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ἐπὶ δὲ τὰς χρείας καὶ τὰς ὑπουργίας ἴωμεν ἢδη: καὶ γὰρ ἐν ταύταις πολλὴν ἀπεργάζεται σύγχυσιν καὶ ἀσάφειαν ὁ κόλαξ τῆς πρὸς τὸν φίλον διαφορᾶς, ἄοκνος δοκῶν εἶναι καὶ πρόθυμος ἐν πᾶσι καὶ ἀπροφάσιστος. ὁ μὲν γὰρ τοῦ φίλου τρόπος ὥσπερ ὁ τῆς ἀληθείας μῦθος ἁπλοῦς ἐστι κατ᾽ Εὐριπίδην 1 καὶ ἀφελὴς καὶ ἄπλαστος, ὁ δὲ τοῦ κόλακος ὄντως
νοσῶν ἐν αὑτῷ φαρμάκων δεῖται σοφῶν
καὶ πολλῶν νὴ Δία καὶ περιττῶν. ὥσπερ οὖν ἐν ταῖς ἀπαντήσεσιν ὁ μὲν φίλος ἔστιν ὅτε μήτ᾽ εἰπὼν μήτ᾽ ἀκούσας μηδὲν ἀλλὰ προσβλέψας καὶ μειδιάσας τὸ εὐμενὲς καὶ τὸ οἰκεῖον ἔνδοθεν δοὺς ταῖς ὄψεσι καὶ δεξάμενος παρῆλθεν, ὁ δὲ κόλαξ τρέχει καταδιώκει δεξιοῦται πόρρωθεν, ἂν 2 προσαγορευθῇ πρότερον ὀφθείς, ἀπολογεῖται μετὰ μαρτύρων καὶ ὅρκων πολλάκις, οὕτως ἐν ταῖς πράξεσι πολλὰ παραλείπουσιν οἱ φίλοι τῶν μικρῶν, οὐκ ἐξακριβοῦντες οὐδὲ [p. 151] πολυπραγμονοῦντες οὐδέν, οὐδ᾽ ἑαυτοὺς εἰς πᾶσαν ὑπουργίαν ἐμβάλλοντες. ἀλλ᾽ ἐκεῖνος ἐνταῦθα συνεχὴς καὶ ἐνδελεχὴς καὶ ἄτρυτος, οὐ διδοὺς ἑτέρῳ τόπον οὐδὲ χώραν διακονίας, ἀλλὰ βουλόμενος κελεύεσθαι, κἂν μὴ κελευσθῇ, δακνόμενος, μᾶλλον δ᾽ ὅλως ἐξαθυμῶν καὶ ποτνιώμενος.

1 Εὐριπίδην] Phoen. 472

2 ἂν] κὰν H

Plutarch. Moralia. Gregorius N. Bernardakis. Leipzig. Teubner. 1888. 1.

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