us.' And so it proved."

Gorgias anxiously begged him to relate what had happened, and the old
man, drawing nearer, whispered that the pupil and assistant of Didymus--
young Philotas of Amphissa, a student, and, moreover, a courteous young
man of excellent family--had gone to a banquet to which Antyllus, the son
of Antony, had invited several of his classmates. This had already
happened several times, and he, Phryx, had warned him, for, when the
lowly associate with the lofty, the lowly rarely escape kicks and blows.
The young fellow, who usually had behaved no worse than the other Ephebi,
had always returned from such festivities with a flushed face and
unsteady steps, but to-night he had not even reached his room in the
upper story. He had darted into the house as though pursued by the
watch, and, while trying to rush up the stairs--it was really only a
ladder-he had made a misstep and fell. He, Phryx, did not believe that
he was hurt, for none of his limbs ached, even when they were pulled and
stretched, and Dionysus kindly protected drunkards; but some demon must
have taken possession of him, for he howled and groaned continually, and
would answer no questions. True, he was aware, from the festivals of
Dionysus, that the young man was one of those who, when intoxicated, weep
and lament; but this time something unusual must have occurred, for in
the first place his handsome face was coloured black and looked hideous,
since his tears had washed away the soot in many places, and then he
talked nothing but a confused jargon. It was a pity.

When an attempt was made, with the help of the garden slave, to carry him
to his room, he dealt blows and kicks like a lunatic. Didymus now also
believed that he was possessed by demons, as often happens to those who,
in falling, strike their heads against the ground, and thus wake the
demons in the earth. Well, yes, they might be demons, but only those of