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confirmed in this perfuafion by your own hand. Believe me, however, I by no means rejoice in it from a felfifh epicurean principle, and as it may probably facilitate my own pretenfions of the fame kind; but as taking a fincere and difinterested share in every increafe of your dignities. I intreat you then, as you have more frequent opportunities of writing into this province, than any other of my friends, that you would give me immediate notice as foon as you fhall have obtained the decree, which you have fo much reafon to expect, and which I fo unfeignedly with you. If the tedious refolutions of the long bench, as our friend Pompey calls the fenate, fhould delay your hopes a few days (and more than a few days they, furely, cannot delay them), be confident, however, that they will at length diftinguifh you with thote honours, which are to juttly your due. Again, therefore, I conjure you, as you give me your affection, or would preferve mine, to let me participate in the joy of this good news as early as poflible.

To this request I will join another: and remind you of executing your promife of fending me the completion of your treatife on augury. I afk this, not only as being defirous of informing my felf in the rites and principles of the facred college; but as I receive with uncommon fatisfaction every mark of your favour. As to the request you made me on your part, of returning you a compliment in the fame kind; it is a point I muft well confider. For it would ill be come an author whom you have so often applauded for the pains he bellows upon his compofitions, to fuffer any crude and indigefted performance to come forth from his hands: efpecially upon an occafion that would justly expofe him to the cenfure, not only of being guilty of negligence, but of a moft ungrateful difrefpect. However, I may find fome opportunity perhaps, of fatisfying both you and myfelf upon this article. In the mean time, I hope you will endeavour, in conformity to your promife, that a public thankfgiving of the most diftinguished kind be decreed as foon as poffible, on account of my late victories: and I am perfuaded you will act with that zeal which is agreeable to your fincerity, and

to the friendship which has long fubfifted between a^. I was fomewhat later in my public difpatches for this purpose, than I withed and as they were delayed likewife by the difficulty of navigation at that feafon, they did not, I fuppofe, arrive before the ferate was prorogued. It was the influence which vour advice always has upon my judgment, that induced me to defer them: and I am fatiffied it was perfectly right not to acquaint the fenate of my being faluted with the title of Imperator, till I had gained still farther advantages by my arms, and entirely completed the campaign. I confidently rely therefore upon the affiftance you have promifed me and recommend to your protection, whatever elfe concerns either my affairs or my family. Farewel.

LETTER LIL

To C. Titius Rufus, Prater.

[A. U. ~03.]

crus Cullidius is not only of the fame tribe and corporation + with myfelf, but is likewife my particular friend. As he has a caufe which he purFoles to bring before you, I recommend his intereft to your protection: but no farther, however, than is confident with your honour and my own good manners. All I requel therefore is, that you would allow him freely to wait upon you as of ten as he hall have occafion; that you would comply with his defires, as far as they fhall appear equitable; and in a word, that you would convince him, that my friendship can effectually avail even at this diftance. Farewel.

Romulus divided is citizens into three tribes, each of which were fubdivided into ten curiæ, or wards. Thefe tribe, were in after-times gradually increated, till they amounted to the number of thirty-five.

which were allowed to govern themicives by their The corporate or municipal towns were thofe own lows and confiitutions, and at the fame time were honoured with the privileges of Roman citi

zens.

Cicero was a native of one of thefe corpoTations, called Arpinum: fituated in a district of Itly, which now makes part of the kingdom of Naples.

LETTER LIII.
To Silius.

[A. U. 703.] WILL you not think that I am employed in a very unneceffary office, when I take upon me to recommend a man to your friendship, who already, I know, enjoys that privilege? Let it be a proof, however, that I am with paffion, as well as esteem, devoted to his intereft. I not earnestly entreat you then, to convince Egnatius, by the good effects which this letter fhall produce in his favour, both of your affection for me, and of mine for him. And be affured your compliance with this request will be the mot agrecable of all the many and great intances I have received of your dispoition to oblige me.

The pleating hopes I entertained of public affairs are now totally vanished. However, whilst we wish things were better, let us fupport ourfelves with the tite confolation, that we muft fubmit to what cannot be remedied. But this is a fabject I will referve to our meeting. In the mean time, continue to give me your friendship; and be well perfuaded of

mine. Farewel.

LETTER LIV.
To Publius Cafius.

[A. U. 703.] IMOST earnestly recommend to your favour, my very intimate friend Pubus Meffienus, a Roman knight, who is inguished by every valuable endow ment. I intreat, you by the double ties of that amity which I enjoy with you and your father, to protect him both in his fame and his fortunes. Be affured you wil by this means conciliate the affection of a man highly deferving of your friendfhip, as well as confer a moft acceptable obligation upon myself. Farewel.'

