Xenophon of Ephesus, An Ephesian Tale 2.10.4 · 2.10.4

Leucon and Rhode find a kind master

Ὁ μὲν οὖν ἐν τούτοις ἦν, διοικῶν μὲν τὰ Ἀψύρτου, ἐννοῶν δὲ ὅπως καὶ ποῦ τὴν Ἄνθειαν εὑρήσει· ὁ δὲ Λεύκων καὶ ἡ Ῥόδη ἤχθησαν εἰς Λυκίαν εἰς πόλιν Ξάνθον (ἀνώτερον δὲ θαλάσσης ἡ πόλις) κἀνταῦθα ἐπράθησαν πρεσβύτῃ τινί, ὃς αὐτοὺς εἶχε μετὰ πάσης ἐπιμελείας, παῖδας αὑτοῦ νομίζων, καὶ γὰρ ἄτεκνος ἦν· διῆγον δὲ ἐν ἀφθόνοις μὲν πᾶσιν, ἐλύπουν δὲ αὐτοὺς Ἄνθεια καὶ Ἁβροκόμης οὐχ ὁρώμενοι.

So he lived, managing Apsyrtus' affairs and thinking how and where he would find Anthia. Leucon and Rhode were taken to Lycia, to the city of Xanthus (the city lies inland from the sea), and there they were sold to an old man who looked after them with every care and thought of them as his own children, for he was childless. They lived in plenty of everything, but it grieved them that Anthia and Habrocomes were not to be seen.

Word by word

ὉHoheμὲνmèn—οὖνoûnsoἐνeninτούτοιςtoútoisthis situationἦνênwas,διοικῶνdioikônmanagingμὲνmèn—τὰtàaffairsἈψύρτουApsýrtouApsyrtus',ἐννοῶνennoônthinkingδὲdèbutὅπωςhópōshowκαὶkaìandποῦpoûwhereτὴνtḕn—ἌνθειανÁntheianAnthiaεὑρήσειheurḗseihe would find·ὁho—δὲdèandΛεύκωνLeúkōnLeuconκαὶkaìandἡhē—ῬόδηRhódēRhodeἤχθησανḗchthēsanwere takenεἰςeistoΛυκίανLykíanLyciaεἰςeistoπόλινpólinthe cityΞάνθονXánthonXanthus(ἀνώτερον(anṓteroninlandδὲdè—θαλάσσηςthalássēsthe seaἡhētheπόλις)pólis)cityκἀνταῦθαkantaûthaand thereἐπράθησανepráthēsanthey were soldπρεσβύτῃpresbýtēiold manτινίtinía,ὃςhòswhoαὐτοὺςautoùsthemεἶχεeîchekeptμετὰmetàwithπάσηςpásēseveryἐπιμελείαςepimeleíascare,παῖδαςpaîdaschildrenαὑτοῦhautoûhis ownνομίζωνnomízōnconsidering,καὶkaì—γὰρgàrforἄτεκνοςáteknoschildlessἦνênhe was·διῆγονdiêgonthey livedδὲdèandἐνeninἀφθόνοιςaphthónoisplentyμὲνmèn—πᾶσινpâsinof everything,ἐλύπουνelýpoungrievedδὲdèbutαὐτοὺςautoùsthemἌνθειαÁntheiaAnthiaκαὶkaìandἉβροκόμηςHabrokómēsHabrocomesοὐχouchnotὁρώμενοιhorṓmenoiseen.

The setting

Book 2, chapter 10. Leucon and Rhode, the couple's two servants from Ephesus, had been shipped off by Manto to be sold far from Syria.

A note on this passage

παῖς means "child," and it was also the everyday word for a slave of any age: a visitor knocking at a door calls "παῖ!" for the slave who answers it (Aeschylus, Libation Bearers 653; Aristophanes, Clouds 132). Leucon and Rhode come to Xanthus as bought slaves, and the childless old man counts them παῖδες in the other sense, as his own children. When he dies he leaves them his estate, "and it was large" (5.6.3).

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