[10,3] Πάντων γε, ἔφη, μάλιστα· μηδὲν γὰρ ὑπ´ ἐμοῦ ἀδικούμενος, πρὸς δὲ καὶ γενόμενος ἡγεῖτο πονηρόν· εἰ γὰρ ἀγαθὸν ἡγεῖτο, οὐκ ἄν ποτε ἀπέλιπεν. Ἴσως, ὦ Διόγενες, κακὸς αὐτὸς ὤν.

[10,3] "Yes,he certainly was," replied the latter, " for although I had done him no wrong and, what is more, had made him {my body-servant, he ran away." " Perhaps} he thought {you were} a bad {master}, for if he had thought you were a good one, he would never have left you. "Perhaps, Diogenes, it was because he was bad himself."

[10,4] Ἔπειτα ἐκεῖνος μέν, ἔφη, σὲ πονηρὸν ἡγούμενος ἔφυγεν, ἵνα μὴ βλάπτηται ὑπὸ σοῦ, σὺ δὲ ἐκεῖνον πονηρὸν εἶναι λέγων ζητεῖς, δῆλον ὅτι βλάπτεσθαι ὑπ´ αὐτοῦ βουλόμενος; ἢ οὐχ οἱ κακοὶ ἄνθρωποι βλαβεροί εἰσι τοῖς ἔχουσι καὶ τοῖς χρωμένοις, ἐάν τε Φρύγες ὦσιν ἐάν τε Ἀθηναῖοι, ἐάν τε ἐλεύθεροι ἐάν τε δοῦλοι; καίτοι κύνα μὲν οὐδεὶς κακὸν ἡγούμενος ζητεῖ ἀποδράντα, οἱ δὲ καὶ ἐκβάλλουσιν, ἐὰν ἐπανέλθῃ· ἀνθρώπου δὲ πονηροῦ ἀπαλλαγέντες οὐκ ἀγαπῶσιν, ἀλλὰ πολλὰ πράγματα ἔχουσι καὶ τοῖς ξένοις ἐπιστέλλοντες καὶ αὐτοὶ ἀποδημοῦντες καὶ χρήματα ἀναλίσκοντες, ὅπως λάβωσιν αὐτόν.

[10,4] "And so," continued Diogenes, "because he thought you were bad, he ran off to avoid injury by you, while you are searching for him although you say he is bad, evidently with the desire to be injured by him ! Is it not true that bad men are injurious to those who own them or to those who use them, whether they be Phrygians or Athenians, bond or free? And yet no one hunts for a run-away dog that he thinks is no good; nay, some even kick such a dog out if he comes back ; but when people are rid of a bad man they are not satisfied, but go to a lot of trouble by sending word to their friends, making trips themselves, and spending money to get the fellow back again.