LETTER LV.

To the Magiftrates of Fregellæ *,

[A. U. 703.] IF my connections with Quintus Hippius were not of the strongest and molt It is fuppofed to be the fame town which is Be's caked Castrøre, in the Campagna di Roma,

amicable kind, I fhould not depart from the rule I have laid down to myself, of not troubling you with my applications. This maxim, you will bear me witness, I have hitherto ftrictly obferved; though I was ever perfuaded at the fame time, that there is nothing you would refufe to my request. However, I now most earnestly intreat your generofity in behalf of my friend's fon, and that you would do me the honour to fhew fo much regard to my inclinations, as to enfranchise the eftate he has purchased of your corporation. I fhall efteem your compliance with this request as a very fingular favour. Farewel.

LETTER LVI.

To Papirius Patus †.

[A. U. 703.]

YOUR letter has rendered me a moft

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complete general. I proteft I did not imagine you were fo wonderfully skilled in the art military. But I perceive you are an abfolute adept, and deeply ftudied in the tactics of king Pyrrhus I and his minifter Cineas. I have fome thoughts therefore of following your most curious precepts and indeed of improving upon them. For as I am affured that the best armament against the Parthian cavalry is a good fleet, I am defigning to equip myfelf accordingly. Seriously, you cannot imagine what an expert commander you have undertaken to tutor : for after having worne out Xenophon's life of Cyrus with reading it at Rome, I have now fairly practifed it out in the provincebut I hope foon to joke with you in per

Lucius Papirius Pætus appears to have been a perfon of great wit and humour, and in clofe

friendship with Cicero. "He was an Epicurean : and in pursuance of the plan of life recommended

by the principles of that feet, feems to have facri

ficed his ambition to his eafe. He had fent fome

military instructions by way of raillery to Cicero:

who returns an anfwer to this letter in the fame jocofe manner." Mr. Refs.

Pyrrhus, king of Epirus, who flourished about 300 years before the date of this letter, was Esteemed by the ancients as one of the greatest foldiers that ever appeared in the world. His whole thoughts and application were turned to the art of war upon which fubject he published fome

treatifes that were extant in Plutarch's time. Ci

neas was one of the generals who commanded under this heroic prince: and who, as it should feem from this paffage, had likewife diftinguished himself by his military writings. Plut. in vit. Pyrrbi. D 3 fon.

:

fon. In the mean time, attend with fub miffion due to my high behefts. You are not ignorant, I fuppofe, of the particular intimacy that fubfiits between Marcus Fabius and myfelf. I value him indeed extremely, not only for the fingular integrity and modefty of his heart, but as he is a moft excellent fecond to me in thofe contefts wherein I am fometimes engaged with certain jovial Epicurean companions of yours. He lately joined me at Laodicea; where I am very defirous of detaining him but he received an unexpected letter, which has given him great uneafinefs. The purport of it is, that his brother has advertised his intentions of felling an eftate at Herculaneum, in which they are both equally interested. This news exceedingly alarms my friend and as his brother's underftanding is not extremely strong, he is inclined to think he has been inftigated by fome of their common enemies, to take this very extraordinary meafure. Let me then intreat you, my dear Pætus, if you have any friendship for me, to cafe Fabius of the trouble of this affair, by receiving the whole burthen of it upon yourself. We fhall have occation for your authority, your advice, and your intereft and I hope you will exert them i all, in order to prevent thefe two brothers from the difgrace of appearing as adverfaries in a court of justice. I must not forget to tell you, that the perfons whom Fabius fufpects to be the malicious authors of this advice to his brother, are Mato and Pollio. To fay all in one word, I fhall think myfelf inexpreffibly obliged, if you cafe my friend of this troublefome, affair: a favour, he perfuades me, entirely in your power. Farewel.

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[A. U. 703.]

Yet no

feftival of Minerva ‡ was celebrated in a most riotous manner. But my intelligence goes no lower than that period : and I am altogether uninformed of any thing which has fince paffed. thing mortifies me more than being prevented the pleafure of laughing with you at feveral ridiculous incidents which attended, I am told, thefe public tumults: but they are of fuch a delicate nature that I dare not mention them in a letter. I am a good deal uneafy likewife, at not having received any account of these commotions from yourfelf. For which reafon, notwithstanding I fhall be fet out for Italy before this reaches your hand, yet I hope I fhall meet a letter from you upon the road, that I may not arrive an utter ftranger to the ftate of public affairs; as I am fure no man is more capable of inftructing me concerning them than yourfelf.

of

Your agent, the worthy Diogenes, together with your freed-man Philo §, parted from me at Peffinus ||, in order to proceed on their journey to the king Galatia: though with little hopes of fucceeding at a court neither very able nor very willing to comply with the purpofes of their embafly.

