Letter 214: I know that you welcome frankness, so I shall not waste your time with flattery before coming to the point.

To Eusebius. (360) "Let the wild beasts be spared, and let no one slaughter them, and apart from this let someone provide the spectacle, and let the master not be lord over what is his own." It is very easy to write such things, and even more absurd things than these; but consider whether falling into so great an absurdity befits your judgment and the hopes you have raised. For one ought not to take pride in doing something great, but in doing what is fitting. As for the present case, look at it as follows. My cousin in his madness has undertaken this truly burdensome public liturgy, and Demosthenes will vote that I spoke rightly in calling ambition beyond one's means a madness. For besides emptying his own house of gold, he has added no small part of the resources of his many friends, gathering everything from every quarter, both wild beasts and those who fight against them. And it would have been the act of a prudent man to stretch the expense out over so long a time, and we advised this many times; but since he was not willing to listen to us, he yields at least to necessity, and summons the cities as if he were about to bring the matter to its conclusion, but you do not permit it. For what, tell me, will he do? Will he break off the assembly, proclaiming that they should remain where they are and wait for the winter? And what could be more shameful or more costly than that? And for what wrongdoing will he be exacting this penalty? But he will have to summon them and do all the rest. Yet to pray on behalf of the bears, and to order that no one strike them even with a rod? And what favor is there in that? Or what is it but a laughingstock? And how are these things worthy of the crown? And who will endure those who hiss or whistle in derision? And when men demand that the beasts be goaded, what will he say? That he would not wish it? Or that someone has forbidden it? But the one is not creditable to him, and the other is not creditable to you. Come then, my friend, heal the wound, and do not treat badly either men who are your comrades or a city in which you shared in education. For indeed those of the beasts which are fierce and inescapable have been given as a gift to the emperor and await the noble man's arrows, while the rest are unworthy of his eyes, but would bring pleasure to the people. Write, then, something better, and do not let the vine-prop betray the vine. For you indeed were expected to undo even an evil brought on by others.

Εὐσεβίῳ. (360) Τὰ θηρία σωζέσθω καὶ σφαττέτω μηδεὶς καὶ πλὴν τούτου παρεχέτω τις τὴν θέαν καὶ μὴ ἔστω τῶν αὑτοῦ κύριος ὁ δεσπότης. ταυτὶ μὲν ἐπιστεῖλαι ῥᾷστον καὶ ἔτι γε τούτων ἀτοπώτερα, ἀλλ’ εἰ τὸ πρὸς τοσαύτην ἐκ- πίπτειν ἀτοπίαν πρὸς τῆς σῆς ἐστι διανοίας καὶ τῶν ἐλπίδων ἃς παρέστησας ἐξέταζε. δεῖ γὰρ οὐ τῷ ποιεῖν τι μέγα φρο- νεῖν, ἀλλὰ τῷ ποιεῖν ἃ προσήκει. τὸ παρὸν δὲ οἷον ὅρα. ὁ ἀνεψιὸς οὑμὸς μανίᾳ τὴν λειτουργίαν ταύτην δὴ τὴν βαρεῖαν ἤρατο καὶ ψηφιεῖται Δημοσθένης ὀρθῶς εἰρῆσθαί μοι μανίαν τὴν πὲρ δύναμιν φιλοτιμίαν. πρὸς γὰρ τῷ τὴν οἰκίαν τὴν αὑτοῦ κενῶσαι χρυσίου καὶ τὰ τῶν φίλων πολλῶν οὐκ ὀλίγα προσέθηκε πάντα πανταχόθεν ἀγείρων θηρία τε καὶ τοὺς πρὸς ταῦτα μαχομένους. καὶ ἦν μὲν σωφρονοῦντος πρὸς τοσοῦ- τον χρόνου τὴν δαπάνην ἐκτεῖναι καὶ πολλάκις τοῦτο, παρ- ῃνέσαμεν· ἐπεὶ δὲ ἡμῖν οὐκ ἠβουλήθη, τῇ γε ἀνάγκῃ πείθε- ται καὶ καλεῖ τὰς πόλεις ὡς ἐπιθήσων πέρας, ἀλλ’ οὐκ ἐᾷς. τί γάρ, εἰπέ μοι, χρήσεται; παύσει τὴν σύνοδον κηρύξας μένειν κατὰ χώραν καὶ τὸν χειμῶνα ἀναμένειν; καὶ τί ἂν γέ- νοιτ᾿ ἂν αἴσχιον ἢ δαπανηρότερον; ὄντι ποίου δὲ ἀδικήματος ταύτην λήψεται δίκην; ἀλλὰ καλεῖν μὲν δεήσει καὶ τἄλλα ποιεῖν. εὔχεσθαι δὲ ὑπὲρ τῶν ἄρκτων καὶ κελεύειν μηδὲ ῥάβδῳ παίειν; καὶ τίς ἡ χάρις; ἡ ποῖος οὐ γέλως; ποῦ δὲ ἄξια ταῦτα τοῦ στεφάνου; τίς δαὶ οἴσει τοὺς κλώζοντας ἢ συρίττοντας; κεντεῖν δὲ ἀξιούντων τί φήσει; πότερον ὡς οὐ βούλοιτ’ ἄν; ἢ τὸν κεκωλυκότα; ἀλλὰ τὸ μὲν οὐκ ἐκείνῳ, τὸ δὲ οὐ σοὶ καλόν. ἄγε οὖν, ὦ φίλος, ἰῶ τὸ τραῦμα καὶ μήτε ἄνδρας ἑταίρους ποίει κακῶς μήτε πόλιν ἐν ᾗ παιδείας μετέλαβες. καὶ γὰρ ἃ μέν ἐστι γοργὰ τῶν θηρίων καὶ ἄφυκτα, δῶρον δέδοται τῷ βασιλεῖ καὶ τὰ τοῦ γενναίου περιμένει βέλη, τὰ λοιπὰ δὲ τῶν ἐκείνου μὲν ὀφθαλμῶν ἀνάξια, δήμῳ δ’ ἂν ἡδονὴν ἐνέγκαι. γράφε δὴ βελτίω καὶ μὴ τὴν ἄμπελον ἡ χάραξ προδίδου. σὺ γὰρ δὴ καὶ παρ’ ἄλλων φερόμενον κακὸν ἠλπίζου λύσειν.