Note 13 — Chapter VI · PLATONIC CANON, AS RECOGNISED BY THRASYLLUS.

An interesting citation by Simplikius (in his commentary on the Physica of Aristotle, fol. 216, a. 7, p. 404, b. 11, Schol. Brandis shows us that Theophrastus, while he was resident at Athens as Peripatetic Scholarch, had custody of the original MSS. of the works of Aristotle and that he was applied to by those who wished to procure correct copies. Eudêmus (of Rhodes) having only a defective copy of the Physica, wrote to request that Theophrastus would cause to be written out a certain portion of the fifth book, and send it to him, μαρτυροῦντος περὶ τῶν πρώτων καὶ Θεοφράστου, γράψαντος Εὐδήμῳ, περί τινος αὐτοῦ τῶν διημαρτημένων ἀντιγράφων· ὑπὲρ ὧν, φησιν (sc. Theophrastus) ἐπέστειλας, κελεύων με γράφειν καὶ ἀποστεῖλαι ἐκ τῶν Φυσικῶν, ἥτοι ἐγὼ οὐ συνίημι, ἢ μικρόν τι παντελῶς ἔχει τοῦ ἀνάμεσον τοῦ ὅπερ ἠρεμεῖν καλῶ τῶν ἀκινήτων μόνον, &c.