Letter 182: Your fine friend Bacchius has been separated from you and has not spent nearly enough time with me.

To Demetrius. (359/60) Your excellent Bacchius has been kept apart from you, and he has not had a worthy meeting with me; and the cause is this: a sore kept him at home, while in my case the demands of my profession—you know how many they are—prevented me from being free; and on top of that cares came upon me on account of those who have <no> respect for the things decided by the divine emperor. At any rate they are very much attempting to overturn them. That very day, however, on which I saw our comrade, I counted as worth many days and a very white one, hearing of the contests of the dark man over the cups and how he sought out the wine through the broth. But may that man never stop drinking, nor you stop writing—you who have accomplished this greatest thing, to set up the trophy in tranquility.

Δημητρίῳ. (359/60) Ὑμῶν τε ὁ καλὸς διέστηκε Βάκχιος ἐμοί τε οὐχ ἄξιον συγγεγένηται τὸ δὲ αἴτιον, τὸν μὲν οἴκοι κατέσχεν ἕλ- κος, ἐμὲ δὲ τὰ τῆς τέχνης, οἶσθα ὁπόσα ὄντα, κωλύοντα εἶναι ἐλεύθερον, καὶ προσεγένοντο δὴ φροντίδες διὰ τοὺς &#x003C;οὐκ&#x003E; αἰδουμένους τὰ δόξαντα τῷ θείῳ. πάνυ γοῦν αὐτὰ κινεῖν ἐπιχειροῦσιν. αὐτὴν μέντοι τὴν ἡμέραν, ἐν ᾗ τὸν ἑταῖρον εἶδον, ἀντὶ πολλῶν τε καὶ μάλα λευκὴν ἤγαγον ἀκούων τοὺς ἐν τοῖς πότοις ἀγῶνας τοῦ μέλανος καὶ ὅπως διὰ τοῦ ζωμοῦ τὸν οἶνον ἐζήτησεν. ἀλλὰ μήτ’ ἐκεῖνος παύσαιτο πίνων μήτε σὺ γράφων, ὃς τοῦτο μέγιστον εἴργασαι τὸ μεθ’ ἡσυχίας στῆ- σαι τὸ τρόπαιον.