144 (420). To the Prefects' Administrator
LETTERS
you yourself may imitate another (indeed, it is right for you to be the leader of others in noble deeds), but that you may know that others also have shown respect to us in these matters.
144. TO' the Prefects' Admz'nistratO'r1 Surely you know this man through your interview in the city. Nevertheless, I am presenting and recommending him to you also by letter, because, in view of his ability to suggest intelligently and prudently what should be done, he will be useful to you for many of the works toward which you are directing your efforts. And thers: is now an opportunity to give practical proof of what you told me in private, when the afore-mentioned brother explains the condition of the poor.
145. TO' Eusebius, Bishop O'f SamO'sata1 I know the countless labors which you have endured in defense of the churches of God, and I am not ignorant of the numerous occupations in which you are engaged, since you do not carryon your administration carelessly but according to the will of God. I also bear in mind that manz who, close at hand, lies in wait for you, because of whom each of you, like birds cowering under cover beneath the eagle, must not stray far from the shelter. None of these facts has escaped me. Yet, yearning is irresistible both in hoping for the unattainable and in undertaking the impossible. Rather,
1 Similar to the preceding letter and written at about the same time.
1 For Eusebius, cf. Letter 141 n. I. This letter was written in 373.
2 I.e., Valens.