§43haec vera laus est, quae non poetarum carminibus, non annalium monumentis celebratur, sed prudentium iudicio expenditur.
This is true praise, which is not celebrated by the songs of poets, nor by the monuments of annals, but is weighed by the judgment of the wise.
equitem Romanum veterem amicum suum studiosum, amantem, observantem sui non libidine, non turpibus impensis cupiditatum atque iacturis, sed experientia patrimoni amplificandi labentem excepit, corruere non sivit, fulsit et sustinuit re, fortuna, fide, hodieque sustinet nec amicum pendentem corruere patitur; nec illius animi aciem praestringit splendor sui nominis, nec mentis quasi luminibus officit altitudo fortunae et gloriae.
A Roman knight, his old friend, zealous, loving, and respectful of him—when he was slipping, not through lust, nor through disgraceful expenditures and losses of desires, but in his experience of amplifying his patrimony, [Caesar] received him, did not allow him to fall, propped him up and sustained him with resources, fortune, and fidelity, and sustains him today, nor does he allow his wavering friend to fall; nor does the splendor of his own name dim the sight of that man's mind, nor does the height of fortune and glory obstruct, as it were, the light of his mind.
§44sint sane illa magna, quae re vera magna sunt; de iudicio animi mei, ut volet quisque, sentiat; ego enim hanc in tantis opibus, tanta fortuna liberalitatem in suos, memoriam amicitiae reliquis virtutibus omnibus antepono.
Let those things indeed be great, which are truly great; let everyone feel as he wishes about the judgment of my mind; for I prefer this generosity toward one's own, this memory of friendship, in the midst of such great wealth and such great fortune, to all other virtues.
quam quidem vos, iudices, eius in novo genere bonitatem, inusitatam claris ac praepotentibus viris, non modo non aspernari ac refutare sed complecti etiam et augere debetis, et eo magis quod videtis hos quidem sumptos dies ad labefactandam illius dignitatem.
This goodness of his, judges, of a new kind, unusual for illustrious and very powerful men, you ought not only not to despise and reject, but even to embrace and increase, and all the more because you see that these very days are being spent to undermine his dignity.
ex qua illi nihil detrahi potest quod non aut fortiter ferat aut facile restituat; amicissimum hominem si honestate spoliatum audierit, nec sine magno dolore feret et id amiserit quod posse non speret recuperari.
From which nothing can be detracted from him that he would not either bear bravely or easily restore; but if he hears that his closest friend has been despoiled of his honor, he will not bear it without great pain, and he will have lost what he could not hope to recover.
§45satis multa hominibus non iniquis haec esse debent, nimis etiam multa vobis quos aequissimos esse confidimus.
These things ought to be quite enough for men who are not unjust, and even too many for you whom we trust to be most just.
sed ut omnium vel suspicioni vel malivolentiae vel crudelitati satis fiat:
occultat pecuniam Postumus, latent regiae divitiae. ecquis est ex tanto populo qui bona C. Rabiri Postumi nummo sestertio sibi addici velit? sed miserum me, quanto hoc dixi cum dolore! hem, Postume, tune es C. Curti filius, C. Rabiri iudicio et voluntate filius, natura sororis? tune ille in omnis tuos liberalis, cuius multos bonitas locupletavit, qui nihil profudisti, nihil ullam in libidinem contulisti? tua, Postume, nummo sestertio a me addicuntur? O meum miserum acerbumque praeconium!
But so that the suspicion, or malice, or cruelty of all may be satisfied: "Postumus is hiding money, the royal riches are concealed." Is there anyone out of so great a populace who would wish the property of Gaius Rabirius Postumus to be adjudged to him for a single sesterce? But wretched me, with how much pain have I said this! Ah, Postumus, are you the son of Gaius Curtius, the son of Gaius Rabirius by judgment and will, and by nature of his sister? Are you that man so generous to all your people, whose goodness enriched many, who wasted nothing, who contributed nothing to any lust? Is your property, Postumus, adjudged by me for a single sesterce? Oh, my wretched and bitter proclamation of auction!
§46at hoc etiam optat miser ut vel condemnetur a vobis, si ita bona veneant ut solidum suum cuique solvatur.
But even this the wretched man hopes, that he may even be condemned by you, if only his property may be sold in such a way that his full debt may be paid to everyone.
nihil iam aliud nisi fidem curat, nec vos huic, si iam oblivisci vestrae mansuetudinis volueritis, quicquam praeterea potestis eripere.
He now cares for nothing else but his good faith, nor can you, even if you should now wish to forget your own clemency, snatch anything else from him.
quod, iudices, ne faciatis oro obtestorque vos, atque eo magis, si adventicia pecunia petitur ab eo cui sua non redditur.
Which, judges, I pray and beseech you not to do, and all the more if foreign money is demanded from him to whom his own is not restored.
nam in eum cui misericordia opitulari debebat invidia quaesita est.
For hatred was sought against him whom mercy ought to have helped.
§47sed iam, quoniam, ut spero, fidem quam tibi dedi praestiti, Postume, reddam etiam lacrimas quas debeo; quas quidem ego tuas in meo casu plurimas vidi.
But now, since, as I hope, I have performed the faith which I gave to you, Postumus, I will also return the tears which I owe; which indeed I saw very many of yours in my own misfortune.
versatur ante oculos luctuosa nox meis omnibus, cum tu totum te cum tuis copiis ad me detulisti.
That mournful night is present before the eyes of all my people, when you brought yourself entirely with your resources to me.
tu comitibus, tu praesidio, tu etiam tanto pondere auri quantum tempus illud postulabat discessum illum sustentasti, tu numquam meis me absente liberis, numquam coniugi meae defuisti.
You sustained that departure with companions, with protection, and even with as great a weight of gold as that time demanded; you never failed my children in my absence, never failed my wife.
possum excitare multos in patriam reductos testis liberalitatis tuae, quod saepe audivi patri tuo Curtio magno adiumento in iudicio capitis fuisse; §48sed iam omnia timeo; bonitatis ipsius invidiam reformido.
I can summon many who have been restored to their country as witnesses of your generosity, whom I have often heard were a great help to your father Curtius in his capital trial; but now I fear all things; I dread the hatred of that very goodness.
nam indicat tot hominum fletus quam sis carus tuis, et me dolor debilitat intercluditque vocem.
For the weeping of so many men indicates how dear you are to your people, and pain weakens me and cuts off my voice.
vos obsecro, iudices, ut huic optimo viro, quo nemo melior umquam fuit, nomen equitis Romani et usuram huius lucis et vestrum conspectum ne eripiatis.
I beseech you, judges, not to snatch from this excellent man, than whom no one was ever better, the name of a Roman knight, and the enjoyment of this light, and your sight.
hic vos aliud nihil orat nisi ut rectis oculis hanc urbem sibi intueri atque ut in hoc foro vestigium facere liceat, quod ipsum fortuna eripuerat, nisi unius amici opes subvenissent.
He prays nothing else of you except that he may be allowed to look upon this city with straight eyes, and to make a footprint in this forum, which itself fortune would have snatched away, had not the resources of his one friend come to his aid.