ συγκαταδύσῃ τὴν ναῦν ἐναντίων κινηθέντων πνευμάτων· ὁ δ' ἔμπορος ἐπανήξει κενὸς χρημάτων, ὁ γεωργὸς δὲ πρὸς τῇ τῶν πόνων ἀποστερήσει καὶ βαθὺν ὀφλήσει γέλωτα. προσθήσομεν δέ τι καὶ τῶν οἰκείων παραδειγμάτων. οὐκ ἂν οὐδὲ στρατηγὸς τοῖς ἀπ' ἀρχῆς ἐμμένων βεβουλευμένοις τρόπαιον ἀπὸ τῶν πολεμίων ἀναστήσει, ἀλλ' αἰσχρῶς καὶ ἀγεννῶς ἡττηθεὶς, συγκινδυνεύσει τοῖς στρατιώταις· ἂν γὰρ συμβῇ τυχὸν τὴν μὲν ἑαυτοῦ στρατιὰν πολλαπλασίονα τῶν πολεμίων καὶ πρὸς τὰ πολεμικὰ μᾶλλον ἠσκημένην ἡγεῖσθαι καὶ διὰ τοῦτο δεῖν βουλεύσηται μάχην συνάπτειν, εἶτ' ἐπὶ τῶν πραγμάτων ἐλθὼν, τὴν τῶν ἐναντίων ἴδῃ καὶ τῷ πλήθει καὶ τῇ ἀσκήσει καὶ τοῖς ὅπλοις ὑπερέχουσαν πολλῷ τῷ μέτρῳ· διὰ δὲ τὸ μὴ λῦσαι τὰ δεδογμένα, ἀλογίστως συμπλέκηται καὶ παραβόλως, οὐκ ἂν ἐγγὺς τοῦ μαίνεσθαι φαίημεν τὸν στρατηγὸν ἐκεῖνον; παντί που δῆλον. διό μοι καὶ σὲ νῦν ἔπεισι θαυμάζειν, οὕτως ἀποφηνάμενον ὡς χρὴ τοῖς ἐξ ἀρχῆς δεδογμένοις ἐμμένειν, ἐκ πρώτης ἡλικίας ἐς τόδε χρόνου στρατείαις καὶ τοῖς ἐκ στρατείας 1.45 ἐνδιατρίψαντα πόνοις, τοῦτο δὲ ἠγνοηκότα, ὡς μία καιροῦ ῥοπὴ πολλῶν ποιήσει πραγμάτων μεταβολάς.» Ἐπὶ τούτοις ὁ μέγας δομέστικος εἶπε τοιάδε· «οὐδένα νομίζω τῶν καὶ ὁπωσοῦν μετειληχότων φρενῶν, οὕτως ἑαυτὸν οἷς ἐξ ἀρχῆς ἐβουλεύσατο πεπεικέναι βεβαίως ἐμμένειν, ὥστε μὴ μεταβάλλειν, ἑτέρων ἐν ὑστέρῳ φαινομένων βελτιόνων. καὶ σὲ δὲ αὐτὸν, οὐκ ἂν εὐπορήσειν ἐπ' ἐμοὶ λοιδορίας ὑπερβολῆς, ἢ οὕτω περὶ τῶν πραγμάτων λέγειν ἔχειν, ἐν διαφορᾷ καταστάντα. ἐγὼ δὲ τοσούτου δέω ὁποῖον εἶναί φατε, ὥστε κἀν τοῖς δημοσίοις, κἀν τοῖς ἰδίοις, ψῆφον ὡς καλῶς ἔχουσαν καὶ τοῦ λυσιτελοῦντος τὸ δοκεῖν ἐς τὰ μάλιστα ἐφικνουμένην περί τινος πολλάκις ἐξενεγκὼν, ἤδη δὲ καὶ πρὸς τὸ πράττειν χωρῶν, ἔπειτ' ἢ ἑτέρῳ τὸ ἧσσον ἔχειν ἐπὶ τῷ φρονεῖν δοκοῦντι, ἢ αὐτὸς ἐμαυτῷ τὴν ἐναντίαν πεισθεὶς εἱλόμην. ἐφ' οἷς δὲ νυνὶ σκοποῦμεν, μάλιστα μὲν ὧν ὑμεῖς βουλεύεσθε, ἀποσχέσθαι, ὧν δ' ἐμοὶ δοκεῖ, δεῖν ἔχεσθαι νομίζω πολλῶν ἕνεκεν αἰτιῶν. πρῶτον μὲν γὰρ τὸ χεῖρα κινῆσαι κατὰ βασιλέως καὶ τῷ θεῷ κεχρισμένου, καὶ σωτηρίαν ἀποστερῆσαι ψυχῆς, οὐ μόνον πάσης ἐν ἀνθρώποις ἀπεστέρηται συγγνώμης, ἀλλὰ καὶ παρὰ θεῷ τὰς ἐσχάτας τῶν τοιούτων ἔργων πεπείσμεθα κεῖσθαι τὰς ἀντιδόσεις. ἔπειτα δὲ, οὐδὲ τοῦτο ἐξ ἀρχῆς ὑπεθέμεθα, ὥστε τὸν μὲν ἀνελεῖν, τὸν δ' ἐγκαθιδρύσαι τοῖς θρόνοις τῶν βασιλέων· ἀλλὰ πολύν τινα τὸν δικαίου ποιούμενοι λόγον, ἀμύνειν 1.46 τῷ νέῳ προὐθυμήθημεν βασιλεῖ, ἀδικουμένῳ τε περὶ τὴν ἀρχὴν καὶ δεδοικότι περὶ τὸ ζῆν. ἄτοπον οὖν, τῷ μὲν σὺν τῷ δικαίῳ τὴν ἀρχὴν κατακτᾶσθαι, τὸν δ' ἀδίκως ἀφαιρεῖσθαι καὶ τὴν ζωήν· καὶ ἃ περὶ τὸν ἕνα πραττόντων ἑτέρων, τῶν ἀτοπωτάτων ἐδόκει, τούτων χαλεπώτερα περὶ τὸν ἕτερον ἐξειργασμένους αὐτοὺς ὀφθῆναι, καὶ ὥσπερ ἐν ζυγοῖς τῶν πραγμάτων ἐφ' ἑτέρῳ μέρει βαρυνομένων, ἐπὶ τὴν ἴσην ἀμετρίαν πρὸς τοὐναντίον αὐτοὺς καταπιέσαι, δέον ἐπὶ τὸ ἴσον ἀναγαγεῖν. οὐ μὴν οὐδὲ τὸ δήσαντας φρουρεῖν, τοῦ ἅπαξ ἡμερώτερον ἀποκτεῖναι. τοῖς γὰρ ἐν ἔθει τοῦ