Humanitext Reader

Cicero · Letters to Friends §11.9.1-11.9.2

Pursuit of Antony and Warning against Lepidus

Passage 245 of 413 · Latin

Summary

In the critical situation following the death of Pansa, Decimus Brutus urges Cicero to be vigilant, informs him of his pursuit of Antony, and warns him to keep a close watch on Lepidus and others.

§11.9.1Pansa amisso quantum detrimenti res p. acceperit non te praeterit.
How much loss the republic has suffered from the death of Pansa does not escape you.
nunc auctoritate et prudentia tua prospicias oportet, ne inimici nostri consulibus sublatis sperent se convalescere posse.
Now you must look to it with your authority and wisdom, lest our enemies, with the consuls removed, hope that they can recover their strength.
ego ne consistere possit in Italia Antonius dabo operam; sequar eum confestim.
I will do my utmost to prevent Antony from being able to establish himself in Italy; I shall pursue him immediately.
utrumque me praestaturum spero, ne aut Ventidius elabatur aut Antonius in Italia moretur.
I hope to achieve both, so that neither Ventidius may escape nor Antony linger in Italy.
in primis rogo te ad hominem ventosissimum, Lepidum, mittas, ne bellum nobis redintegrare possit Antonio sibi coniuncto.
Above all, I ask you to send a message to that most fickle of men, Lepidus, lest, by Antony joining him, he should be able to renew the war against us.
nam de Pollione Asinio puto te perspicere quid facturus sit.
As for Asinius Pollio, I think you perceive what he is going to do.
multae et bonae et firmae sunt legiones Lepidi et Asini.
The legions of Lepidus and Asinius are many, good, and strong.
§11.9.2neque haec idcirco tibi scribo, quod te non eadem animadvertere sciam, sed quod mihi persuasissimum est Lepidum recte facturum numquam, si forte vobis id de hoc dubium est.
Nor do I write these things to you because I think you are not aware of the same, but because I am most firmly convinced that Lepidus will never do what is right, if by chance you have any doubt about him on this point.
Plancum quoque confirmetis oro; quem spero pulso Antonio rei p. non defuturum.
I also beg that you strengthen Plancus, who, I hope, once Antony is defeated, will not fail the republic.
si se Alpis Antonius traiecerit, constitui praesidium in Alpibus conlocare et te de omni re facere certiorem.
If Antony crosses the Alps, I have resolved to station a garrison in the Alps and to keep you informed of everything.
iii K. Mai. ex castris Regio.
April 29th, from the camp at Regium.

Notes

  1. 11.9.1Pansa amisso — An ablative absolute construction with a noun and a perfect participle, functioning here not merely as a temporal clause ('when Pansa was lost') but to express the event itself ('the loss of Pansa') as a noun phrase (the so-called 'ab urbe condita' type construction).
  2. 11.9.1prospicias oportet — A construction where the subjunctive (prospicias) directly follows the impersonal verb oportet with the omission of the conjunction ut, expressing a strong obligation or necessity ('you must look to it').
  3. 11.9.2quod te non eadem animadvertere sciam — A quod-clause expressing a rejected reason ('not because I think...'). The subjunctive (sciam) is used instead of the indicative because it presents a subjective reason which the speaker denies as being the actual cause.

Cite this passage

Cicero, Letters to Friends §11.9.1-11.9.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0474.phi056.humanitext-lat1:11.9.1-11.9.2

Please note the AI-draft status of the translation and the date accessed.

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