Rome, my friend, Rome alone, is the object that merits your attention: and may you ever live within the fplendor of that illuftrious fcene! All foreign employments (and it was my fentiments from my first entrance into the world) are below the ambition of those who have talents to diflinguish themfelves on that more confpicuous theatre, And would to God, as I was ever well convinced of this truth, that I had always acted accordingly! Be affured, the pleasure of a fingle walk with you would afford me more fatisfaction than all the advantages I can derive from my government. I

at Rome, in oppofing the attempts of the Pompeian party to diveit Cæfar of his government in Gaul. At the head of thefe tribunes, Curio, who had

I AM extremely anxious concerning af lately changed fides, now chofe to distinguish him

fairs at Rome: as I hear there have been great difturbances in the general affemblies of the people; and that the

The famous city near Naples, which was fwallowed up by an earthquake, in the reign of Vefpafian and which is now furnishing the literary world with fo many invaluable treafures of antiquity.

Manutius conjectures, that this alludes to the disturbances which fome of the tribunes occafioned

felf.

This feftival was celebrated on the 19th of March: and continued five days.

Celius mentions thete perfons in a former letrer, as being employed by him to execute fome commiffion in this part of the world: but the nature of the bufinefs with which they were charged does not appear.

A city in Phrygia within the jurifdiction of Cicero's government. Deiotarus.

hope,

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hope, indeed, I fhall receive the applaufe of having conducted myself throughout By adminiftration with an untainted integrity: however, I should have merited as much honour by refufing the government of this province, as by having thus preferved it from the hands of our enemies."But where then," you will afk perhaps," had been the hopes of a "triumph ?" Believe me, I fhould have deemed that lofs well compenfated, by efcaping fo long and fo tedious a feparation from all that I hold most valuable. But I hope I fhall now foon be with you. In the mean time let me meet a letter from you, worthy of your political penetration. Farewel.

LETTER LVIII.

To Marcus Cato. [A. U. 703.] PRaif from thy lips 'tis mine with pride te beast:

He best can give it who deferves it moft: as Hector, I think, fays to the venerable Priam in one of Nævius's plays. Hotourable indeed is that approbation which is betowed by thofe who have themselves been the conftant object of univerfal applace. Accordingly, I efteem the encomiams you conferred upon me in the fenate, together with your congratulatory letter, as a diftinction of the higheft and mot illuftrious kind. Nothing could be more agreeable to my wishes, as nothing could be more glorious for my reputation, than your having thus freely given to friendship, whatever you could ftricly give to truth. Were Rome entirely compofed of Catos, or could it produce many (as it is furprifing it can furnish even one) of that venerable character, my defires would be amply fatisfied; and I foald prefer your fingle approbation, to all the laurels and all the triumphal cars in the universe. In my own judgment indeed, and according to the refired climate of true philofophy, the hocars you paid me in the fenate, and which have been tranfmitted to me by my friends, is undoubtedly the moft fignificant diftinction I can poffible receive. I acquainted you in my former letter, with the particular motives which induced me to be defirous (for I will not call it ambitious) of a triumph: and if

the reafons I there affigned will not, in your opinion, juftify a warm pursuit of that honour; they must prove at leaft that I ought not to refufe it, if the senate fhould make me the offer. And I hope that affembly, in confideration of my fervices in this province, will not think me undeferving of a reward fo ufually conferred. If I fhould not be disappointed in this hope, my only request is (what indeed you kindly promife), that as you have paid me the honours you thought moft to my glory, you would rejoice in my obtaining thofe which are most to my inclination. And this difpofition you have already very fincerely fhewn, not only by your letter, but by having figned the decree that has paffed in my favour; for decrees of this kind, I know, are ufually fubfcribed by those who are moft in the intereft of the perfon to whofe honour they are voted. I will only add, that I hope to fee you very fhortly; and may I find the republic in a happier fituation than I have rea fon to fear! Farewel

LETTER LIX.

To Terentia and Tullia. Athens, October the 18th. [A. U. 703.] THE amiable young Cicero and myfelf

are perfectly well, if you and my dearest Tullia are fo. We arrived here* on the 14th of this month, after a very tedious and difagreeable paffage, occafioned by contrary winds. Acaftus + met me upon my landing, with letters from Rome; having been fo expeditious as to perform his journey in one-and-twenty days. In the packet which he delivered to me, I found yours, wherein you exprefs fome uneafinefs left your former letters fhould not have reached my hands. They have, my Terentia: and I am extremely obliged to you for the very full accounts you gave me of every thing I was concerned to know.

