One day at a banquet he was reclining in silence and was asked the reason: whereupon he bade his critic carry word to the king that there was one present who knew how to hold his tongue.
Now those who inquired of him were ambassadors from King Ptolemy, and they wanted to know what message they should take back from him to the king. On being asked how he felt about abuse, he replied, "As an envoy feels who is dismissed without an answer."
Apollonius of Tyre tells us how, when Crates laid hold on him by the cloak to drag him from Stilpo, Zeno said, "The right way to seize a philosopher, Crates, is by the ears. Persuade me then and drag me off by them; but, if you use violence, my body will be with you, but my mind with Stilpo."
—Diogenes Laërtius, 7.24
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