[21,11] (Dion) Ἴσως γάρ μου καταφρονεῖς καὶ ἡγῇ με ληρεῖν, ὅτι οὐ περὶ Κύρου καὶ Ἀλκιβιάδου λέγω, ὥσπερ οἱ σοφοὶ, ἔτι καὶ νῦν, ἀλλὰ Νέρωνος καὶ τοιούτων πραγμάτων νεωτέρων τε καὶ ἀδόξων {ὧν} μνημονεύω. τούτου δὲ αἴτιον τὸ μὴ πάνυ φιλεῖν τοὺς τραγῳδοὺς μηδὲ ζηλοῦν· ἐπεὶ οἶδα ὅτι αἰσχρόν ἐστιν ἐν τραγῳδίᾳ τοὺς νῦν ὄντας ὀνομάζειν, ἀλλ´ ἀρχαίου τινὸς δεῖ πράγματος καὶ οὐδὲ πάνυ πιστοῦ. οἱ μὲν οὖν ἔμπροσθεν οὐκ ᾐσχύνοντο τοὺς τότε ὄντας ὀνομάζειν καὶ λέγοντες καὶ γράφοντες· οἱ δὲ νῦν ἐκείνους ἐξ ἅπαντος ὀνομάζειν ζητοῦσιν.

[21,11] (Dion) Oh yes, I suppose you look down on me and think that I am drivelling because I am not talking about Cyrus and Alcibiades, as the wise-acres do, even at this late date, but about Nero and subjects of that kind, more recent and inglorious, which I can remember. The reason for this is that I do not much care for the writers of Tragedy nor try to emulate them ; for I know that it is a disgrace to mention people of the present day in a tragedy, but that it is some ancient event which I should have touched upon and one not very credible either. Yet men of former times certainly were not ashamed to name people of their own day whether in speaking or in writing; but those of the present day strive to name the ancients on any pretext.

[21,12] ᾗτινι δὲ τῇ σοφίᾳ πράττουσιν αὐτὸ ἐγώ σοι ἐρῶ —καὶ μὴ πάντα φλυαρεῖν με φῇς· ἀλλ´ ἴσως πολλοῦ δέω (Autre) πάντως γάρ τινι τῶν βιβλιοπωλῶν προσέσχηκας. (Autre) Διὰ τί δὴ τοῦτό με ἐρωτᾷς; (Dion) Ὅτι εἰδότες τὰ ἀρχαῖα τῶν βιβλίων σπουδαζόμενα, ὡς ἄμεινον γεγραμμένα καὶ ἐν κρείττοσι βυβλίοις, οἱ δὲ τὰ φαυλότατα τῶν νῦν καταθέντες εἰς σῖτον, ὅπως τό γε χρῶμα ὅμοια γένηται τοῖς παλαιοῖς, καὶ προσδιαφθείροντες ἀποδίδονται ὡς παλαιά. ἀλλὰ τί ἦν, ὃ πάλαι δὴ ἐρέσθαι σπεύδεις;

[21,12] I shall tell you what wisdom they show in doing this —and don't you declare everything I say is nonsense; perhaps, however, it is anything but nonsense—for surely you have noticed what some of our booksellers do ? (Autre) Just what is your reason for asking me this ? (Dion) Because they, knowing that old books are in demand since better written and on better paper, bury the worst specimens of our day in grain in order that they may take on the same colour as the old ones, and after ruining the books into the bargain they sell them as old. But what was it that you have been wanting all this while to ask me ?