I am by no means furprised at the fhortness of your lait, as you had reafon to expect us fo foon. It is with great impatience I wish for that meeting: though I am fenfible, at the fame time, of the unhappy fituation in which I fhall find the republic. All the letters indeed which I received by Acaftus, agree in as† A freed-man belonging to Cicero. furing

#Athens.

D 4

furing me, that there is a general tendency to a civil war fo that when I come to Rome I fhall be under a neceffity of declaring myfelf on one fide or the other. However, fince there is no avoiding the fcene which fortune has prepared for me, I fhall be the more expeditious in my journey, that I may the better deliberate on the feveral circumftances which must determine my choice. Let me intreat you to meet me as far on my way as your health will permit. The legacy which Precius has left me, is an acquifition that I receive with great concern, as I tenderly loved him, and extremely lament his death. If his eflate fhould be put up to auction before my arrival, I beg you would recommend my interest in it to the care of Atticus: or in cafe his affairs thould not allow him to undertake the office, that you would requeft the fame favour of Camillus. And if this fhould not find you at Rome, I defire you would fend proper directions thither for that purpofe. As for my other affairs, I hope I fhall be able to fettle them myself: for I purpofe to be in Italy, if the gods favour my voyage, about the 13th of November. In the mean time I conjure you, my amiable and excellent Terentia, and thou my dearest Tullia, I conjure you both by all the tender regards you bear me, to take care of your healths.

I

Farewel.

LETTER LX.

To Tiro *.

November the 3d. [A. U. 703.] DID not imagine I fhould have been fo little able to fupport your abfence:

but indeed it is more than I can well

bear. Accordingly, notwithstanding it is of the laft importance to my intereft that I fhould haften to Rome, yet I cannot but feverely reproach myfelf for hav

He was a favourite flave of Cicero, who trained him up in his family, and tormed him under his own immedate tuition. The probity of his manners, the elegance of his gerius, and his uncommon erudition, recommended him to his maîter's peculiar esteem and affection: of which the letters aidiefied to him in this coll tion, are a Jafting and remarkable memorial.

+ As Cicero was full of the hopes of obtaining a triumph, he was defirous of hattening to Rome before the diffenfions between Cæfar and Pompey should be arrived at fo great a height as to render it impoffible for him to cajoy that hestur.

ing thus deferted you. However, as you feemed altogether averfe from pursuing your voyage till you should re-establish your health, I approved of your scheme; and I fill approve of it, if you continue in the fame fentiments. Neverthelefs if, after having taken fome refreshment, you fhould think yourself in a condition to follow me; you may do fo, or not, as you fhall judge proper. If you should determine in the affirmative, I have fent Mario to attend you: if not, I have ordered him to return immediately. Be well affured, there is nothing I more ardently defire than to have you with me, provided I may enjoy that pleafure without prejudice to yourfelf. But be affured too, that if your continuing fomewhat longer at Patræ fhould be thought neceffary, I prefer your health to all other confiderations. If you should embark immediately, you may overtake me at Leucus §. But if you are more inclined to defer your voyage till your recovery fhall be better confirmed, let me intreat you to be very careful in chooûng a safe fhip; and that you would neither fail at an improper feafon nor without a convoy. I particularly charge you alfo, my dear Tiro, by all the regard you bear me, not to fuffer the arrival of Mario, or any thing that I have faid in this letter, in the least to influence your refolution. Believe me, whatever will be most agreeable to your health, will be mot agreeable likewife to my inclinations: and therefore I defire you would be wholly governed by your own prudence. 'Tis true, I am extremely defirous of your company, and of enjoying it as early as poffible: but the fame affection which makes me with to fee you foon, makes me with to fee you well. Let your health therefore be your firft and principal care; affuring yourself, that among all the numberless good offices I have received at your hands, I fhall eftcem this by far the most acceptable.

A city in Peloponnefus, which still fubfifts under the name of Patras. Cicero had left Tiro indifpoted in this place, the day before the date of the prefent letter.

A Little Grecian ifland in the Ionian fea, now called Saint Maure. It was on this fand that the celebrated promontory food, from whence the tendei Sappho is faid to have thrown herfelf in a fit of am rous defpur: and which the inimitable Audi. fon has rendered ftill more celebrated by his ingenious papers on the Lover's Leap. Set Spettater, vol. 3. N° 223, 233

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