Letter 194: I know that you were going to receive Palladius kindly without any letter from me.

To Andronicus. (360) If the worthy Eustochius were not a friend to you, as he is to us, I would need many words to persuade you to grant a favor; but as it is, since you know the man and, knowing him, love him, we ask what you would gladly give. Your soldier says that he has been ill-treated by those who manage that man's affairs, and they deny it and, having gone into hiding somewhere, they tremble, not because they have done wrong, but because inexperience produces fear. The harvest is in the gathering, and even if those men do not appear, everything has been ruined for Eustochius. Do not, then, become the cause of harm to a man both noble and good, but neither, if anyone has committed an offense, let him escape justice. How is this to be done? By Zeus, by long deliberation, if you are both to preserve the harvest and not take those men away from you. And you must know this: that, if they are caught, there will be no need of your anger, but the master will be beforehand with the judge.

Ἀνδρονίκῳ. (360) Εἰ μὲν οὐκ ἦν σοὶ φίλος, ὥσπερ ἡμῖν, ὁ χρηστὸς Εὐ- στόχιος, πολλῶν ἂν ἴδει μοι λόγων εἰς τὸ δοῦναί σε χάριν· νῦν δέ, οἶσθα γὰρ τὸν ἄνδρα καὶ εἰδὼς φιλεῖς, ἃ δοίης ἂν ἡδέως αἰτοῦμεν. κακῶς φησι πεπονθέναι ὁ σὸς στρατιώτης παρὰ τῶν τὰ τοῦδε διοικούντων, οἱ δὲ ἀρνοῦνται καὶ κατα- δύντες που τρέμουσιν, οὐχ ὅτι ἠδίκησαν, ἀλλ’ ἡ ἀπειρία ποιεῖ τὸν φόβον. ὁ καρπὸς δὲ ἐν συγκομιδῇ, κἂν μὴ φανῶσιν ἐκεῖνοι, πάντα Εὐστοχίῳ διέφθαρται. μὴ δὴ γένη βλάβης αὶ- τιος ἀνδρὶ καλῷ τε κἀγαθῷ, ἀλλὰ μηδ’, εἴ τις ἐπλημμέλησε, διαφευγέτω τὴν δίκην. πῶς ταῦτα; <νὴ> Δία, βουλῆς μακρᾶς, εἰ καὶ τὸν καρπὸν διασώσει κἀκείνους οὐκ ἀφαιρή- σεταί σε. δεῖ δέ σε εἰδέναι τοῦθ’ ὡς, ἢν ἁλῶσιν, οὐδὲν δεήσει τῆς ὀργῆς, ἀλλ’ ὁ δεσπότης φθήσεται τὸν δικαστήν.